Donegal scientists may have cracked one of the great mysteries of the deep.
A basking shark off Inishowen
Marine biologists working on the basking shark project were amongst scientists worldwide who wondered where the giant creatures went to during the winter months.
So this summer the researchers on the project off the coast of Inishowen put satellite tags on several of the sharks.
And now one of the tagged animals has turned up more than 5,000 kms away off the coast of the Cape Verde islands off Africa.
The transmitter, which was fixed to five metre long female shark Banba, was one of five tags fitted last July off Malin Head.
The tagging was part of the Monster Munch Basking Shark Community Awareness Project run by the Irish Basking Shark Study Group in association with the Inishowen Development Partnership and Queens University Belfast.
Emmett Johnston a co-founder of the IBS said they hope the other satelite tags go off soon.
“The group are delighted with the finding, but it is a bit premature to be rushing out to change the shark biology books.
“We are awaiting the pop-off of the remaining three satellite transmitters attached this summer, recovering five complete basking shark tracks will allow us to compare the data and make informed conclusions.
“Until then there is not much we can say other than this is a highly unusual place to find a species that is presumed to inhabit temperate waters”.
Malin Head on the Inishowen peninsula where the shark ‘Banba’ was originally tagged and named by pupils at Scoil Naomh Mhuire is recognised as one of the world’s top summer hotspots for the basking shark.
Banba’s magnificent journey to the Cape Verdes from the waters off Malin head is a valuable piece in the elusive jigsaw of the lifecycle of the sharks, says the IBSG.
This new finding by may prove to be a significant insight into the underwater world of one of the most endangered and iconic sharks in the Atlantic Ocean.
For more information and to see a magnificent video of the shark log on www.baskingshark.ie.
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