Researchers tag third great white during Nova Scotia expedition
HALIFAX — Researchers looking for a possible great white shark mating site off Nova Scotia are having a successful expedition so far, after tagging their third mature male on Saturday.
Scientists with the marine research organization Ocearch found “Hal” — named for the people of Halifax — lurking off the southern coast of Nova Scotia near West Ironbound Island.
Chris Fischer, the organization’s founder, described the four-metre-long predator as having an attitude, posing a challenge to the scientists looking to tag it and collect samples.
“It was highly determined; I’ve only dealt with a few sharks ever like Hal,” Fischer said in an interview from the Ocearch vessel off the coast of Nova Scotia.
“He really tested us from a power standpoint ... he was just a really impressive, powerful animal.”
The great white appears to be in perfect mating condition, Fischer said: he’s healthy, fullbodied, mature, and free of blemishes. Fischer said the semen sample they collected from him indicates he may be ready for some companionship.
Ocearch has already tagged two other sharks — Nova and Jefferson, both male as well — last week, but Hal was the first one from which they were able to get a full sperm sample.
The tag information will assist in understanding where great white sharks move in Canadian waters and help inform recovery and protection efforts. The public can also track shark movements through Ocearch’s online global shark tracker.
Fischer said it was “very rare” to find three male sharks in a row and they tend to find more females. He said they have seen other sharks they weren’t able to catch, suggesting Nova Scotia’s waters may be more full of sharks than they thought.
The next piece of the puzzle, he said, would be finding a mature female shark. That could help researchers figure out when and where the sharks are mating, along with when and where the females give birth, with the ultimate goal of locating the baby sharks and finding the nursery.
“Looking after and finding the nursery is kind of the Holy Grail of the work, because that’s where the sharks are most vulnerable,” Fischer said.
While sharks may appear scary, Fischer said they’re very important to the marine ecosystem, and with great whites’ conservation status listed as “vulnerable,” Fischer hopes his group’s research can help make the population stronger.
“If we can solve the puzzle of their lives and give that data to the people who are managing the ocean ... then we can make sure we move the system toward balance and abundance,” he said.