Âé¶¹´«Ã½

Life

Sharks can be deterred from beaches by catching and releasing them

A non-lethal method of catching great white sharks and releasing them 500 metres further out to sea can make the predators steer clear of beaches where people swim

By James Woodford

3 January 2024

A great white shark cruising through Australian waters

A scarred great white shark cruising through Australian waters

Philip Thurston/Getty Images

Great white sharks avoid places where they have been caught, which might give us a way of deterring them from hunting near swimmers.

It’s a flight response, says at the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries in Australia. “It’s the same with almost any animal and the same with sharks.” The animals later “resume their normal migratory movements as if nothing ever happened”, he says.

Butcher and his colleagues have been using …

Sign up to our weekly newsletter

Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox. We'll also keep you up to date with Âé¶¹´«Ã½ events and special offers.

Sign up

To continue reading, today with our introductory offers

or

Existing subscribers

Sign in to your account
Piano Exit Overlay Banner Mobile Piano Exit Overlay Banner Desktop