OCEARCH-tagged sharks start returning to Nova Scotian waters
Posted Jun 28, 2021 07:55:00 PM.
As the waters warm up off our coastline, great white sharks tagged by OCEARCH are starting to return to our area.
Gladee, a juvenile female, pinged Sunday night near the mouth of the Bay of Fundy.
She was the fifth shark tagged during last year's Nova Scotian expedition. The crew reeled her in near Hirtles Beach and she's named after a popular canteen that used to operate at the swimming spot.
Another juvenile female named Rose is also in the area, pinging a bit further out in the Gulf of Maine last week. Named for Rose Bay, she was also tagged last year.
A sub-adult female named Helena swam south of our Atlantic Coast earlier this month. She was tagged in Hilton Head, South Carolina in 2019 and last pinged on Saturday southeast of Newfoundland in the Grand Banks.
The OCEARCH team has had three expeditions in Nova Scotia, tagging a total of 25 sharks. They can be tracked on the group's website.
When each animal is brought on board the group's vessel several samples — including tissue, blood and other fluids — are taken for various research projects to study the biology, physiology, health and behaviour of the white shark population.
