The Presence of Great White Sharks: Associations with Environmental Factors
Abstract
The white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) can be regarded as one of the greatest ambush
predators on Earth. White sharks have learned the best techniques, places, and times
to hunt to maximize their success rate. They are aware of environmental conditions
that affect their chances of success. This paper looks at the frequency of white
shark sightings compared to wind speeds in Mossel Bay, South Africa and wind’s effect
on white shark hunting behavior. The hypothesis is that more sharks will be hunting
during high wind speeds because this decreases water visibility and increases swell
height, two known environmental factors that aid in ambush predation. Ambush predators
like the white shark benefit from poor water visibility and large swells which put
their prey at a visual disadvantage. Sharks in Mossel Bay must rely on water visibility
more than water depth to conceal their presence because it is relatively shallow thus
making wind speed especially important here. This paper aims to serve as a preliminary
analysis of wind speed and suggests that more in-depth studies on wind speed be conducted.
Future studies that more accurately and consistently record wind speed and other data
will be useful in further proving this hypothesis. Beach-goers, policy makers, and
the South African government can all stand to benefit from studies like this one that
examine shark behavior and aim to determine shark critical habitat.
Type
Master's projectPermalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/3632Citation
Dove, Karen (2011). The Presence of Great White Sharks: Associations with Environmental Factors. Master's project, Duke University. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/3632.Collections
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