HRI's Endowed Associate Research Professor
Dr. Greg Stunz and his team are embarking on a project
that will examine essential shark habitat in the Gulf of Mexico.
The project will focus on the Texas Gulf Coast with emphasis on
Padre Island National Seashore (PINS).
The project's researchers will be charting demographics, feeding habitats, and nurseries
for the shark fishery. Stunz will be principal
investigator for the project with US Geological Survey (USGS) Mark Wildhaber as co-principal investigator.
The planning phase of the project is underway and data
collection will start this spring. Researchers will take creel
surveys (interviewing fishers about their catch and taking data
on the fish), analyze sharks' stomach content, and use mathematical modeling to
assess the level of
recreational fishing in Gulf waters.
The shallow waters of
the Gulf of Mexico support a diverse and abundant shark
assemblage. However, several shark species are declining in US
waters. Stunz hopes to discover the reasons why through the data
he and his team are collecting.
"This project is important because the presence of sharks greatly influences the entire marine
ecosystem. Yet, we have little information on the
distribution and species composition of sharks," Stunz said.
