As if plucked from Jurassic waters , savour sharks – the second - largest shark in the universe – languidly move through today ’s oceans , their mouths agape love as they sift through tons of seawater to catch target . It ’s little wonder such an underwater quirk has piqued the curiosity of scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution ( WHOI ) .
The team’sREMUS SharkCamhas captured footage of the sharks off the West Coast of Scotland for the first time . ab initio acquire to cross snowy shark , the scientist reverse the self-directed underwater vehicle ( AUV ) on basking shark in the hopes of memorize more about these iconic beast .
" Every clip we deploy REMUS SharkCam , we study something new about the species we are studying , " suppose Amy Kukulya , WHOI research engineer and SharkCam principal investigator , in astatement . " We ’re able to take away the ocean ’s opaque layer and dive into post never before potential with this ground - break technology answer questions about cardinal species and revealing new 1 . "
The project is taking shoes in a purport marine protected country ( MPA ) under give-and-take by the Scottish Government . The part has see to it large numbers of enjoy sharks congregate , possibly even breeding in these amniotic fluid , although such an result has never been seen before on film . The team trust the wide - angle , gamey - definition footage from the robotic fomite will serve " tone the case " for shelter boundaries in this sphere of the ocean .
The REMUS SharkCam is programmed to follow a especially design tag place on a shark and can frontward predict where the animal will go and follow along at a safe distance . Credit : Amy Kukulya , @oceanrobotcam , Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The SharkCam , which look like a yellow torpedo , is programmed to follow a transponder beacon on the shark ’s fin , following at a safe space behind . As it does , it simultaneously pick up data such as ocean temperature , salinity , and depth from the seafloor . The project is fund by the WHOI , WWF , Sky Ocean Rescue , SNH , and the University of Exeter .
Basking sharks ( Cetorhinus maximus ) are labeled by theIUCN Red Listas vulnerable to defunctness due to overfishing . Their 5 are sold for shark fin soup in Asia , with a fresh couplet fetching gamy price at markets . The liver is also believed to be an aphrodisiac in Japan .
" These giant Pisces are outstanding and watching them feed graciously at the ocean surface is such a particular and memorable experience , " sound out Dr Suzanne Henderson , marine policy and advice officer at SNH . " This year ’s collaboration has let us to utilize a combination of television camera technologies and given us a glimpse of basking sharks ’ underwater behavior – a real first and very exciting . The footage has already made us reassess their demeanor , with the shark seem to spend much more time swim just above the seabed than we antecedently conceive . "
The behemoth sharks cangrowas farseeing as 12 meters ( 40 foundation ) and matter over 5 tons . They often love enjoy in the ardent waters of the surface , their large mouths open in search of food , scooping up zooplankton as sustenance for their tremendous eubstance .
" This year find the mop up of a X of body of work at Exeter to support the conservation of this metal money , " articulate Dr Matthew Witt of the University of Exeter . " In collaboration with SNH , we have deploy state of the art equipment over several years to determine of the behaviours of these elusive animals . "
Below is a picture of the ashen shark captured by the REMUS SharkCam .
Disclosure : Kristy Hamilton is a WHOI Ocean Science Journalism Fellow
OceanRobotCamfromUnderCurrent ProductionsonVimeo .
