Mea Culpa-Unknown Parasites?-Bah!

Earlier this month we picked up a story about "unknown parasites" covering a dead Salmon Shark (Lamna ditropis) that washed up along the north west coast.

While these standings have increased over the past few years-we decided to follow up on the story today. Here's what we found out this morning and it's another case of media oversell...mea culpa we posted it as well:

Hi Folks,

We're following up on a story from last month about a young Salmon Shark that washed up on the beach covered in "unknown parasites". Did the autopsy reveal of what this animal was covered in?

Thanks for the follow up.

--
Cheers,
The Shark Crew
www.sharkdiver.com
www.sharkdivers.com
www.sharkdivers.blogspot.com
www.guadalupefund.org
www.islandofthegreatwhiteshark.com
415.235.9410

Hello Shark Divers,

Yes the parasites were identified and are quite common. The story itself got blown out of proportion, as most news stories do. The "unknown parasites" were not unknown they were just parasites we had just not seen before as we do not deal with sharks that often.

Have a great day!

Tiffany

Shark washes up in Oregon with unknown parasites

Now, this is disturbing. For the past 3 years we have been watching an increase in the numbers of Salmon Sharks (Lamna ditropis) that have been washing up on the shorelines of California and Oregon.

Until recently their migration patterns were unknown. We now know they migrate many miles south from Alaska and back each year.

The latest parasite development is always cause for concern:

SEASIDE, Ore. -- A shark that washed up on an Oregon beach was covered with unknown parasites.

Seaside Aquarium officials say the 4-foot salmon shark that washed up in the Cannon Beach area Wednesday was covered with a dense layer of parasites in an unusual way. Aquarium manager Keith Chandler said staff members could not identify the type of parasite and have begun seeking opinions from other marine experts around the Northwest.

It was the fourth salmon shark found by the Seaside Aquarium in the last six weeks. They have been showing up in the fall and late summer months in recent years, with increasing frequency.