The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Sexual segregation of pelagic sharks and the potential threat from fisheries

Sexual segregation of pelagic sharks and the potential threat from fisheries
Sexual segregation of pelagic sharks and the potential threat from fisheries
Large pelagic sharks are declining in abundance in many oceans owing to fisheries exploitation. What is not known however is whether within-species geographical segregation of the sexes exacerbates this as a consequence of differential exploitation by spatially focused fisheries. Here we show striking sexual segregation in the fastest swimming shark, the shortfin mako Isurus oxyrinchus, across the South Pacific Ocean. The novel finding of a sexual ‘line in the sea’ spans a historical longline-fishing intensity gradient, suggesting that differential exploitation of the sexes is possible, a phenomenon which may underlie changes in the shark populations observed elsewhere.

distribution, behaviour, sex ratio, sexual harassment, overfishing, conservation
1744-9561
156-159
Mucientes, Gonzales R
aa752875-7bda-4157-8a4a-d99a99f78c37
Queiroz, Nuno.
f36209dc-ab54-40b0-8d3c-08a73ba298ef
Sousa, Lara L
a00c03f3-6437-46d0-b8bc-8911a57804c5
Tarroso, Pedro
1e03e9eb-ce12-4eaa-be8d-c65b8426c53e
Sims, David W
7234b444-25e2-4bd5-8348-a1c142d0cf81
Mucientes, Gonzales R
aa752875-7bda-4157-8a4a-d99a99f78c37
Queiroz, Nuno.
f36209dc-ab54-40b0-8d3c-08a73ba298ef
Sousa, Lara L
a00c03f3-6437-46d0-b8bc-8911a57804c5
Tarroso, Pedro
1e03e9eb-ce12-4eaa-be8d-c65b8426c53e
Sims, David W
7234b444-25e2-4bd5-8348-a1c142d0cf81

Mucientes, Gonzales R, Queiroz, Nuno., Sousa, Lara L, Tarroso, Pedro and Sims, David W (2009) Sexual segregation of pelagic sharks and the potential threat from fisheries. Biology Letters, 5 (2), 156-159. (doi:10.1098/rsbl.2008.0761).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Large pelagic sharks are declining in abundance in many oceans owing to fisheries exploitation. What is not known however is whether within-species geographical segregation of the sexes exacerbates this as a consequence of differential exploitation by spatially focused fisheries. Here we show striking sexual segregation in the fastest swimming shark, the shortfin mako Isurus oxyrinchus, across the South Pacific Ocean. The novel finding of a sexual ‘line in the sea’ spans a historical longline-fishing intensity gradient, suggesting that differential exploitation of the sexes is possible, a phenomenon which may underlie changes in the shark populations observed elsewhere.

Text
156.abstract - Version of Record
Download (48kB)

More information

Published date: 23 April 2009
Keywords: distribution, behaviour, sex ratio, sexual harassment, overfishing, conservation
Organisations: Ocean and Earth Science

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 340118
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/340118
ISSN: 1744-9561
PURE UUID: e1c07681-f5e5-437c-b820-051ad0f51ecf

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 11 Jun 2012 15:34
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 11:19

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: Gonzales R Mucientes
Author: Nuno. Queiroz
Author: Lara L Sousa
Author: Pedro Tarroso
Author: David W Sims

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×