Save Our Seas Foundation

Angola Elasmo Project: Shark Conservation Through Community Engagement The Angola Elasmo Project was created with a clear purpose: to bridge science with community for the protection of sharks, rays, and their habitats along the Angolan coast. Based in Namibe, this is th...

In the fishing harbour of Namibe, Ana Lúcia Furtado Soares is helping to protect a way of life. With fishers, students, and families by their side, the Angola Elasmo Project are proof that real shark conservation merges trust, and tradition.

saveourseas.com/update/angol...

The Eschmeyer’s scorpionfish is a master of disguise. These reef dwellers move very little, preferring to stay perfectly still to ambush unsuspecting prey. Their sedentary lifestyle means algae, parasites, and encrusting organisms often colonise their skin.

Today is Marine Protected Areas Day!
To celebrate this day is to celebrate our ocean's biodiversity and the importance of protecting its essential habitats, vulnerable ecosystems, and endangered species, while creating a haven for marine life.

Artwork by Ivan Colic | AfroGraphique for the SOSF

Horned ghost crabs are key contributors to a healthy coastal ecosystem. They're opportunistic scavengers feeding mostly under the cover of dark, on fallen fruit, and living and dead plants and animals. If they do leave their burrow during the day, it's usually on less disturbed islands.

New AI study leaves "industrial fishing's bad guys nowhere to hide" - Oceanographic A groundbreaking new study combining satellite imagery and AI technology brings ocean's illegal fishing out into the open for the first time

Satellite imagery and AI signify the dawn of a new era of transparency across the ocean. A new study backed by science reveals the effectiveness of MPAs, showing that 78.5% of the 1,380 MPAs analysed indicated no signs of commercial fishing.
oceanographicmagazine.com/news/new-ai-...

Stressed? Overwhelmed? Ever felt the urge to scream?
Male elephant seals get it. During mating season, they throw their heads back and let out thunderous roars, warning rivals: “Back off, this beach is mine!”. The louder and longer the call, the more intimidating they sound to rivals.

Crafting an Exhibit About Sharks and Rays: Inspiring Conservation Through Education Conceptualising an exhibition is like shaping a sculpture: starting with many ideas and concepts and watching them gradually take shape, whether through information panels, videos, images, or any othe...

The shark & ray exhibit, curated by Ana Lucía López and team, became a sensory journey where science merged with storytelling. Through touch, tech, and tales, it invited a new generation not just to look, but to listen, feel, and step into the role of ocean steward.

saveourseas.com/update/craft...

These broadnose sevengill cowsharks were photographed just over ten years ago, aggregating in the kelp forests of False Bay, South Africa. Once a prime place to see these top predators, they have since abandoned the area with the arrival of orca that now frequent the bay.

📷: Mac Stone | © SOSF

Can even a little fishing be too much? Grey reef shark numbers have dropped by 75% in the remote reaches of the Pacific Ocean, even though only a small fishery is active there and shark fishing and trade bans have recently been implemented...

A study published in 2024 shatters the illusion that in the wildest reaches of our planet, sharks are safe and thriving. In their paper, Maurice Goodman and colleagues, show that grey reef shark numbers have dropped by 75% in the remote reaches of the Pacific Ocean.
saveourseas.com/can-even-a-l...

With eyes that see a spectrum beyond human vision, including polarised light, mantis shrimps see the world in ways we can’t imagine - making them incredible visual hunters. These little critters are also known to keep tidy homes, excavating sand and debris to maintain their burrows.

We hope for the reverse of this trend.

Must've been an experience of a lifetime.

Ah, great thought there!

Part 2: decoding eagle rays in the lab In Part I of this two-part story, we discussed the goals of molecular ecology labwork and introduced one of the techniques by which DNA can be extracted from an elasmobranch tissue sample. In Part II,...

How do we turn shark and ray DNA into useful information?
In part 2 of his blog, John Swenson dives into this surprisingly fascinating process to understand elasmobranch populations. Read below to discover how enzymes and sound waves play a part in all of this.
saveourseas.com/update/part-...

Grey reef sharks gather in striking numbers across French Polynesia’s reefs, where the world's largest Marine Protected Area was created, but these crowds mask the truth. Listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, globally, they face various threats.

🎥: Simon Hilbourne

The Atlantic sea nettle has a geographic range that spans the Atlantic Ocean's high-salinity open waters. As adults, they are in the typical form of a jellyfish, commonly referred to as the medusa phase, with trailing tentacles extending from its umbrella-shaped bell.

📷: Christopher Leon

Somewhat new to science, the Hypselodoris violacea was first described in 2018. These deep violet-purple dorid nudibranchs are found in the Philippines & Malaysia, crawling the seafloor near coral, sponges and anemones - their main food sources.
If you could give it a common name, what would it be?

Decoding eagle rays in the lab Like all work in the field of Molecular Ecology, our Save Our Seas Foundation funded eagle ray research comprises three broad components: Fieldwork, Labwork, and Bioinformatics (data analysis) Our fir...

How does one unveil kinship, survival, and evolution in eagle rays? Using a few drops of liquid, magnets, and light, John Swenson describes how molecular ecology can be used to uncover these stories.

More here: saveourseas.com/update/decod...

With the onset of darkness, juvenile lemon sharks prowl the mangroves of Bimini, Bahamas. Intricate mangrove root systems offer a valuable habitat and nursery area for these pups, protecting them from predators and providing plenty of fish, crustaceans and molluscs to feed on.

📷: Wyatt Albert

This animal has a built-in taser to stun sharks Electric rays are staying out of the stomachs of sharks by shocking them—with up to 200 volts.

Electric rays' shocking power is used for hunting, to zap their prey, and for self-defence too, a new study shows.
These rays have evolved a means of deterring large sharks by scaring them away with a zap of powerful electrical discharges.

More here: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

An indescribable experience: floating amongst sperm whales in slumber. These gentle giants spend about 7% of their day asleep, snoozing vertically - seemingly motionless - peacefully drifting with the current.

🎥: Luke Saddler

The role of an interdisciplinary perspective in protecting Critically Endangered elasmobranchs whilst maintaining human wellbeing In Indonesia, the interdisciplinary value is often overlooked when it comes to solving complex, real-world problems. There’s a widespread expectation that academic and professional credibility comes f...

Can we save Critically Endangered sharks without harming coastal livelihoods?
In Lunyuk, Indonesia, M Said Ramdlan’s interdisciplinary approach bridges conservation and community wellbeing, showing that real-world solutions demand looking beyond academic silos.

saveourseas.com/update/the-r...

Rough-toothed dolphins are named after their peculiar teeth, that is faintly ridged. With a distinctive appearance, they look like primitive dolphins, at times described as reptilian. They are highly sociable, frequently travelling with other oceanic dolphin species and pilot whales.
🎥: Luke Saddler

Warming ocean is big 'turn off' for critically endangered angelsharks - Oceanographic Scientists voice concern for the future of angelsharks after finding females are avoiding breeding grounds due to ocean being too warm

Extreme heatwaves caused by warming ocean temperatures are disrupting the reproductive behaviours of female angelsharks.
Despite the warmer seas, male angelsharks returned to their traditional mating grounds as normal, while females were absent.
More here: oceanographicmagazine.com/news/warming...

This week, for our #WoS podcast, we are 'In The Field', with the team from our D'Arros Research Centre, "Monitoring Sharks and Manta Rays on a Remote Island".

saveourseas.com/worldofshark...
saveourseas.com/worldofshark...

This silky shark has had a notch chiselled into its face. How did it survive? Scientists found that genes linked to sharks’ immune systems, which evolved over the last 400 million years, have been modified. Explaining how, even in bacteria-laden ocean water, their wounds heal quickly.
📷: chris_rasta

This buoy acts much like a natural FAD, to which pelagic species are attracted. Man-made FADs concentrate pelagic fish to make them easier to catch.
But bycatch in FAD fisheries includes turtles, seabirds and sharks, including the highly social and curious silky shark.

📷: Annie Guttridge

Overfishing is driving most sharks to the brink of extinction, but it’s bycatch – the incidental or accidental catch of species – that is the real issue. Only 26% of species globally are actually targeted: most are caught (and retained) as bycatch.

📷: Matthew During

Two creatures turning our thinking upside-down: part 2 During one of my daily dives, I spied a camouflaged juvenile Cape sole lying on the sand. I glided down as gently as I could to take a picture. As I moved closer to take another one, something extraor...

Why would a tiny Cape sole leap onto the back of a human’s hand?
A chance dive by Sea Change Project’s Craig Foster unlocked this mystery… and sparked even more questions.

Read more in his blog below.
saveourseas.com/update/two-c...

The Shark Trust's 2025 Shark Photographer of the Year was announced on #SharkAwarenessDay.

We are proud to announce that the Save Our Seas Foundation CEO, James Lea's basking shark photo, captured in Scotland's waters, was awarded Runner Up in the British Isles Category.