08/04/2019
Línea Verde
info@lineaverdemunicipal.com
Satellites scanning the oceans are a valuable
new tool to protect sharks, according to scientists.
A review of
evidence suggests endangered sharks can be protected from threats such as
illegal fishing, using the technology.
Whales,
turtles and birds are already being monitored from space, raising hopes that
the technique can be applied in the conservation of other species.
Many sharks
are on the brink of extinction.
Populations
of sharks, rays and skates (elasmobranchs) have declined dramatically over the
past 50 years.
"New
technologies such as this are going to be really important to the conservation
of sharks," said Michael Williamson of the Zoological Society London (ZSL)
and King's College, London.
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Over-fishing
is one of the biggest causes of the decline in sharks, through accidental or
illegal targeting.
Predictive models based on big
data analysis will be the future in marine conservation, said Maria Jose Cornax
of the ocean conservation charity, Oceana, which was not involved in the study.
"The current situation
where illegal fishing is addressed on a case-by-case basis may be unaffordable
for both governments and the marine environment," she said.
"Technology, transparency and big data analysis
could be the solution, helping us in preventing the damage before it
happens."
Why
monitor sharks from space?
Satellites criss-crossing the globe can analyse
factors such as ocean temperature and salinity, which affect the movement of
sharks across the world's oceans.
Mining such data will allow sharks to be better
protected.
For example, patrol boats could be directed to areas
where sharks might be at risk of illegal fishing.
Satellite imagery is also being used in conservation
to detect population size - for example with whales and penguins.
"There's no reason we can't foresee this being moved on to elasmobranchs, especially particularly large ones, which might spend time at the surface, such as whale sharks or basking sharks or even manta rays," said Michael Williamson.
Data from satellites combined with other information from electronic tagging of sharks may be used in the future to police illegal fishing.
One study tracked grey reef and
silvertip sharks in a protected area of the British Indian Ocean Territory, to
see how they move around the oceans.
Such tags could be used in the
future to monitor sharks in real time from space, allowing detection of illegal
fishing.
Sharks are at the top of the
food chain, which makes them crucial to the health of the oceans.
Fishing - both targeted and
accidental - is to blame for the steep decline in many populations, together
with habitat loss due to coastal development, degradation of mangrove forests,
water pollution and trawling.
By Helen Briggs. BBC News Science & Environmen
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