Commonly held belief about sharks debunked in 'exciting' new video
Experts believe the discovery 'turns our fundamental understanding of them on its head'.
A popular belief about grey reef sharks always needing to move has been busted by researchers who filmed the ocean predators resting under ledges.
It had been assumed that the species, which lives between the islands of the Seychelles archipelago, needed to be in perpetual motion to breathe.
While some species of shark can lie still, grey reef sharks were thought to be amongst the type whose breath requires the ongoing ramming of oxygen-rich sea water over their gills through movement. Known as "obligate ram ventilators" these sharks are the most well known and include great whites, hammerheads, makos, threshers and bulls.
Why is this shark discovery important?
The research was conducted during surveys by divers studying the endangered grey reef sharks which were filmed lying under coral ledges. It was conducted by the research institute operated by Save Our Seas (SOS), the group involved in the recent discovery that blue whales had returned to the Seychelles. You can watch footage of the resting grey reef sharks below.
The SOS director of research Dr Robert Bullock said finding the shark species resting “turns our fundamental understanding of them on its head”.
While it had been hypothesised that the species does not sleep, the new research, published in Journal of Fish Biology, opens the possibility that it might.
The CEO of Save Our Seas Foundation, Dr James Lea, described the discovery as “exciting” because it proves we still have a lot to learn about sharks.
“How important is this rest, or possible sleep, for the sharks? And what’s the impact on them if they can’t get that rest if conditions change, such as oxygen levels rising or falling due to a changing climate?” he pondered.
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His colleague Dr Bullock added, “‘I hope that these findings serve as a reminder of how much we still do not know and how exciting that is. Science is about being wrong quite a lot. And that’s okay”.
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