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Great whites disappearing

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    #2
    marieholmfan
    Registered Users Posts: 2,744 ✭✭✭marieholmfan


    dodderangler wrote: »
    Seems the great whites are disappearing in false bay. My first thought before I read it was that maybe orcas have moved in and it seems that is likely the case according to the news.
    https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/africa/something-fishy-in-false-bay-as-great-white-sharks-disappear-1.4072263?mode=amp

    I knew the orcas have a taste for the liver of sharks but this could potentially unbalance the entire area now.
    What's the important ecological role of great whites (full disclosure I know very little about this subject and am firmly on the Orcas' side).


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    #3
    Birdnuts
    Registered Users Posts: 9,634 ✭✭✭Birdnuts


    marieholmfan wrote: »
    What's the important ecological role of great whites (full disclosure I know very little about this subject and am firmly on the Orcas' side).

    Controlling seal and sealion numbers for a start - the also clean the ocean as they scavenge a lot of the time


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    #4
    recedite
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13,993 ✭✭✭✭recedite


    They are much longer lived then people used to think. Around 70 years, and don't even start breeding until around 30 years old.
    The problem with long lived animals (also whales and elephants) is that they can seem like they are resisting whatever pressures are on them, even for a whole generation or two, and then the population suddenly disappears. It appears like a delayed reaction.


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    #5
    WildIreland
    Registered Users Posts: 135 ✭✭WildIreland


    marieholmfan wrote: »
    What's the important ecological role of great whites (full disclosure I know very little about this subject and am firmly on the Orcas' side).

    Apex predators are an essential component of properly functioning ecosystems, and have impacts far beyond simply limiting the unfettered growth of prey populations.

    A phenomenon known as trophic cascade means that adding or removing a trophic level (like top predators) in any natural system can have far-reaching consequences that cascade through every level of the ecosystem, radically altering the way it functions.


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    #6
    marieholmfan
    Registered Users Posts: 2,744 ✭✭✭marieholmfan


    WildIreland wrote: »
    Apex predators are an essential component of properly functioning ecosystems, and have impacts far beyond simply limiting the unfettered growth of prey populations.

    A phenomenon known as trophic cascade means that adding or removing a trophic level (like top predators) in any natural system can have far-reaching consequences that cascade through every level of the ecosystem, radically altering the way it functions.
    Clearly the Orcas are the Apex predators!
    (Full disclosure I hate sharks).


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    #7
    WildIreland
    Registered Users Posts: 135 ✭✭WildIreland


    marieholmfan wrote: »
    Clearly the Orcas are the Apex predators!
    (Full disclosure I hate sharks).

    Absolutely 😉.

    My point was that the exclusion of great whites from that particular ecosystem (by killer whales or whatever else might be driving it) is likely to have impacts and consequences that extand far beyond the obvious immediate reduction in shark predation on key prey species.


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    #8
    marieholmfan
    Registered Users Posts: 2,744 ✭✭✭marieholmfan


    WildIreland wrote: »
    Absolutely 😉.

    My point was that the exclusion of great whites from that particular ecosystem (by killer whales or whatever else might be driving it) is likely to have impacts and consequences that extand far beyond the obvious immediate reduction in shark predation on key prey species.
    Of course I don't want Great White Sharks to become extinct but it is natural (if that's the correct term) for the Orcas not to want to share their living space with Great Whites.


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    #9
    dodderangler
    Registered Users Posts: 9,204 ✭✭✭dodderangler


    marieholmfan wrote: »
    Clearly the Orcas are the Apex predators!
    (Full disclosure I hate sharks).

    Do you watched jaws and now hate sharks??
    How ignorant. Sharks are one of the oldest animals on our planet.
    They deserve our respect and to give them their space. Considering the amount that are slaughtered by humans every year. Sharks play a vital role in the underwater ecosystem.


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