🔗 Share this article These Apex Predators Are on the Brink of Extinction in the Mediterranean, Scientists Report Great white sharks in the Mediterranean Sea are facing a serious threat of extinction, with illegal fishing being a major contributor to their rapid population drop. This finding is based on research by scientists, who worked alongside an marine preservation group. They report that several critically endangered species – including great white sharks – are found on sale in ports across Northern African nations. Great white sharks are one of more than 20 Mediterranean shark species protected under international law, which renders it unlawful to target them or to offer them for sale. However, by surveying docks along the Mediterranean coast of North Africa, investigators discovered that no fewer than 40 great white sharks have been killed there in the single year of 2025. Researchers and advocates say they have observed endangered species for sale in fish markets in North Africa. Footage from social media showing endangered sharks being unloaded in North African ports has been independently verified. One piece of footage showed a big shark being dragged onto land from a trawler in an Algerian port. Another, filmed in Tunisia, shows parts of what appears to be a short-finned mako shark, which is also a species at risk. Final Refuge The experts worked from a boat in the area near Sicily. The lead researcher, stated that many populations of sharks – white sharks in particular – had suffered a severe drop in the Mediterranean in the past years. "No other stretch of water is fished like the Mediterranean Sea," he said. "The impact of industrial fishing has been intensifying... and it's possible that they will vanish in the near future." The Mediterranean white shark population is now classified as Critically Endangered by the global conservation union. In their new mission to find and study the animals, the team worked in the Strait of Sicily – an area considered a "last stronghold" in the Mediterranean for several threatened shark species. A primary objective of their project was to deploy a tracking device onto a shark – something that has not yet been accomplished in the Mediterranean Sea. To try this, the researchers used over three tons of bait – including baitfish and 500 litres of fish oil to create a "scent trail" that many sharks can detect from a great distance. Despite working for two weeks – baiting the ocean, taking samples of seawater to look for genetic material and using underwater cameras – the researchers failed to encounter any animals to tag. They captured only a fleeting sighting of one blue shark species on their cameras. "It's discouraging," the lead researcher said. "It just shows how depleted this marine environment is." During their search for remaining sharks, they also received reports that a juvenile great white had been caught and killed in a regional fishery – just 20 nautical miles from where they were working. It is not clear whether that specimen was caught by accident in fishing gear, or if it was deliberately caught. The team, however, believes that more than 40 great white sharks have been caught around that coast. "This is a lot for a critically endangered population," the researcher emphasized. Illegal Shark Trade Research in Tunisia in 2023 discovered protected sharks being traded. The researchers, along with local partners, are observing various harbors in the region. Findings shows that protected sharks are captured, brought to port, and sold in countries including the region. The regulations safeguarding sharks are multifaceted. Currently, numerous species have treaty-based safeguards – such as makos, angel sharks, threshers, and hammerheads. An regional treaty states that those species cannot be "kept on boats, transferred, landed, stored, or sold". The agreement specifies "they must be released alive [where] possible". Those rules do not address incidental capture and enforcement is variable from country to country. The researchers used baited underwater cameras to survey the region. A conservationist noted that his own research found several great whites on sale. But, he said, there was a unexpected hopeful sign in the fact that white sharks were being found in markets. "It shows that there is wildlife left," he said. "And if we can safeguard this, there is a possibility of comeback." The Path Forward In economically challenged regions in North Africa, fishers who catch sharks might face the dilemma of whether to feed their family, or throw back an endangered shark to the ocean. "Why would they release sharks into the sea when they must feed their households?" asked a scientist. "If you support them and train them in more sustainable fishing, they will not catch protected species." Another expert added that if countries around the Mediterranean worked together, "there is hope." "But," he added, "we've got to act very quickly."