This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Biscayne Bay has been designated an Important Shark and Ray Area, recognizing the heavily urbanized estuary as essential habitat for nine shark and two ray species, including threatened and endangered species. The designation is supported by 10 years of research led by the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science.
The findings show that the bay provides nursery and reproductive habitat for species ranging from bonnetheads and nurse sharks to great hammerheads and tiger sharks. It also serves as an important feeding area for three species and contains aggregations of lemon sharks that researchers are continuing to study. Important Shark and Ray Areas, known as ISRAs, are scientifically identified areas that play a significant role in the development and survival of sharks, rays and chimaeras.
ISRAs identify areas important to shark and ray reproduction, including gestation, mating and pupping; areas essential for newborn sharks in their first year of life; and areas disproportionately important for shark feeding, resting, movement or aggregations. The initiative was developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Species Survival Commission Shark Specialist Group to help ensure that critical habitats are considered in conservation, marine planning and environmental decision-making. "Biscayne Bay is often discussed in terms of environmental decline, but that is only part of its story," said Catherine Macdonald, an associate professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at the Rosenstiel School and the Robert K.
Johnson Center for Marine Conservation, who led the designation effort. "The bay continues to function as an extraordinarily important habitat for sharks and rays, including species of conservation concern. Its ecological value needs to be part of ongoing decisions about Biscayne Bay's future." The bay's shallow waters, which average about 6 feet (1.8 meters) deep, offer young sharks some protection from larger predators.
It's a warm, food-rich environment that also supports gestating females and the growth of juveniles. Researchers documented an unusually high concentration of young sharks from several species, making Biscayne Bay a rare example of a productive shark nursery alongside a major metropolitan area. Macdonald and her team began collecting data on sharks and rays in 2016 using drumlines, longlines, baited underwater video stations, drone surveys and shore-based rod-and-reel fishing.
The effort represents thousands of hours of fieldwork, contributions from more than 100 University of Miami undergraduate and graduate students, and collaborations with peer institutions. Macdonald estimates that 10,000 people have participated in the broader research and education effort, including schoolchildren, community members and citizen scientists. Between 800 and 1,000 South Florida students take part in shark-tagging activities through the Rosenstiel School's Shark Research and Conservation Program (SRC) each year.
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