First evidence of a palaeo-nursery area of the great white shark
- Author(s)
- Jaime A. Villafana, Sebastian Hernandez, Alonso Alvarado, Kenshu Shimada, Catalina Pimiento, Marcelo Rivadeneira, Jürgen Kriwet
- Abstract
Shark nurseries are essential habitats for shark survival. Notwithstanding the rich fossil record of the modern great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias, GWS), its use of nursery areas in the fossil record has never been assessed before. Here, we analysed the fossil record of the GWS from three South American Pliocene localities, assessed body size distributions and applied previously established criteria to identify palaeo-nurseries. We found that juveniles dominate the Coquimbo locality (Chile), whereas subadults and adults characterize Pisco (Peru) and Caldera (Chile), respectively. These results, summed to the paleontological and paleoenvironmental record of the region, suggest that Coquimbo represents the first nursery area for the GWS in the fossil record. Our findings demonstrate that one of the top predators in today’s oceans has used nursery areas for millions of years, highlighting their importance as essential habitats for shark survival in deep time.
- Organisation(s)
- Department of Palaeontology
- External organisation(s)
- University of Vienna, Universidad Veritas, DePaul University, Museum für Naturkunde Berlin - Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung, Universidad Católica del Norte
- Journal
- Scientific Reports
- Volume
- 10
- Pages
- 1-25
- No. of pages
- 8
- ISSN
- 2045-2322
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-65101-1
- Publication date
- 05-2020
- Peer reviewed
- Yes
- Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 106012 Evolutionary research, 106026 Ecosystem research, 106021 Marine biology, 105118 Palaeontology
- Keywords
- ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General
- Sustainable Development Goals
- SDG 14 - Life Below Water
- Portal url
- https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/75764646-80fd-4125-b97e-e9712dc7d203