Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · 4d

How do we tag sharks? Our team uses standardized, ethical methods to attach satellite tags that transmit movement data. You fund the tags and we’ll fund the time to deploy them. Join our Sharktober Tag Team!

sharkspacific.org?give=G2EXWJD6

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · 9d

Tag, you’re it! For this month, (Sharktober, of course), the Sharks Pacific Tag Team will donate to fund satellite tags to study shark movements in the Pacific Islands. Donors receive Tag Team swag, tracking access, and entry into a name-a-shark contest. Donate today. Link in bio. Tag a friend!

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Reposted by Sharks Pacific

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 17d

‘Super big deal’: High seas treaty reaches enough ratifications to become law

A major treaty establishing a framework for the world’s nations to jointly manage marine conservation in international waters, which cover about half of the Earth’s surface, has reached enough…

news.mongabay.com

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · 24d

What a cool experience!

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · 24d

They’re incredible to see up close. Mesmerizing.

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · 24d

Happy World Manta Day!

Predicted in 2009 by Dr. Andrea Marshall, but formally recognized & described in 2025, Mobula yarae became the third manta ray species. What are the scientific names for the other two species?

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Reposted by Sharks Pacific

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 25d

Brazil weighs new measures to manage shark trade, fishing

The Brazilian government is reviewing its legal framework for the trade in sharks. Measures now under consideration include a potential ban on fin exports and stricter rules for shark fishing and…

news.mongabay.com

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · 25d

Hahaha! It’s a tough title to contend with for sure. They ARE pretty great.

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · 26d

A white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) near Isla Guadalupe, MX.

Fun fact: Research shows their brains are dominated by huge olfactory bulbs, among the largest of any shark, letting them track prey and navigate by scent across vast distances.

Research: @profsharkbrain.bsky.social
📸 Shane Myers

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Sep 9

They really like attention, those red snappers!

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Sep 9

Our BRUVS camera footage never disappoints

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Reposted by Sharks Pacific

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · Sep 3

“fisheries from 46 nations now face stringent import restrictions, ensuring that seafood entering U.S. markets adhere to the same high standards as American-caught seafood.”

🧪🌎🦑🐠

www.noaa.gov/news-release...

NOAA Fisheries bolsters American seafood industry with new import provisions

Marine Mammal Protection Act import provisions ensure foreign fisheries meet U.S. standards of excellence

www.noaa.gov

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 28

Niue is often called “The Rock of Polynesia”—a raised coral island surrounded by some of the clearest water on Earth. With no rivers to carry sediment into the sea, visibility here can be up to 80m (basically infinity). We love doing our work here.

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 18

Thanks for the repost! Spread the word!

Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 14

They’re truly majestic and so happy to hear you got to experience that!

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 13

Ocellated eagle rays (Aetobatus ocellatus) flying through open space.

Fun fact: They use electroreception to locate buried mollusks in the sand, sometimes crushing shells with their plate-like teeth.

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 5

Shark finning is brutal and very real and just one of the threats to these animals on the high seas.

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 4

An oceanic whitetip (Carcharhinus longimanus) cruises through the blue waters of the Pacific.

Fact: Once considered one of the most common pelagic sharks, due to overfishing (both targeted & bycatch) their populations have drastically declined and they are now Critically Endangered.

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 4

Being on the water is the best!

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Aug 2

Thanks! It’s an honor!

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Jul 28

Silky sharks, affectionately known as silkies (Carcharhinus falciformis) aggregating in the Southern Line Islands.

Fun fact: They can detect low-frequency sounds from distressed prey—making them extremely efficient open-ocean hunters.

Research by the late Dr. Jeff Carrier, et al.

📸: Pristine Seas

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Reposted by Sharks Pacific

Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · Jul 21

Can blue sharks change color? 🦈🌈

Blue sharks might shimmer blue, green, or even gold, thanks to tiny crystals in their skin. These pressure-sensitive structures, found in their tooth-like scales, shift as the shark changes depth, reflecting light in different ways. 🧪

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Jul 21

Tawny nurse sharks (Nebrius ferrugineus) waiting for fish scraps on Penrhyn Island.

Fun fact: They use powerful suction to extract prey from narrow crevices. This is among the strongest suction forces recorded in sharks.

📸: Erin Feinblatt

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Sharks Pacific @sharkspacific.bsky.social · Jul 18

Grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) scour the shallows off Palmerston Island.

Fun fact: In some locations, during specific times of the year, they form an unusual “inverted food pyramid” where they outnumber their prey.

Research: Dr. Johann Mourier, et al.
📸: Kirby Morejohn

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Reposted by Sharks Pacific

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · Jul 17

Condition assessment and best-practice handling guidelines for skate (Rajiformes) bycatch: Lessons from demersal longline fisheries in the Southern Indian Ocean

www.sciencedirect.com

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