World of Sharks

BONUS EPISODE - 50 Years On: Was Jaws Really Bad for Sharks? With Amani Webber-Schultz and Chris Pepin-Neff

We're gonna need a bigger podcast...

In honour of the 50th anniversary of the release of Jaws - one of the most iconic shark movies of all time - we are bringing you a very special bonus episode wholly dedicated to the film. Host Isla is joined by two jawsome guests: shark scientist and science communicator Amani Webber-Schultz (@curly_biologist), and social scientist and Associate Professor in public policy, Dr Chris Pepin-Neff (@csyd2202). Together, they discuss the cultural impact of Jaws and its negative effects on public perceptions of sharks and shark conservation, as well as its positive influences - including sparking the careers of a whole generation of shark scientists. And, they take a deep dive into the film itself, reliving their favourite scenes, sharing behind-the-scenes facts, and dreaming up their own pitches to Hollywood.

Shownotes: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast

Check out Minorities in Shark Sciences (MISS), the organisation that Amani co-founded, here: https://www.misselasmo.org/

Amani's appearance on Wired: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8hjTa1IeNc) and Insider: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=habSJ85RFBQ

You can watch Chris' TED talk on Rogue Shark Theory here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vcmy2Bd23wE

Find out more about Chris' publications here: https://sydney.academia.edu/ChrisPepinNeff

 

White Sharks: Secrets of a Top Predator with Dr Alison Kock

They are the most iconic shark species of all time, known for their strength, hunting prowess, and long-distance travel. But there is a lot more to great white sharks than their reputation. They are not the mindless killers that the movies would have you believe – in fact, they are a highly curious and elusive species who continue to surprise us. And someone who knows white sharks inside out is Dr Alison Kock, a marine biologist who has spent the last 20 years studying their behaviour and ecology. In this episode, Dr Kock shares everything she knows about the world's largest predatory fish, including a scientific finding that's hot off the press...

Time stamps

06.08 - 16.00: Alison's career and passion for sharks

16.00 - 30.00: Great white shark physiology, ecology, and behaviour

31.50 - 40.00: Zooming in on False Bay and Alison's research

41.30 - 54.00: Relationships between humans and white sharks

54.19 - 60.00: Orca predation on white sharks

60.01: New scientific findings on white sharks

You can follow Alison on Instagram (@alison_kock) or find out more about her work and research via these links: 

https://saveourseas.com/project-leader/alison-kock/

https://www.sanparks.org/conservation/scientific-services/nodes/cape-research-centre/meet-the-team

https://sharkspotters.org.za/

You can find out more about the Save Our Seas Foundation by heading to www.saveourseas.com, or by finding us on socials: 

Instagram: @saveourseasfoundation

Bluesky: @saveourseas.bsky.social

X/Twitter: @SaveOurSeas

Facebook: Save Our Seas Foundation

Filling the Gaps to Protect Sharks in Angola with Ana Lúcia Furtado Soares

This week on the World of Sharks podcast we are meeting Ana Lúcia Furtado Soares, founder of the Angola Elasmo Project - a grassroots initiative focussed on the research and conservation of sharks and rays along the Angolan coast – to discuss the joys and challenges of building a project from scratch, working with data-poor fisheries and the importance of empowering local voices.

Shownotes: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast 

You can follow the Angola Elasmo Project on Instagram (angola.elasmoproject) and find out more about the project here: 
https://saveourseas.com/project/documenting-shark-diversity-and-fisheries-
in-angola/
https://saveourseas.com/project/the-angola-elasmo-project/
https://saveourseas.com/project-leader/ana-lucia-furtado-soares/

You can find out more about the Save Our Seas Foundation on instagram (@saveourseasfoundation), Facebook (Save Our Seas Foundation), Bluesky (@saveourseas.bsky.social) or by heading to www.saveourseas.com.

Forensic Fisheries: Using DNA to Investigate the Trade in Shark Liver Oil with Dr Madeline Green

The trade in shark liver oil is an invisible threat to sharks. Not only is there limited research on the topic, but liver oil is notoriously difficult to track and trace. Enter Dr Madeline Green, molecular fisheries ecologist and Principle Investigator of the Forensic Fisheries Lab at the University of Tasmania. Madi is working to apply protocols from the tracing of olive oil to extract DNA from shark liver oil samples, in order to identify species and help monitor this complex trade. In this episode, we learn all about Madi's research, and how the trade in liver oil is presenting a significant threat to deep-water sharks. 

You can follow Madi on Instagram: @madigreenmarine and find more information about her research here:

https://discover.utas.edu.au/Madeline.Green
https://saveourseas.com/project-leader/madeline-green/
https://saveourseas.com/project/using-dna-to-identify-the-sharks-in-squalene-products/
https://saveourseas.com/project/shark-share-global/

Shownotes: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast

Find out more about the Save Our Seas Foundation (SOSF) by following @saveourseasfoundation (Instagram and TikTok), @SaveOurSeas (X/Twitter) and @saveourseas.bsky.social (BlueSky)

 

Hungry Sharks? How a Shark's Digestive System Works

Spiral intestines! Curly poop! A shark that eats plants! And…turning your stomach inside out because you ate something dodgy?! In this episode we explore the ins and outs of a shark’s digestive system with animal physiologist Dr Samantha Leigh (@sea_science_sam), an expert in all things shark gut. We learn how a shark’s digestive system is designed for maximum efficiency, the different ways in which they ingest their hugely diverse diets, and how some sharks are able to survive weeks – sometimes months – without a meal. We also take a deep dive into Dr Leigh’s research on the bonnethead – a shark known to chow down on seagrass – and her recent SOSF-funded project, which is using the shark spiral intestine as a model to address one of our greatest environmental conundrums: the removal of microplastics.

You can follow along with Dr Leigh’s work and lab here: https://samanthacleigh.weebly.com/

Shownotes: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast

Find out more about the Save Our Seas Foundation by following: @saveourseasfoundation (Instagram and TikTok), @SaveOurSeas (X/Twitter) and @saveourseas.bsky.social (BlueSky).

Epaulette Sharks: The Sharks That Can Walk On Land with Faqih Akbar Algozali

Why swim when you can just walk from a to b?! This week, we are taking a closer look at the "walking" or epaulette sharks, a group of nine species who have evolved a slightly unusual way of getting around. We're joined by Faqih Akbar Alghozali, co-founder of Elasmobranch Project Indonesia (EPI) and SOSF project leader, who has lots of stories to share from his time in the field with the Kalabia, or Raja Ampat epaulette shark. Faqih and his team are trying to understand more about this poorly studied species, who are endemic to this remote paradise. 

Shownotes: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast

You can find out more about the EPI here: https://elasmobranch.id or follow them on Instagram (@elasmobranchid).

You can learn more about Faqih’s work here: https://saveourseas.com/project-leader/faqih-
akbar-alghozali/ or follow him on Instagram (@faqihbig)

Find out more about the Save Our Seas Foundation: @saveourseasfoundation (instagram), @saveourseas.bsky.social (Bluesky), @SaveOurSeas (X/twitter)

 

The Fascinating and Weird World of Shark Eggs with Cat Gordon

Join us for a slightly different easter egg hunt, as we go in search of shark eggcases! From tiny catshark eggcases no bigger than your index finger, to a skate that lays eggs larger than your head and even an egg that looks (and functions) like a corkscrew - we explore them all with Cat Gordon, Senior Conservation Officer for The Shark Trust. And, we learn about one of the longest running citizen science projects for sharks, rays and skates: The Great Eggcase Hunt. 

You can find out more about The Great Eggcase Hunt and how you can get involved here: https://www.sharktrust.org/greateggcasehunt

And follow The Shark Trust on social media: The Shark Trust (facebook) @thesharktrust (instagram) @SharkTrustUK (x/Twitter)

Shownotes: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast. 

Save Our Seas Foundation (SOSF): @saveourseasfoundation (instagram), @saveourseas.bsky.social (Bluesky), @SaveOurSeas (X/Twitter)

 

Electroreception: The Shark's Sixth Sense with Professor Stephen Kajiura

In this episode, we are exploring the ‘sixth sense’ of sharks – electroreception! We are joined by sensory biologist and shark elasmobranch expert Dr Stephen Kajiura, Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) to discuss how sharks are able to detect minute electrical signals and use this sense to pinpoint prey with mind-blowing accuracy. We also get deep into functional morphology, zooming in on the Ampullae of Lorenzini and the unique morphology of the hammerhead. And, we chat about how electroreception doubles up as a kind of internal shark sat nav, helping them to navigate entire oceans without any landmarks to speak of. 

You can follow Stephen's lab and research by heading to www.elasmolab.com or by following @sharkmigration on social media. 

Shownotes: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast.

Find out more about us by following @saveourseasfoundation (instagram and tiktok), @SaveOurSeas (X/Twitter) and @saveourseas.bsky.social (Bluesky)

The Lives of Sharks with Dr Dean Grubbs

How do sharks learn to be a shark? Do they really eat their siblings? Is there such a thing as a shark teenager? How do sharks find a mate? And what happens when they reach old age? In this episode, we answer all these questions and more as we embark on a true deep dive into the lives and life histories of sharks, with elasmobranch expert and SOSF Scientific Advisor Dr Dean Grubbs!

Dean is Associate Director of Research for the Florida State University Coastal and Marine Laboratory (https://marinelab.fsu.edu) - @FSUmarinelab. 

Shownotes for this episode: www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/podcast

You can find out more about the Save Our Seas Foundation on socials - 

Instagram and TikTok: @saveourseasfoundation

X/Twitter: @SaveOurSeas

Bluesky: @saveourseas.bsky.social

Uncovering The Shark Meat Trade With Dr Divya Karnad and Dr Trisha Gupta

The shark meat trade is a multi-billion dollar industry. But it receives relatively little attention, and remains understudied. This week, we sit down with conservation scientists Dr Divya Karnad and Dr Trisha Gupta, who have collaborated on research that aims to better understand the drivers and complexities of this trade. Using India as a case study, they are looking for ways to encourage more responsible and sustainable actions at all stages of the supply chain – from source to consumer.

The papers mentioned in this episode are:

Karnad, D., Narayani, S., Kottillil, S., Kottillil, S., Gupta, T., Barnes, A., Dias, A. and Krishna, Y.C., 2024. Regional hotspots and drivers of shark meat consumption in India. Conservation Science and Practice, 6(1), p.e13069.

Gupta, T., Karnad, D., Oyanedel, R., Booth, H., Abhiram, T., Gaonkar, H. and Milner-Gulland, E.J., 2025. Identifying leverage points for sustainability in India’s shark supply chains. Marine Policy, 173, p.106580.

You can find out more about InSeason Fish here: https://www.inseasonfish.com/ or on Instagram (@inseasonfish)

You can follow Trisha on Instagram (@trisha0405), twitter (@Trisha_0405), and Bluesky (@trisha04.bsky.social).

You can also find the shownotes for this episode, and much more sharky fun over at www.saveourseas.com/worldofsharks