• Question: is there a possibility of great white sharks and bull sharks coming into british waters because of global warming

    Asked by to Thon, Catherine, James, Natalie, Shaylon on 19 Jun 2014. This question was also asked by .
    • Photo: James Bell

      James Bell answered on 19 Jun 2014:

      Really good question! Great white sharks could sometimes visit British waters even as they are now – Great white sharks are special because, unlike most sharks, they can regulate their body temperatures a bit to allow them to cope with colder water. Great whites are frequently found off the coast of South Africa in the cold Atlantic waters so they are certainly capable, and in fact it’s actually kind of surprising that there isn’t a population of great whites around here (although they occasionally visit – 7 confirmed sightings in 14 years (as of 2011))

      http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-14657123

      Bull sharks however seem to be more limited to coastal regions in the tropics where water is more consistently more than 20 degrees C – it’s unlikely, unless there’s a really big warming of the seas around Britain, that we will see them off our own coasts

    • Photo: Anthony Caravaggi

      Anthony Caravaggi answered on 19 Jun 2014:

      James nailed it. 🙂

      It’s worth remembering that as climate change progresses, many organisms – plants, animals, fungi, etc. – will have to try to move to different areas to stay within their favoured climate and environment. Generally, organisms which can’t move any further because of a barrier (mountains, oceans, etc.) or which can’t move any higher up mountains are at greatest risk.

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