Weird & Wonderful: Greenland Sharks

I was thrilled to see a new Dirty Jobs episode in this year's Discovery Shark Week lineup featuring one of my favorite cartilaginous fish, the Greenland shark. 

This mysterious species of cold, North Atlantic and Arctic waters is among the world's largest sharks.  Although Greenland sharks appear slow, are important predators in the marine ecosystem, feeding on a variety of fish and invertebrates, as well as seals and porpoises.  There are even reports of them snatching caribou from the edge of the ice!   

Although they are not the target of commercial fisheries, there are reasons to be concerned about Greenland sharks. Studies suggest this species grows especially slowly, at a rate of just 1 centimeter per year, and give birth to 10 or fewer pups per brood.   Greenland sharks tend to congregate around fishing operations and are often killed incidentally as "bycatch."   Although their meat is toxic and unpalatable to most, consuming it after rotting it underground is traditional in Iceland.  Recently, targeted, recreational fishing for Greenland sharks has emerged as a hot, new, extreme sport in the region.  Greenland sharks are also taken occasionally for their leather, liver oil and/or jaws.  Despite these pressures, there are no fishing limits or management programs in place to guard against overfishing of Greenland sharks.  The international fisheries body that governs fishing in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean has however highlighted them as a species for which more data are particularly needed. 

The Dirty Jobs episode will showcase the people who are enduring extreme conditions to collect that valuable information needed to conserve Greenland sharks.  Dr. Steve Campana, a shark specialist from Canada, was part of the featured expedition and offered me this wonderfully descriptive account:

"Two weeks of camping on the sea ice 20 km from shore, with the constant threat of the ice breaking up and us floating away.  Nothing to see but snow and ice in all directions.  Nights in a sleeping bag in an unheated shack at -25 deg C.  Frozen feet and hands while working.  A single burner Coleman stove for cooking.  And lots of Greenland sharks.  This is dream science:  the science I dreamed of doing as a kid.  It doesn't get any better than that!"

Catch the Greenland shark episode of Dirty Jobs on Tuesday, July 29, at 10 p.m. ET/PT. 

PHOTO: Dirty Jobs host Mike Rowe with a greenland shark caught during production of the Shark Week 2008 episode of Dirty Jobs. (Photo by DCL)

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Sonja Answers Your Questions

Q: How can I get involved and help shark conservation?
- Posted by Spencer, July 22, 2008

I have been a shark enthusiast since I was a little girl. I have been studying them for a long time. What can I do to get involved in helping save them?
- Posted by basketshark78, July 22, 2008

A: Thanks for your concern and willingness to act.  Support from people like you represents sharks' best hope for a brighter future.  The sad fact that so many sharks and closely related rays are overfished and underprotected around the world means that there are opportunities to educate and influence governments at all levels in all regions of the globe.   If you live on the U.S. coast, you can contact your governor and encourage a more precautionary approach to shark fisheries management.  In most countries, you can write to the national government officials responsible for shark conservation (usually fisheries and environment ministers; the secretary of commerce in the U.S.) and urge them to elevate the priority of shark conservation in national waters and internationally.  Of course, your senators and representatives can also do a lot for sharks.  For instance, have a look at the finning blog entry for details on helping move anti-finning legislation through the U.S. Senate.  Thanks again for your help.

Post your questions for Sonja in the Comments section below.  She will be checking in to give you answers.

Comments

[Jen Connors]

I'm enjoying reading your blog, but I'm bothered by the July 26 entry about Greenland sharks. The photo shows a smiling Mike Rowe next to dead Greenland shark, apparently caught as "bycatch." The article states that "there are reasons to be concerned about Greenland sharks," citing their slow growth rate and small brood numbers. If Greenland sharks are now among the ocean species facing threats such as overfishing, a more suitable photo would be one without a "hunter's trophy" theme.

[No longer a fan.]

I have been a fan of shark week for years. The July 29th episode featuring Greenland Sharks was extremely disturbing. Not only did it appear that a shark was caught for the purpose of Shark Week, but was then killed "for the greater good" and cut open for research. If the way you are catching these sharks are putting them in harm's way shouldn't you be trying to research a way to catch them? You preach the preservation of sharks but seemed all to excited at the fact that the shark could not be released back into the ocean and could be used for research.

[Chris Johnson]

I have been a fan of shark week for years and a huge fan of dirty jobs. I was horrified by what I saw on this episode.

Killing for the sake of curiosity is not science. What I saw here was just complete and utter lack of concern for life coupled with a sudden, (I think, because of the realization by this "almost P.H.D" that other people will now witness this "science")half hearted self conscious attempt to explain away this casual cruelty. For the greater good? WOW! what a terrifying sentence, think of how many God-awful things have been done in history after that line was uttered.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not a tree hugging, birkenstock wearing, granola munching, vegetarian, environmentalist. In-fact as a general rule I think animals taste pretty good.

Please pass the BBQ sauce!
But.....
Is this what research now looks like? On a T.V. show, we see a host and what can only be described as a gleeful "scientist" carving up a a defenseless animal(while still alive I might ad. If you don't believe me watch it again as they make the first vertebral cut.)

They couldn't be bothered to put in the effort to make sure the animal didn't come to harm? (Yes, this means less hooks on the line and a little more time but isn't it worth it?) They refuse to work to get the proper funding for their research? There are other ways to study these animals. It dose take a little more money and more effort on behalf of the research team but nothing has to die.

My point here is that this cruelty is unnecessary. What I saw tonight was just large children pulling the wings off flies."to see what happens" Killing for "research" is no different than killing for fun.

This was not science!

The Discovery Channel and Dirty Jobs has a responsibility after turning over this rock to lead the clean up. To keep this from continuing!

[Theresa]

I was also upset by the death of the Greenland shark on tonight's show. However, I thought that Mike Rowe and the team showed enormous respect for the animal - I am thinking especially of Mike's demand that the lead scientist explain "How is this okay?"

The team made sure to point out that the killing was accidental, and that Greenland sharks, at this point, are abundant enough that the benefits to conservation of what can be learned from studying the sharks outweigh the cost of those that do not survive. I felt that the scientists were truly dedicated to conservation of the species, and I feel confident that if there were a less risky way to catch Greenland sharks, they would change their methods immediately. Remember that these sharks live under the ice in the Arctic! They're not exactly easy to get to.

Overall this has been my favorite Shark Week program this year. I much preferred seeing real shark scientists and an attitude that finding the sharks was something to be celebrated to the focus on attacks and perpetuation of stereotypes that, sadly, have characterized most of the shows again this year.

[Marie]

I have to say I have been a huge Shark Week fan for years and always make the time to be able to view the episodes featured as I find them entertaining, fun, and educational. However, this year that is not the case, for the first time since I started watching Shark Week I had to leave the room during an episode. The subsequent injury and death of the female Greenland shark horrified me, I was (naively I guess) hoping that any sharks caught would be both caught and treated with care and released after the scientists did their thing.

I think that the method used to catch these Greenland sharks was perhaps economical but how often can we bypass humane treatment in the favor of saving money? How many of these Greenland sharks have to be sacrificed? Are there not more humane methods that can be employed in such a situation? I mean sure it is up by the Arctic circle so diving really is not an option, but surely there are methods to live capture of these sharks that are not as likely to cause injury?

Again I'm a huge fan of Shark Week and Mike Rowe, but this episode severely disappointed me.

[Sam]

I am a huge Discovery channel fan, and look forward to Shark Week every year. I watched the Mythbuster episode where they confirm that playing dead is safer than thrashing around in the water. They also did a segment where they said flashlights attracted sharks during a night dive. The next night, Survivorman did a show where he concluded the opposite - that thrashing around was better than playing dead and that flashlights scared sharks off. I'm confused - did anyone else catch these contraditions?

[Amalthea]

I agree with the others who said they were horrified by the dirty jobs episode. It reminds me of this quote:
"It seems to me of great importance to teach children respect for life. Towards this end, experiments on living animals in classrooms should be stopped. To encourage cruelty in the name of science can only destroy the finer emotions of affection and sympathy, and breed an unfeeling callousness in the young towards suffering in all living creatures."
– Eleanor Roosevelt, former First Lady of the United States of America

I do agree that Mike Rowe showed respect for the animal. I blame the scientists. They can do so much better. There has to be a better way to learn about these animals. There is no "greater good" done when an innocent dies.

[JC]

A reply to Marie's Jul 30 comment: There are several contradictions in the Mythbusters and Survivorman episodes with other published knowledge - the key difference is that the tests were with different types of sharks. None of the tests were done across several types of sharks so one can't draw a concrete conclusion off of one test with one type of shark.

[sunshine]

i 2 was horrified as i watched the crying shark lady doing an "autopsy" on a live animal. i thought perhaps i was seeing things. then mike said, "what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.

[Stacey]

My son, who is going to be 6 in September love sharks. He has watched both shark weeks and we purchased the first set of Shark Week DVDs'. We had to DVR July's Shark week so he could watch them over and over again. He has collected about every kind of shark toy or model. He can name every kind of shark. What can I do as a parent to keep him envolved with sharks. He wants to save them all. Where can I go to get different kinds of shark teeth. He wants to get a collection of them all. I was trying to find somewhere to buy a few for
his birthday.
Thank you
Stacey

[Fred Smilek]

This article was very informativ.

Fred Smilek

Email- Fred_Smilek@yahoo.com
Webpage- http://sites.google.com/site/fredjsmilek/

Fred Smilek is the acting president of the Society to Save Endangered Species. It was founded in 2006 by Fred Smilek along with his two best friends Charles and Jonathan.

[Fred Smilek]

Never heard before about this rare and mysterious creature.

Fred Smilek
Email- Fred_Smilek@yahoo.com
Webpage- http://sites.google.com/site/fredjsmilek/

Fred Smilek is the acting president of the Society to Save Endangered Species. It was founded two years ago by Fred Smilek along with his two best friends Charles and Jonathan.

[o be one]

i see you on TV

[Chris]

Oh shut up people. I came this episode just now and knew people who want to complain about it so I had to see if I was right.

Wow people, just wow.

These are the same people I see on the news wanting to get "god" taken out of the pledge, but yet dont complain when they get x-mass off from work.

Jeez people.

[Amalthea]

Chris- I don't see what your comments have to do with our concerns. Not to mention they are very offensive. I, personally, am a Christian. Not that that is any of your business. Stop Stereotyping and try to have an open mind.