The Dorsal Fin

Boston’s WHDH-7 is reporting that officials have issued a warning about the presence of white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) off of Chatham, Massachusetts. Last weekend six white shark were spotted by plane and eight by boat. While no beaches have been closed, officials want people to be aware of the sharks’ presence.

The Dyers Island Conservation Trust recently posted this short video on parasitic copepods infecting white sharks in South Africa. If you’ve watched enough videos or looked at enough photos of sharks, then you’ve probably noticed some of these parasitic species freeloading off of a host shark. One of the most noticeable on white sharks, as can be seen in this video, is the Pandarus satyrus. While a vast majority of the oceans’ copepods are free-living, it is estimated that about 15% are parasitic in nature. For more information check out this article on parasitic copepods.