{"id":293682,"date":"2024-11-10T21:25:51","date_gmt":"2024-11-10T21:25:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2024\/11\/10\/how-an-extraordinary-new-effort-is-giving-sharks-a-fighting-chance\/"},"modified":"2024-11-10T21:25:51","modified_gmt":"2024-11-10T21:25:51","slug":"how-an-extraordinary-new-effort-is-giving-sharks-a-fighting-chance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2024\/11\/10\/how-an-extraordinary-new-effort-is-giving-sharks-a-fighting-chance\/","title":{"rendered":"How an extraordinary new effort is giving sharks \u2018a fighting chance\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Off the coast of Indonesia\u2019s easternmost island, on a bright January day this year, Nesha Ichida waded into the crystal-clear waters of a secluded lagoon, gently cradling a 15-week-old zebra shark named Charlie. She lowered her hands into the water and Charlie swam free \u2014 weaving his long, striped tail fin as he disappeared into the reef.<\/p>\n<p>A short time later, Ichida, a local marine biologist, released two more shark pups into the water.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe had been working toward that moment for three years, we were so proud,\u201d she recalled recently. \u201cMy hope is that Charlie and the others will be ambassadors for their species \u2014 and all the other sharks we want to protect.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"image--right\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/temp\/charlie?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;w=800\" alt=\"\"\/><span class=\"image-credits--overlay\">\u00a9 Mark Erdmann<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"image__caption\">Charlie nine weeks after hatching.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The three pups (Charlie and his sisters Kathlyn and Audrey) are the first endangered sharks ever to be bred in captivity for the purpose of being released into the wild. Laid in a Sydney aquarium, their fragile egg casings were carefully secured and boxed up for the 8,000-kilometer (5,000-mile) journey \u2014 by land, air and sea \u2014 to the protected waters of Raja Ampat, a remote archipelago known for its extraordinary biodiversity.<\/p>\n<p>The pups are pioneers in a global effort known as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reshark.org\/\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" data-sf-marked=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ReShark<\/a>, a multinational partnership of nearly 80 aquariums, universities and environmental organizations \u2014 including Conservation International and its local partner Konservasi Indonesia \u2014 that has launched a captive breeding program to reintroduce threatened sharks into the wild.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s an audacious plan. For decades, captive breeding programs have successfully reinvigorated struggling populations of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sumatranorangutan.org\/our-work\/creating-new-wild-populations\/reintroduction\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">orangutans<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2020\/09\/17\/world\/captive-breeding-species-cte-scn-spc-intl\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">California condors<\/a> and other wildlife. But the approach had never been tried with marine species.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWitnessing those first zebra sharks swim away was simply electrifying,\u201d said Mark Erdmann, who leads Conservation International\u2019s Asia-Pacific marine programs and came up with the idea for the program. \u201cI\u2019ve had this dream since 2015, and to have it finally realized after years of false starts, trials and tribulations, and hard work is truly awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Erdmann figured that if sharks could be released from aquariums back into the wild to somewhere they wouldn\u2019t be caught, they just might be able to come back from the edge of extinction.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSharks are some of the most misunderstood, and threatened, species on the planet,\u201d Erdmann said. \u201cWe have an opportunity to give them a fighting chance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"First Ever Shark Pup Release | StAR Project\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Gq0IPDL2Agg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\u00a0<\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2>A rare haven<\/h2>\n<p>In just about any place in Southeast Asia, there\u2019s a good chance Charlie and the other pups could have been caught and killed for their fins after being released. But Raja Ampat is different.<\/p>\n<p>Nearly two decades ago, this ecosystem was almost destroyed by unregulated commercial fishing, poaching and damaging practices such as <a href=\"https:\/\/ocean.si.edu\/ecosystems\/coral-reefs\/fishing-dynamite\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">dynamite fishing<\/a>. But <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservation.org\/stories\/virtual-reality\/valens-reef\">conservation efforts<\/a> \u2014 led by local communities \u2014 gradually changed all that. Today, this remarkable archipelago in Southwest Papua, Indonesia, is made up of nine interconnected marine protected areas covering about 67,000 square kilometers (26,000 square miles) that are home to the <a href=\"https:\/\/rajaampatmarinepark.com\/the-reefs\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">greatest diversity of marine life on the planet<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Fish populations have rebounded; sharks, whales and rays have returned; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/travel\/article\/raja-ampat-indonesia-cmd\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">poaching is down 90 percent<\/a> and coral reefs are recovering. At the same time, ecotourism has flourished \u2014 while local people\u2019s access to education, food and livelihoods have improved. Raja Ampat is a monument to effective marine conservation \u2014 the perfect place for ReShark to test the idea that captive breeding and release could boost shark populations.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/temp\/wayag-release-site-pano-2?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;w=800\" alt=\"\"\/><span class=\"image-credits--overlay\">\u00a9 Mark Erdmann<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"image__caption\">View of the zebra shark release site in Wayag lagoon, Raja Ampat.<\/p>\n<h2>A long journey home<\/h2>\n<p>Charlie, Kathlyn and Audrey\u2019s story began in a tank at the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium, where they were bred from zebra sharks that had been captured off the coast of Australia \u2014 one of the few places where the species is thriving, thanks to a ban on shark finning.<\/p>\n<div class=\"image--right\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/temp\/kathlyn-with-egg-case?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;w=800\" alt=\"\"\/><span class=\"image-credits--overlay\">\u00a9 Mark Erdmann<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"image__caption\">Kathlyn newly hatched from her egg casing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Zebra sharks were once as common in Raja Ampat\u2019s sandy seabeds as in Australia. But overfishing, driven by demand for their fins, caused the species to all but vanish in the wild. Zebra sharks became endangered and by 2020, the Raja Ampat population had dwindled to roughly <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cbsg.org\/sites\/cbsg.org\/files\/documents\/Zebra Shark PVA Final Report_May2021.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">20 individuals<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Yet as zebra shark populations shrank in the wild, they were thriving in public aquariums.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe had this fascinating conservation asymmetry playing out,\u201d Erdmann said. \u201cIn the wild, these animals are really in trouble, but in captivity they are breeding like rabbits.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Though the breeding program held tremendous promise, the team was in uncharted waters, said scientist Iqbal Herwata, who works with Konservasi Indonesia, one of the project partners.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAquariums were so successful at breeding zebra sharks that many had to separate the males from the females because they couldn\u2019t handle the number of eggs being laid,\u201d Herwata said. <\/p>\n<p>For many aquariums, this was too much of a good thing. It prompted many of them to place a moratorium on breeding for more than a decade.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, breeding zebra sharks wasn\u2019t as straightforward as putting the males and females back in the same tanks \u2014 the genetics had to line up.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIntroducing genetic variants that are not well-suited to the local environment can hinder population recovery and disrupt ecosystems,\u201d Herwata said. \u201cIn other words, the breeding zebra sharks had to belong to the specific population that had originally inhabited Indonesian waters.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/temp\/reshark_eggs_arrival-19?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;w=800\" alt=\"\"\/><span class=\"image-credits--overlay\">\u00a9 Indo Pacific Films<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"image__caption\">Laura Simmons of the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium packs up an egg casing.<\/p>\n<p>Back at Sea Life Sydney Aquarium, a suitable breeding pair began mating and producing eggs. The plan was on.<\/p>\n<p>At roughly three months old, and still in their egg casings, Charlie and six other shark embryos were placed in individual plastic bags with about a gallon of oxygenated seawater and packed into insulated Styrofoam boxes for the journey to their new home in Indonesia.<\/p>\n<p>Keeping the eggs, and later the hatchlings, in a comfortable, oxygen-rich environment proved challenging. Partway through that first trip from Sydney to Raja Ampat, the shipment of eggs got stuck in customs at Jakarta\u2019s airport on a Friday due to a clerical error. The eggs were transferred to a local aquarium for the weekend while the issue was sorted out. Unfortunately, it was too late for two of the embryos, which died, likely due to a lack of oxygen.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a lesson learned,\u201d Erdmann said. \u201cNow we ship the eggs on a Monday.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/temp\/reshark_eggs_arrival-57?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;w=800\" alt=\"\"\/><span class=\"image-credits--overlay\">\u00a9 Indo Pacific Films<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"image__caption\">Hatchery in Raja Ampat.<\/p>\n<p>Once in Raja Ampat after their long journey, the remaining three eggs (two were found to be infertile) went to hatcheries specially built for them at partnering dive resorts. For nearly two months before the eggs hatched, young local scientists known as \u201cshark nannies,\u201d who were trained to care for the pups, monitored the tanks\u2019 water quality and kept the eggs clean. Once hatched, the pups had to eat up to seven times a day. The nannies charted their growth \u2014 feeding them live snails, clams, shrimp and crabs so they could learn to fend for themselves.<\/p>\n<div class=\"image--right\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/temp\/20230516_usa-wa_0816-edit-edit?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;w=800\" alt=\"\"\/><span class=\"image-credits--overlay\">\u00a9 Burt Jones<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"image__caption\">Shark nanny feeding a zebra shark pup.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cThey grow about two and a half times as fast in our hatcheries as they do in aquariums,\u201d Herwata said. \u201cOnce they reach roughly 50 centimeters (20 inches) in length, we move them into fenced sea pens where they can swim among seagrasses and live corals and begin searching for wild prey \u2014 but we can still monitor them and make sure they aren\u2019t eaten by anything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When Charlie and his sisters reached roughly a meter (about 3 feet) in length, it was time to head into the wild. Researchers tagged them for future monitoring; placed each one in a large, covered tank; and loaded them onto a boat headed for the Wayag lagoon, nearly 130 kilometers (80 miles) away.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018The sky\u2019s the limit\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>With three zebra shark pups hatched, raised and released into the wild in Raja Ampat, the team has proof of concept. Egg casings continue to arrive at the hatcheries and are being prepared for release. Over the next decade, ReShark plans to release at least 500 zebra shark pups into the Raja Ampat archipelago. The team has already begun to explore new locations and is building hatcheries that will function well for other endangered shark species, and even rays.<\/p>\n<p>In Indonesia, the project could reach beyond Raja Ampat, as the Indonesian government hopes to replicate its success in other locations, and with other species of sharks, said Fahmi, a senior scientist with the Indonesian National Innovation and Research Agency, and an adviser to the ReShark initiative. Like many Indonesians, he uses just one name.<\/p>\n<p>The project has implications for ecosystems all over the planet. Worldwide, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.iucnssg.org\/iucnredlist.html\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">nearly 400 species of sharks are threatened<\/a> \u2014 from the mighty great white to the docile <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservation.org\/blog\/indonesia-protects-walking-sharks-are-other-sharks-next\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\">walking shark<\/a>. Shark populations have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41586-020-03173-9.epdf\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">dropped dramatically<\/a> in the past 50 years due mainly to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/science-environment-55830732\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">shark fin trade<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The project also has the potential to build empathy for these misunderstood animals, which have helped maintain a delicate balance in the world\u2019s ocean ecosystems for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhm.ac.uk\/discover\/shark-evolution-a-450-million-year-timeline.html\" target=\"_blank\" data-sf-ec-immutable=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">450 million years<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo me, the sky\u2019s the limit for this world-leading initiative,\u201d Erdmann said. \u201cIt\u2019s immensely satisfying, knowing we played a role in bringing them back where they belong. I\u2019m confident that in a few years\u2019 time, visitors to Raja Ampat will be able to enjoy seeing zebra sharks throughout the region.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/temp\/reshark_eggs_arrival-28?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop?&amp;auto=compress&amp;auto=format&amp;w=800\" alt=\"\"\/><span class=\"image-credits--overlay\">\u00a9 Indo Pacific Films<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"image__caption\">View of the hatcheries at sunset, Raja Ampat.<\/p>\n<p><em>Mary Kate McCoy is a staff writer at Conservation International. Want to read more stories like this? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservation.org\/act\/subscribe\">Sign up for email updates<\/a>. Also, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservation.org\/act\">please consider supporting our critical work<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservation.org\/blog\/how-an-extraordinary-new-effort-is-giving-sharks-a-fighting-chance\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Off the coast of Indonesia\u2019s easternmost island, on a bright January day this year, Nesha Ichida waded into the crystal-clear waters of a secluded lagoon,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":293683,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[189],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-293682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nature"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293682","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=293682"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293682\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/293683"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=293682"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=293682"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newhampshiredigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=293682"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}