We had an incredible few weeks in Niue this past month. Throughout the month of September, our team collaborated with the Niue Fisheries Department and Tofia Niue, and the Niue Ocean Wide Project to carry out activities both on the water and in the community. It was a fantastic opportunity to push forward our research on shark depredation and connect with our long-standing Niuean collaborators.
One of the biggest highlights was our tagging effort. We successfully deployed a total of 10 satellite tags. Nine of these went onto silky sharks, which are key to understanding depredation around the anchored-Fish Aggregating Devices (a-FADs) of Niue. But the real showstopper was tagging an oceanic whitetip shark, an exciting and rare find in Niuean waters! It is only the second specimen we have encountered in Niue since we have been working here. The satellite tags will provide invaluable data on the movements of these pelagic species inside and outside of Niuean waters. Beyond tagging, we also conducted ultrasound scans on 7 tagged female sharks, giving us crucial insights into their reproductive biology, and collected genetic samples to broaden our understanding of these populations. We even managed to squeeze in some initial trials of necromones (smell of dead and rotting shark) to understand if these can be used to deter sharks from stealing hooked fish from the fishers.
The preliminary necromone deterrent trials we ran were particularly interesting. We deployed 360-degree cameras at four different offshore a-FADs, each with a bait hanging below. The bait alternated between a “control” (tuna and flying fish) and shark meat. We conducted 10 paired trials, each lasting two hours, carefully randomizing the deployment of the control and shark meat.
But Expedition Niue wasn’t just about scientific goals; it was also about celebrating and supporting the local community. We were thrilled to support the Tuapa Vaka fishing competition. It was a fantastic event with a great turnout, showcasing the incredible talent, passion, and cultural connection of Niueans to their amazing marine environment. A huge congratulations to Lance Talagi, who reeled in the winning fish—an impressive sailfish weighing 33.2 kg (73.2 lbs.). These community events are vital, strengthening the links between the science we do and the people whose livelihoods are directly impacted by our work.
Stay tuned for those exciting results!
