Mako Shark Washed Ashore, Rescued in Brazil; What Could Have Caused the Increased Presence of Sharks in Shallow Waters?

A video of good samaritans rescuing a stranded mako shark on a beach in Brazil has gone viral online. The incident occurred last week on a coast in Itanhaém, São Paulo, where the mako shark was also released.

Known as the "world's fastest shark," per Encyclopedia Britannica., mako sharks can swim 45 miles per hour, grow up to 15 feet in length, and weigh up to 1,100 pounds. Residents have noticed the increased presence of sharks near the beach, but this is not exclusive to Brazil as many parts of the world, like the US East Coast, have seen more and more human-shark interactions.

Mako Shark Washed Ashore, Rescued in Brazil: What Could Have Caused the Increased Presence of Sharks in Shallow Waters?

(Photo : Unsplash/Elaine Brewer)
Mako Shark Washed Ashore, Rescued in Brazil: What Could Have Caused the Increased Presence of Sharks in Shallow Waters?

World's Fastest Shark Stranded on a Beach in Brazil

Beachgoers were on a stroll along the Brazilian shore when they stumbled upon the stranded shortfin mako, New York Post reported. Edvan Silvan, a local painter, said that he was at first frightened at the sight of the mako shark because he frequently surfs in the area, and the increasing number of sharks is worrying them.

Despite its frightening appearance, people came together to put the shark back into the sea. One person can be seen in the video dragging the blue mako shark, which is estimated to be 5 feet long, by the tail. The shark, in response, starts thrashing widely that forced the bystander to drop it to the beach until a woman bravely grabs it by its tail.

A second video shows the mako shark happily swimming back into the sea shortly after the rescue. A team from Biospeca Institute arrived shortly to investigate the stranding of the shark, but it had already swum away and did not beach again.

They noted that rescuing the mako shark is important because of its dwindling population although it remains a mystery as to why there is an increased number of sharks getting stranded on shores.

The incident was not the first time that a mako shark was stranded on a beach. Earlier this month, a person from Balneario Barra do Sul, Santa Catarina state in Brazil saw a stranded mako shark. Also, some men in Perth, Australia, rescued a mako shark seen jolting on the sand as it attempts to move back to the water.

Global Warming Contributes to Increasing Presence of Sharks on the Shore

There is an increase in interactions between humans and sharks in the past few years not only in Brazil but also on some beaches across the world. For instance, the shores of the Atlantic Ocean off Long Island, New York, have now become a favorite destination of sharks that beaches have closed after incidents of shark bites have been reported.

Although the majority of the bites are accidents caused by curious sharks searching for food, the increased activity is believed to be due to some changes in global temperatures.

Marine biologist James Sulikowski, founder of Arizona State University's Sulikowski Shark and Fish Conservation Lab, told ABC News that there may be other factors in which warmer waters could have caused sharks to venture into places frequented by humans.

Mike Heithaus, a marine biologist at Florida International University, also told the news outlet that much of the marine life existing beneath the surface depends on the temperatures and rearranges their locations when conditions change. That means that more marine species are expected to expand their ranges and shift their ranges as waters become warmer.

In the case of sharks, experts explained that it could be possible that they are traveling farther north earlier in the year to seek more desirable temperatures. An example is the findings of the 2021 study that showed that juvenile great white sharks on the West Coast are increasingly moving north as the Pacific Ocean warms.