CHATHAM, Mass. (AP) — A crew of researchers and fishermen are tagging great white sharks off Cape Cod in an unorthodox way.
Rather than harpoon the sharks from a distance, the Ocearch (OH'-serch) team baits the fish and leads them onto a lift, tagging and taking blood, tissue and semen samples up close from the world's most feared predator.
The real-time satellite tag tracks the shark each time its dorsal fin breaks the surface, plotting its location on a map.
Researchers hope the expedition sheds light on the sharks' migration patterns to protect breeding and birthing sites, improve public safety and raise awareness about the threatened species.
The crew caught their first shark Sept. 13 and named her Genie for renowned researcher Eugenie Clark. Genie has already traveled about 50 miles from Chatham to Nantucket.
