Credit: Photo by Jay Harvey, Aquarium of the Pacific
It s a tough time to be a shark. Pollution, industrialized fishing, and climate change threaten marine life, and the populations of many top ocean predators have declined in recent years. In addition to studying sharks in the wild, scientists working to save sharks rely on ones living in zoos and aquariums so that they can help build breeding programs and learn more about the conditions sharks need to thrive. One important way the scientists do that is by playing matchmakers to the sharks, pairing up individuals in ways that increase genetic diversity. In a new study in
Scientists bring to life nearly 100 baby sharks through artificial insemination
Sharks are as fascinating as they are endangered, and scientists have been sounding the alarm on the rate at which shark populations are declining.
Sixteen
out of 31 oceanic shark species are now critically endangered or endangered, a study published in the journal Nature found earlier this year. The number of oceanic sharks and rays in the world has declined by 71% from 1970 to 2018,
the researchers observed.
Now, scientists have been able to use artificial insemination to bring 97 baby sharks to life, a new study published in Scientific Reports revealed, in what a release describes as the “largest-ever effort to artificially inseminate sharks.”
Sharks are as fascinating as they are endangered, and scientists have been sounding the alarm on the rate at which shark populations are declining. Sixteen out of 31 oceanic shark species are now critically endangered or endangered, a study published in the journal Nature found earlier this year. The number of oceanic sharks and rays in the world has declined by 71 per cent from 1970 to 2018, the researchers observed. Now, scientists have been able to use artificial insemination to bring 97 shark pups to life, a new study published in Scientific Reports revealed, in what a release describes as the largest-ever effort to artificially inseminate sharks.