In celebration of Valentine’s Day, we want to provide you a quick update on our shark conservation activities and partnership with Fins Attached, and some of their continued work.
From helping to stop various types of sharks from being extinct, to fight to have them labeled as wildlife, to ban catching them, we are proud and love the work that they have doing in Costa Rica and Cocos-Galapagos. To find out why we love sharks and why we are sponsoring Fins Attached, please read our previous article, Why Sponsor Fins Attached.
In December 2021, Cocos Island National Park was expanded from 2,000 sq. km. to 54,000 sq. km, and the Seamounts Marine Management Area is expanded from 10,000 sq. km. to 104,446 sq. km. Giving more protection to ocean wildlife.
During the Fins Attached Costa Rica trip on April 1 – 6, 2021, Nearzero Discovery sponsored the tagging of 5 sharks in Chatham Bay, Cocos Island, Costa Rica.
Having the Name That Shark Event, we added Veronica, Shark-kira, Shrek, Finnegan and Coral to the Fins attached family. These sharks are Carcharhinus albimarginatus (silvertip) ranging from 158 (cm) to 191 (cm) at the time that they were tagged.
We just received from Fins Attached, the tracking data for 4 of the 5 sharks, and we are happy to say that they are alive and well, swimming the waters around Cocos Island.
Using the Cocos Island Dive Site map below, we can see where Shrek (ID 4572) and Veronica (ID 4574) have been hanging out (maybe on a Valentine’s Date?)
Fins Attached also shares their tracking data with other organizations. We are continuing to monitor the sharks to see if they move outside of the Cocos Island area, and hope to be able to share further updates in the future.
In total, during all of the 2021 expeditions combined, Fins Attached tagged and tissue sampled 124 sharks, sea turtles, and rays.
Check out Fins Attached for more information on how you can help #savesharks and #saveoceans. #SharksRWildlife
