This map shows location data for male tagged white sharks for the month of July. These are from white sharks that are tagged using SPOT tags which give real time tracking data for up to 6 years. From previous studies using pop-up satellite tags we know that Eastern Pacific white sharks spend fall and winter at coastal aggregation sites off Mexico or California (Guadalupe Island or the Farallon Islands) and spring and summer in the middle of the Pacific Ocean traveling as far as the Hawaiian Islands.
Our tagged males have returned to both Guadalupe Island and the Farallon Islands from their seasonal migration out to the SOFA in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The sharks returned between July 30 and August 19 and we are now getting regular location data from at Guadalupe Island for Bruce, Skid, Biteface, Tairua and Apache. And the two sharks tagged at the Farallon Islands (Junior and Frodo) returned July 26 and August 4 and have been reporting from just outside Drake’s Bay and near the Farallon Islands. We are still awaiting the arrival of the females to Guadalupe Island and expect them to return sometime in September. Stay tuned…
The data from these tagged sharks will help answer questions regarding which areas of the offshore region the sharks utilize and why they might be migrating to the middle of the ocean every year. It will also help us understand where they are mating, where the pregnant females go during their multi-year migration cycle, and where they go to give birth. All of this information is important in protecting these sharks. For more information on our comprehensive white shark research program click here.
SPOT tagged white shark photographed at Guadalupe Island 1 year after tagging