News and views from the world of marine heritage and conservation
Great whites head north
British bluefin – call it a comeback
Sgiath’ s squirt senses
ENVIRONMENT
Protect Our Seas
News and views from the world of marine heritage and conservation
A 13-foot great white tagged off the coast of Nova Scotia in September
Great whites head north
Great white sharks in the Atlantic have reportedly been pushing north further into the cool waters of Nova Scotia. The behavioural shift has coincided with an average warming of Nova Scotia’ s waters around 1.5 ° C over the past 30 years, with seabed temperatures warming by about 3 ° C over the same period. This year, researchers have been tracking a 4.2m-long male great white nicknamed‘ Contender’, who travelled from Florida to Nova Scotia as spring turned to summer. US Atlantic states have seen a rebounding shark population due to the recovery of seal populations. It appears that Nova Scotia has become a new great white hotspot, but it has also brought problematic interactions such as a non-fatal attack on a diver off Quebec’ s Gaspé coast in September.
British bluefin – call it a comeback
Bluefin tuna have returned in prodigious numbers off the British coast after becoming commercially extinct in the 1960s. The return of the giant predatory fish is one of several wildlife recoveries highlighted in a major new report from WWF, which it says shows conservation can work. However, the Living Planet Report 2026 also found that monitored wildlife populations around the world have fallen by an average of 73 % since 1970. Last year, the green sea turtle became the first marine turtle to have its protection status downgraded from“ endangered” to“ least concern”, after 50 years of conservation work in about 80 countries.
PHOTO: R SNOW / OCEARCH
Sgiath’ s squirt senses
A conservation detection dog working on Scotland’ s west coast has been named Animal of the Year by the International Fund for Animal Welfare( IFAW), in recognition of her role in identifying an invasive marine species that threatens native biodiversity and coastal industries.
Sgiath, a six-year-old black Labrador, works alongside marine ecologist Dr Texa Sim to locate carpet sea squirt( Didemnum vexillum), a non-native colonial organism capable of spreading across marine habitats and artificial structures. Carpet sea squirt, sometimes referred to as‘ sea vomit’, can be difficult to distinguish from seaweed and other material in coastal environments. Its growth can cover natural habitats and man-made structures, potentially displacing native organisms and affecting marine infrastructure.
Sgiath has been trained to recognise the organism’ s scent and identify colonies during surveys conducted at low tide. Her work enables Sim to pinpoint areas where the species is present, including locations where visual detection alone may be challenging.
A school of bluefin tuna off Cornwall
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PHOTO: SIMON ROGERSON
Sgiath, with carpet sea squirts in the background