Researchers have found and recorded the first forensic evidence of a white shark attacking a Franciscana dolphin along the coast of southern Brazil.
The Franciscana dolphin – a small dolphin that inhabits the shallow coastal waters of Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina – was found stranded on a beach in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul.
According to the scientists, the animal’s state of decomposition meant it had died between 3 and 5 days earlier. But it was the bite marks on its body that intrigued the team the most.
- Can any animals kill a great white shark?
- When this tiger shark bumped into a ray, something truly shocking happened
- 10 of the world’s rarest whales and dolphins
By assessing the dimensions of the teeth marks, bite morphology, and orientation of the scars, the researchers identified the wounds as being caused by a white shark.
The bite measurements indicate that the shark had an estimated total length between 3.6–3.8m and weighed between 400–490kg.
“Bite patterns suggest a subsurface attack strategy, consistent with white shark predation on small cetaceans documented globally,” say the researchers, who published their findings in the journal Wildlife Research. One of the bites caused “haemorrhage on the dorsal fin, indicating that the cetacean was still alive when it was predated,” they add.
Given the decline of both species (the Franciscana dolphin is so rare it is sometimes referred to as the ‘ghost dolphin'), it is essential to understand their roles in the ecosystem; this predation event adds another layer to that understanding, conclude the researchers.
Find out more about the study, published in the journal Wildlife Research.
More wildlife stories from around the world
- 16ft great white shark found with perfectly circular hole in its head – scientists know exactly what caused it
- Tiger shark vomits up spiny anteater, shocking Australian scientists
- 'Ghost sharks' are lurking off the coast of Washington – and they have teeth growing out of their foreheads
- Just like in Jaws, this great white shark got stuck in a small pond. Here’s what happened next
Top image: white shark (not the individual involved in the study). Credit: Alessandro De Maddalena/Getty Images
