Shark sighted in Livorno, the expert: there are no big risks, the species must be saved

Although the statistics are very clear, with every new sighting in our country the shark phobia seems to start. A few days ago at Leghorn what appears to be one mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) almost three meters long, a rare species in the Mediterranean, was filmed swimming around a fishing boat. The reaction of the Coast Guard was immediate, which issued a communication inviting you to pay “maximum attention” while bathing and beyond. Just as there have been moments of fear (or perhaps more curiosity) also in Sicilyafter that in the provinces of Palermo And Messina some harmless ones have been seen a short distance from the shore blue sharks.

All episodes, in the Italian summer that has just begun, which raise unfounded fears “about an animal that instead has an extremely need to rehabilitate its image, given that there are fewer and fewer of them. For this reason, instead of being frightened by the large Livorno shark, we should learn to admire and respect them, always reminding us that the sea is their home and not ours”, explains the expert researcher of sharks and cartilaginous fish Maximilian Bottaro of the Anton Dohrn Zoological Station. With him we tried to understand if it is possible that today there are more sharks near our shores, what this entails and what we could all do to protect these fascinating animals.

Have you seen the video of the Livorno shark? What species do you think it is?
“I would say that, at 70%, it is a mako shark, a species also present here. Definitely of significant size. It could also be a porbeagle, but it would be very rare to see it near the coast, so from the images I would be more biased towards a mako” .

Is there an increase of these animals along our coasts?
“I wouldn’t say so. In general, sharks and rays are decreasing everywhere. On the contrary, I would like to dwell on something else: it’s not that reports have simply increased due to the fact that today all of us, with a simple mobile phone in hand, can film and document a sighting?. I lean more towards this hypothesis. Sightings, and especially the accidental fishing of sharks, have always occurred in the past: let’s remember that there are several species in the Mediterranean. Only then, at most, did you find out from some fishermen, while today it is much easier to spread the news of a meeting via mobile phones. But we must not be afraid, also because the numbers speak for themselves”.

What do the numbers say about attacks?
“The last attack in the Mediterranean, if we leave aside the story of a canoeist in Puglia from a few years ago which has not been absolutely proven or found evidence, dates back to 1991 about twenty meters from the shoreline in Liguria. The Lombard tourist she didn’t even notice it: it was clarified only after examining the table on which she was lying and finding the remains of the teeth of a young white shark.The first one was from 1989, just in Livorno: a diver disappeared into thin air and it was said that it happens a white shark. But the remains of the man were not found and even the signs on his recovered equipment do not fully confirm the hypothesis. However, these are two cases from over thirty years ago”.

Could rising water temperatures bring more sharks closer to shore?
“There are still too few data to confirm such a hypothesis, even if climate change can affect various animal behaviors. For now, I would say that it is difficult to demonstrate that there is a link between increased temperatures and increased sightings”.

You coordinate the European LifeELife project with which you launched the SharkApp to report sightings. How does it work?
“It is an app with which anyone can upload information about a shark sighting. The application is about to restart soon also because we will soon be launching a new initiative for the public: to become a shark reporter. A campaign, complete with a badge virtual for those who see, which will be based precisely on the use of the app and will have a dual purpose: on the one hand to collect data with the help of citizen scientists, on the other to raise public awareness in an attempt to overturn the image of the shark , a little too unlucky so far”.

Why unfortunate?
“Because from the films of the past to today, unfortunately sharks, unlike many other species, have not managed, despite their decreasing, to be subjected to that rehabilitation process which has involved, for example, terrestrial predators such as tigers, pumas, wolves, bears. But also, paradoxically, the orca: it is the real “chief”, the true predator of the sea and it eats white sharks, but due to its extraordinary intelligence it is rightly seen as a wonderful animal. The shark, however, is not. Because ?Because I believe that the shark represents what the sea represents, that is, that it is not our environment, it is not something we can dominate. The recent history of the Titan submarine also teaches us how distant an environment it is from us and our ambitions We humans always think we control everything, but we cannot have control of the sea and the shark, perhaps, embodies the same feelings, fears and anxieties, despite being an animal equally wonderful to others”.

Do you think the alert given by the authorities for the shark intercepted in Tuscany is justified?
“I think it’s an extremely cautious indication, right, but decidedly precautionary, a way to put your hands forward because in reality there aren’t big risks. Rather, perhaps the emotional wave of the fatal attack that occurs can affect people it occurred at the beginning of June in the Red Sea, but certainly the same fear is not justified by us.These are very different conditions: in Egypt there has been a dizzying increase in tourists who dive into those waters at every point throughout the year and, While there is no scientific evidence, it appears that slaughterhouse waste and food have been released at some points in the past which may have attracted animals. So these are very different things.”

Finally, how can individual citizens, instead of being afraid of them, help conserve these animals?
“Citizen scientists with their reports can make an important contribution to science. Sometimes even with immediate concreteness. I’ll give you an example: a short time ago near Eboli a manta ray – another species in difficulty – was beaching. A bather warned a colleague of mine from Agropoli who called me and, giving them the right indications on how to save it, the manta ray was put back in the water and survived. If certain unjustified fears are left aside, they could be helped, always with the help of experts, even other species in difficulty just like sharks”.