MAN: Today, we talk with Professor Helen Adams, an expert on basking sharks. Like all sharks, they’re vertebrates, fish that breathe through gills, but they’re very different from the common aggressive sharks. Good evening, professor.
HELEN: Hello, good evening. You can call me Helen.
MAN: Ok, Helen, what can you tell us about the basking sharks’ habitat?
HELEN: Well, they live in the Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean. They prefer to live in warm waters, so they migrate. They sometimes live near the coast so people can see them in very distant places like Hawaii or Scotland in the summer.
MAN: Nice! And, what can you tell us about their anatomy?
HELEN: The basking shark is the second largest shark in the world. They can weigh 5.2 tones and be 30 feet long.
They are very similar to the great white shark so many people panic when they see them. But there are some significant differences between them both: the basking shark has larger gills and smaller eyes. It also has a distinct nose with a hook.
MAN: OK, it’s good to know the differences because these sharks are harmless, aren’t they?
HELEN: Yes, and not only for humans, but they never hunt other fish, either. They move in the water with their mouth open to filter the water and eat what they find in it.
MAN: Right… and…what other abilities has it got?
HELEN: Well, the basking shark gets its name because it moves really slowly and enjoys the sunrays. But you have probably seen photos of these sharks jumping out of the water to remove parasites from their body.
MAN: Ok, One last question professor: What is the future of the Basking Shark?
HELEN: It is not an endangered species; we call its conservation status “vulnerable”. We don’t know the exact number of basking sharks, because they migrate all over the planet, but we know the population is decreasing drastically in the last decades. Fishermen are killing them to sell their fins or simply because they get trapped in their nets, and the tiger shark is also killing and eating them.
To protect it, we must make illegal its fishing all over the world. Laws must also be harder on people who are selling and buying their fins. Finally, we have to be careful with basking shark tourism, because it can alter their way of life.
HELEN: Hello, good evening. You can call me Helen.
MAN: Ok, Helen, what can you tell us about the basking sharks’ habitat?
HELEN: Well, they live in the Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean. They prefer to live in warm waters, so they migrate. They sometimes live near the coast so people can see them in very distant places like Hawaii or Scotland in the summer.
MAN: Nice! And, what can you tell us about their anatomy?
HELEN: The basking shark is the second largest shark in the world. They can weigh 5.2 tones and be 30 feet long.
They are very similar to the great white shark so many people panic when they see them. But there are some significant differences between them both: the basking shark has larger gills and smaller eyes. It also has a distinct nose with a hook.
MAN: OK, it’s good to know the differences because these sharks are harmless, aren’t they?
HELEN: Yes, and not only for humans, but they never hunt other fish, either. They move in the water with their mouth open to filter the water and eat what they find in it.
MAN: Right… and…what other abilities has it got?
HELEN: Well, the basking shark gets its name because it moves really slowly and enjoys the sunrays. But you have probably seen photos of these sharks jumping out of the water to remove parasites from their body.
MAN: Ok, One last question professor: What is the future of the Basking Shark?
HELEN: It is not an endangered species; we call its conservation status “vulnerable”. We don’t know the exact number of basking sharks, because they migrate all over the planet, but we know the population is decreasing drastically in the last decades. Fishermen are killing them to sell their fins or simply because they get trapped in their nets, and the tiger shark is also killing and eating them.
To protect it, we must make illegal its fishing all over the world. Laws must also be harder on people who are selling and buying their fins. Finally, we have to be careful with basking shark tourism, because it can alter their way of life.
Última modificación: Luns, 21 de Decembro de 2015, 20:57