World of Sharks

Celebrating ocean wins! With Sarah Fowler OBE

We all know that our oceans are in trouble, and that taking action to protect and fight for them is incredibly important. But it can also be hard to motivate yourself to keep going, especially when it feels like change isn’t happening. But we are slowly turning the tide – and that is what this episode is all about. In honour of World Ocean’s Day (June 8^th), host Isla sits down with Sarah Fowler OBE, scientific advisor to SOSF and founding trustee of The Shark Trust, to discuss some the actions YOU are taking to help save our seas, and talk about how they are contributing to a positive impact worldwide.

 

You can find out more about the Save Our Seas Foundation, and the work that we do, at www.saveourseas.com.You can also access the show-notes for this episode, along with an accessible summary, here: https://saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/thewholetooth. 

Do sharks matter? With Dr David Shiffman

We all know that the majority of shark species are in decline. But what actually happens if they are lost from the ecosystem? How important are sharks? We pitch these questions to scientist, shark enthusiast and author Dr David Shiffman, who spends a lot of his time highlighting why sharks really do matter – not just in an ecological sense, but also from a social, economic and cultural perspective. We talk to David about the ecological role of sharks, sustainability, the dangers of spreading misinformation, and David's brand new book 'Why Sharks Matter'. And, of course, the most important question of all: sharks or dinosaurs?!

You can follow David on social media over at @whysharksmatter, and check out his brilliant new book here: https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/12267/why-sharks-matter 

Shownotes: https://saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/thewholetooth

Find out more about our work here: www.saveourseas.com

 

Going Beyond Jaws with Andrew Lewin and Dr Dave Ebert

Our guests this week are scientists, communicators and hosts of the Beyond Jaws podcast Andrew Lewin and Dave Ebert. Beyond Jaws is all about showcasing the diversity of shark science and the people behind the research, asking them about their career journeys and how they got to be where they are. Whole Tooth host Isla flips the script and asks Dave and Andrew about finding their own niche in science, their passion for lesser known shark species, and the importance of science communication in promoting marine conservation to a wider audience. 

You can find Andrew and his podcast network over at @speakupforblue and https://www.speakupforblue.com/. You can follow Dave at @lostsharkguy. Listen to episodes of Beyond Jaws here: https://www.speakupforblue.com/show/beyond-jaws/. 

 

You can find out more about the work we do at the Save Our Seas Foundation by heading to www.saveourseas.com

What’s happening to Antarctica’s penguins? With Dr Tom Hart

On April 25th, we celebrated World Penguin Day - a day dedicated to celebrating these incredibly charismatic birds and raising awareness of the immense challenges they face. Someone who knows a lot about this subject is SOSF project leader and penguinologist Dr Tom Hart. Aside from having one of the coolest job titles out there, Tom has dedicated his life to researching the wildlife of one of the most remote places on the planet - Antarctica. It is also a place that is changing rapidly, and its residents are coming under increasing pressure from anthropogenic impacts. Broadly, penguins are in decline, and Tom wants to know why. This episode, we dive into his fascinating research to disentangle the drivers of penguin decline, and find out what it's really like to have one of the wildest environments on earth as your office. We talk about how amazingly adapted penguins are to a very challenging lifestyle, how they cope with the relatively new arrival of tourists, and some things we can all be doing to help safeguard them, and the place that they call home. 

If you want to get involved in penguin conservation, why not head to Penguin Watch (https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/penguintom79/penguin-watch or check out @penguin_watch), a citizen science initiative set up by Tom and his collaborators where you can contribute to vital penguin research from the comfort of your sofa!

This podcast was brought to you by the Save Our Seas Foundation (SOSF). Find out more about our work here: www.saveourseas.com.

How do marine animals navigate the oceans? With Jesse Granger and Kyle Newton

The global ocean is a vast place, spanning the entire planet and tens of thousands of kilometres deep. Many marine animals undertake huge migrations across the ocean, but there’s no signposts or google maps…so how on earth do they know where to go? This episode, we delve into the incredible world of sensory and cognitive ecology to understand how sharks, rays, whales and a host of other critters navigate the underwater world with scientists Jesse Granger and Kyle Newton. Jesse and Kyle ask big questions about how animals find their way around, mainly focussing on the possible ways that they are able to detect and use the earth’s magnetic field to orientate themselves.

You can follow Jesse on @JesseGranger6 and Kyle on @SharkMagneto. You can also follow their work by heading to https://sites.duke.edu/jngranger/ (Jesse) ,  https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kyle-Newton and https://saveourseas.com/project-leader/kyle-newton/ (Kyle). 

This podcast is brought to you by the Save Our Seas Foundation (SOSF). Find out more about us here: www.saveourseas.com

 

Magnificent Mantas! With Lois Flounders, Yani Mohamed and Simon Hilbourne from the Manta Trust

Get ready to chat all things sea pancake! This episode, we pitched all your questions about the mesmerising manta ray to Yani, Simon and Lois who work for the Maldivian Manta Ray Project (MMRP), the flagship research project of the Manta Trust. We learn so much about these enigmatic, highly intelligent animals - how do they feed? Why do they jump out of the water? And why is the Maldives such a special place for them? We also chat about what it's like to work in the Maldives and swim with mantas for a living, as well as how YOU can help in the research and conservation of these incredible elasmobranchs. 

Find out more about the MMRP here: https://www.mantatrust.org/maldives, the manta trust here: https://www.mantatrust.org/, and how to submit to IDtheManta here: https://www.mantatrust.org/idthemanta. You can also find out about a job opportunity to work in the Maldives with this amazing team here: https://www.mantatrust.org/careers. 

The Save Our Seas Foundation (SOSF) are proud to have funded and supported the Manta Trust since the very beginning. You can find out more about our work, and the other projects we fund, here: https://saveourseas.com/. 

Reframing the narrative of sharks with Steve Backshall

Grab your gear and get ready for an adventure, because this week I am joined by extreme explorer, naturalist and presenter Steve Backshall MBE! Throughout his career, Steve has endeavoured to change public perception of species perceived as 'deadly' or 'dangerous' - changing the narrative from fear to respect, joy and awe. He's spent a lot of time in the water among sharks, most recently for his latest Sky series 'Shark with Steve Backshall' which aims to promote wonder and dispell popular myths about these animals. In this episode we discuss some of the most common misconceptions of sharks, the classic 'Jaws' trope, and how we can begin to change the narratives about sharks that have become so entrenched. And, of course, we hear some of Steve's fascinating stories from the field, and introducing the next generation to the adventure and wonder of the natural world.

You can find Steve on instagram (@backshall.steve), twitter (@SteveBackshall) and learn more about his upcoming series and tours at www.stevebackshall.com. You can also watch his latest TV series, Shark with Steve Backshall, here: https://www.sky.com/watch/shark-with-steve-backshall. 

This podcast was brought to you by the Save Our Seas Foundation (SOSF). You can find out more about our work by heading to www.saveourseas.com.

Can sharks adapt to changing seas? With David Sims and Freya Womersley

We're back! And we're kicking off season 2 by exploring our rapidly changing seas and the impacts of these changes on shark movements, distribution and behaviour with scientists David Sims and Freya Womersley. Both David and Freya work on the Global Shark Movement Project (https://www.globalsharkmovement.org/), which aims to collate data on pelagic shark movements from around the world and investigate the potential impacts of human activities on these movements. In this episode, we discuss the cumulative effects of rapidly decreasing oxygen levels and warming temperatures on the foraging behaviour of blue and mako sharks; how fisheries and climate change can overlap and place further pressure on shark populations; and whether species can adapt to an increasingly hostile marine environment. 

Along the way we hear about the amazing healing capabilities of whale sharks, learn how satellite tagging works and what it's like to be emailed by a basking shark...

Follow David (@TheSimsLab) and Freya (@FreyaWomersley) for more jawsome insights into the life of pelagic sharks! 

If you liked this episode, be sure to rate, review and subscribe. Head to www.saveourseas.com to find out more about what we do. 

How will climate change impact sharks? With Dr Jodie Rummer and Carolyn Wheeler

For the FINAL episode of season 1, I am joined by fish physiologists Dr Jodie Rummer and Carolyn Wheeler to talk about a the most-asked-about subject of 2021: climate change, and its impact on sharks. This topic has been playing on a lot of people's minds this year, and we've had a lot of questions since the start of the pod about how sharks and the oceans will be affected, and what WE can do to help. So buckle in - we're headed on a rollercoaster ride into the stormy seas of the climate crisis. But fear not! Guiding us on this journey are the brilliant Jodie and Carolyn, who study the effects of climate stressors and other human-driven issues on fish, including sharks and rays, in tropical waters, and we talk about their pretty sobering findings. On the way we meet Edna the epaulette shark, visit some picturesque shark nurseries in French Polynesia and learn what it’s like to observe coral bleaching in real time…

We also end the episode on an optimistic note for 2022, as we talk about how humans still have a real chance to make positive changes, slow climate change and help safeguard our favourite elasmobranchs. 

You can find out more about Jodie and Carolyn and their work here https://www.physioshark.org/our-team here https://www.jodierummer.com/ and here https://www.coralcoe.org.au/person/carolyn-wheeler and follow them over at @Wheel_House23 and @PhysiologyFish. 

You can also find out more about us by heading to www.saveourseas.com. 

Thanks for listening! And we'll see you in 2022!

Ask us anything! With Dr James Lea and Jade Schultz

This week SOSF content manager Jade Schultz put out a call on social media for all your shark and ocean related queries, so we could pitch them to shark scientist and SOSF CEO Dr James Lea! And boy the listeners didn't disappoint - this episode takes us on a wild ride from careers in marine conservation to shark eyelids, schooling behaviour to conservation successes and even fossilised shark poo...

Together James, Jade and I attempt to answer as many of your questions as possible in an hour - with informative, and at times hilarious, results. Including which shark we'd have a beer with!

You can find out all about James, Jade and the awesome work SOSF do at www.saveourseas.com.