A shark was spotted early on Monday morning swimming in the port of Ibiza. The imposing presence of this large predator left everyone who was passing through the es Botafoc area speechless, and they didn’t hesitate for a second to take out their mobile phones to record the animal.
‘It must be confused by the bad weather,’ said one of the people who encountered the shark. It is certainly unusual to see sharks prowling around the ports of Ibiza. In the images, the shark can be seen swimming from side to side between the pontoons, while witnesses notice a small wound on the upper part of the first dorsal fin, ‘it looks like it has been bitten,’ they point out.
The presence of this marine animal, of which more than 465 different species are known, has been documented for more than 450 million years. This species of fish is at the top of its food chain, as it ‘plays the basic role of regulating the population of other species below it,’ according to National Geographic.
As for their increased presence around cities and urban areas, the magazine reports on a study led by scientists from the Rosentiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science at the University of Miami, which analysed the behaviour of three species of sharks (bull, nurse and hammerhead) and concluded that sharks are becoming increasingly accustomed to human presence.
According to the researchers, the behaviour of the animals tracked was similar to that of terrestrial species that can adapt to urban environments. ‘They did not seem to shy away from activity in coastal areas. On the contrary, they seemed interested in human activities,’ National Geographic notes about the study’s conclusions. They explain that the sharks were drawn to the coast, attracted, among other things, by the smell of discarded catches from fishermen near the port.
And today, researchers from the Spanish Oceanographic Institute (IEO-CSIC), in collaboration with the University of Cádiz (UCA), have documented a new confirmed record of a great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) in Spanish Mediterranean waters. The finding, recently published in the scientific journal Acta Ichthyologica et Piscatoria, provides new data on the distribution of this emblematic species, which is classified as vulnerable in the western Mediterranean.
The record corresponds to a juvenile specimen approximately two metres in length, accidentally caught in April 2023 within the Spanish Exclusive Economic Zone. The identification of the species was confirmed by genetic analysis, making this finding one of the few verified records of great white sharks in Spanish waters in recent decades.
‘The origin of this work lies in the documentation of an accidental catch that we learned about thanks to the close collaboration we have maintained for years with the fishing sector,’ explains José Carlos Báez, a researcher at the IEO-CSIC and lead author of the study. ‘Without this cooperation, it would be impossible to know about and scientifically contextualise such exceptional records,’ he adds.
Given that a single observation does not allow solid conclusions to be drawn on its own, the research team carried out an exhaustive review of historical records and indirect evidence from the mid-19th century to the present day. This analysis confirms that the white shark maintains a persistent but extremely rare presence in the Spanish Mediterranean, where its detectability is very low.
Regarding the status of the population, the authors stress the need for caution. ‘With the available data, it is not possible to say that the Mediterranean white shark population is recovering,’ says Báez. ‘This new record could reflect an improvement in monitoring and communication systems rather than an actual increase in population size.’
The fact that the documented specimen is juvenile is particularly relevant from a scientific point of view. ‘The presence of young individuals provides key information about the demographic structure of the species, especially in the case of populations classified as vulnerable,’ notes the researcher. However, the study insists that it is still too early to determine whether there are breeding areas associated with Spanish waters, an issue that requires specific long-term monitoring programmes.
The researchers also point out that, over more than 160 years of records in Spanish waters, documented incidents involving humans have been exceptionally rare, confirming that this species does not pose a significant risk to the population on our coasts.
Beyond its emblematic nature, the white shark plays a fundamental role in the functioning of marine ecosystems. ‘Large marine predators play a key role in the balance of the ocean. As highly migratory species, they connect different regions and contribute to the good health of the marine environment,’ concludes Báez. The study highlights the importance of continuing to develop monitoring and conservation programmes to improve knowledge of this species in the Mediterranean and move towards management based on scientific evidence.