Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressures
The northeast Atlantic Ocean contains multiple habitats considered critical for shark conservation, including nursery areas, migratory corridors and aggregation sites. In this context, updating knowledge on shark diversity and the threats affecting them in this region is essential to defining priori...
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| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Marine Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2025.1490317/full |
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| author | Jaquelino Varela Jaquelino Varela Catarina Pereira Santos Catarina Pereira Santos Catarina Pereira Santos Emanuel Nunes Emanuel Nunes Vasco Pissarra Vasco Pissarra Stiven Pires Bárbara P. Ribeiro Bárbara P. Ribeiro Eduarda Vieira Eduarda Vieira Tiago Repolho Tiago Repolho Nuno Queiroz Nuno Queiroz Rui Freitas Rui Rosa Rui Rosa Rui Rosa |
| author_facet | Jaquelino Varela Jaquelino Varela Catarina Pereira Santos Catarina Pereira Santos Catarina Pereira Santos Emanuel Nunes Emanuel Nunes Vasco Pissarra Vasco Pissarra Stiven Pires Bárbara P. Ribeiro Bárbara P. Ribeiro Eduarda Vieira Eduarda Vieira Tiago Repolho Tiago Repolho Nuno Queiroz Nuno Queiroz Rui Freitas Rui Rosa Rui Rosa Rui Rosa |
| author_sort | Jaquelino Varela |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The northeast Atlantic Ocean contains multiple habitats considered critical for shark conservation, including nursery areas, migratory corridors and aggregation sites. In this context, updating knowledge on shark diversity and the threats affecting them in this region is essential to defining priorities and implementing the right management and conservation measures. Here, we show that Macaronesian and Cabo Verde marine ecoregions are home to 78 shark species (comprising 26 families), and 56% are threatened with extinction. The Canary Islands revealed the greatest richness (with 56 species), followed by Cabo Verde (53), Madeira (52), and the Azores (45). Cabo Verde presents fewer similarities with the rest of the islands. We also found that: i) Azores share more species with the Canary Islands than Madeira (despite the greater geographical proximity with the latter), and ii) there are no oviparous species in the Cabo Verde archipelago, contrary to the Canary Islands (5), the Azores (4), and Madeira (3). Fishing and habitat degradation are the most relevant anthropogenic pressures for the region, with Cabo Verde having the highest number of endangered species (66%) and a greater magnitude and diversity of threats. As such, this archipelago presents the highest priority area for shark conservation due to the intense industrial fishing in its waters, poor management measures in combination with its greater vulnerability to climate change. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-18b5e6d4ec2446feb09c02fc54de1c62 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2296-7745 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-18b5e6d4ec2446feb09c02fc54de1c622025-02-05T05:17:42ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Marine Science2296-77452025-02-011210.3389/fmars.2025.14903171490317Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressuresJaquelino Varela0Jaquelino Varela1Catarina Pereira Santos2Catarina Pereira Santos3Catarina Pereira Santos4Emanuel Nunes5Emanuel Nunes6Vasco Pissarra7Vasco Pissarra8Stiven Pires9Bárbara P. Ribeiro10Bárbara P. Ribeiro11Eduarda Vieira12Eduarda Vieira13Tiago Repolho14Tiago Repolho15Nuno Queiroz16Nuno Queiroz17Rui Freitas18Rui Rosa19Rui Rosa20Rui Rosa21MARE—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET—Aquatic Research Network, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Cieências, Universidade de Lisboa, Cascais, PortugalSphyrna Association, Boa Vista Island, Sal Rei, Cabo VerdeMARE—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET—Aquatic Research Network, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Cieências, Universidade de Lisboa, Cascais, PortugalSphyrna Association, Boa Vista Island, Sal Rei, Cabo VerdeEnvironmental Economics Knowledge Center, Nova School of Business and Economics, New University of Lisbon, Carcavelos, PortugalMARE—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET—Aquatic Research Network, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Cieências, Universidade de Lisboa, Cascais, PortugalInspeção Geral das Pescas, Ministério do Mar, Sal Rei, Boa Vista, Cabo VerdeMARE—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET—Aquatic Research Network, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Cieências, Universidade de Lisboa, Cascais, PortugalSphyrna Association, Boa Vista Island, Sal Rei, Cabo VerdeBiosfera Associação para a Defesa do Meio Ambiente, São Vicente Island, Mindelo, Cabo VerdeCIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, PortugalBIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Vairão, PortugalCIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, PortugalBIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Vairão, PortugalMARE—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET—Aquatic Research Network, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Cieências, Universidade de Lisboa, Cascais, PortugalDepartamento de Biologia Animal, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, PortugalCIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, PortugalBIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Vairão, PortugalInstituto de Engenharia e Ciências do Mar, Universidade Técnica do Atlântico, Mindelo, São Vicente, Cabo VerdeMARE—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET—Aquatic Research Network, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Cieências, Universidade de Lisboa, Cascais, PortugalSphyrna Association, Boa Vista Island, Sal Rei, Cabo VerdeDepartamento de Biologia Animal, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, PortugalThe northeast Atlantic Ocean contains multiple habitats considered critical for shark conservation, including nursery areas, migratory corridors and aggregation sites. In this context, updating knowledge on shark diversity and the threats affecting them in this region is essential to defining priorities and implementing the right management and conservation measures. Here, we show that Macaronesian and Cabo Verde marine ecoregions are home to 78 shark species (comprising 26 families), and 56% are threatened with extinction. The Canary Islands revealed the greatest richness (with 56 species), followed by Cabo Verde (53), Madeira (52), and the Azores (45). Cabo Verde presents fewer similarities with the rest of the islands. We also found that: i) Azores share more species with the Canary Islands than Madeira (despite the greater geographical proximity with the latter), and ii) there are no oviparous species in the Cabo Verde archipelago, contrary to the Canary Islands (5), the Azores (4), and Madeira (3). Fishing and habitat degradation are the most relevant anthropogenic pressures for the region, with Cabo Verde having the highest number of endangered species (66%) and a greater magnitude and diversity of threats. As such, this archipelago presents the highest priority area for shark conservation due to the intense industrial fishing in its waters, poor management measures in combination with its greater vulnerability to climate change.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2025.1490317/fullelasmobranchnortheast Atlanticfisheryhabitat degradationclimate change |
| spellingShingle | Jaquelino Varela Jaquelino Varela Catarina Pereira Santos Catarina Pereira Santos Catarina Pereira Santos Emanuel Nunes Emanuel Nunes Vasco Pissarra Vasco Pissarra Stiven Pires Bárbara P. Ribeiro Bárbara P. Ribeiro Eduarda Vieira Eduarda Vieira Tiago Repolho Tiago Repolho Nuno Queiroz Nuno Queiroz Rui Freitas Rui Rosa Rui Rosa Rui Rosa Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressures Frontiers in Marine Science elasmobranch northeast Atlantic fishery habitat degradation climate change |
| title | Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressures |
| title_full | Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressures |
| title_fullStr | Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressures |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressures |
| title_short | Sharks in Macaronesia and Cabo Verde: species richness, conservation status and anthropogenic pressures |
| title_sort | sharks in macaronesia and cabo verde species richness conservation status and anthropogenic pressures |
| topic | elasmobranch northeast Atlantic fishery habitat degradation climate change |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2025.1490317/full |
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