{"683257":{"#nid":"683257","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Deep Dive Into Shark Ecology Provides Path to Conservation","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFew animals captivate people\u2019s imagination like sharks. From the enduring cultural legacy of \u003Cem\u003EJaws\u003C\/em\u003E, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year, to the continued popularity of the Discovery Channel\u0027s Shark Week, now in its 37th year, media portrayals of the apex predator can shape public perception, illuminate their role within Earth\u0027s ecosystems, and influence conservation efforts. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor Cameron Perry, every week is shark week. The Georgia Tech alumnus earned his Ph.D. in \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ocean.gatech.edu\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Eocean science and engineering\u003C\/a\u003E in 2024 and now leads the whale shark and manta ray initiatives at Georgia Aquarium. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs a 6-year-old listening to his mother read him \u003Cem\u003ETwenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea\u003C\/em\u003E and imagining the creatures Captain Nemo encountered, Perry had dreams of exploring the oceans for himself. When he saw his first whale shark in Georgia Aquarium\u0027s 6.3-million-gallon tank, he set out to learn as much as he could about the gentle giants and help to conserve the endangered species. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPerry\u0027s research has taken him around the world to observe whale shark behaviors in St. Helena and the Galapagos Islands, working to understand their migration habits, reproduction, and global ecology. While most people won\u0027t encounter sharks daily as he does, Perry sees the aquarium as well as the media as effective tools in showcasing sharks in the proper light. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022They are kind of mysterious and unknown. For many people, they\u0027ve never encountered sharks in their lifetime, and part of that captivation could lead to fear, but education can turn that fear into wonder and awe. There\u0027s a narrative that these animals are mindless eating machines, but the more you learn, you realize that\u0027s not the case,\u0022 he said. \u201cThese creatures have existed for 400 million years; they\u0027re older than trees, and understanding their role on our planet is important to changing the narrative around sharks.\u0022\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPerry likens sharks to the white blood cells of the ecosystems in which they live, as they help prevent the spread of disease through the consumption of dead or diseased prey, contribute to population control, and provide balance to the ocean\u0027s biodiversity.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch3\u003EUnderstanding Our Role\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile at Georgia Tech, Perry worked alongside Regents\u2019 Chair and Harry and Anna Teasley Chair in Environmental Biology \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/people\/mark-hay\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EMark Hay\u003C\/a\u003E, whose research has highlighted the role that sharks, and other large predators, play in habitat regulation within coral reefs. Hay explains that overfishing and other human activities have decimated shark populations in certain parts of the world, significantly affecting coral reefs and the populations that rely on them. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs the manager of a freshwater beach in Kentucky in 1975, Hay saw firsthand the impact that \u003Cem\u003EJaws\u003C\/em\u003E had on the beachgoing public at the time \u2014 including his lifeguards.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI had about 25 lifeguards, and I made them swim a mile every day on our buoy line. After we all went to see \u003Cem\u003EJaws\u003C\/em\u003E, about half of them refused to swim the mile for over a week. They\u0027d look at me and say, \u0027You can fire me. I\u0027m not going in,\u0027 and I\u0027d laugh and say, \u2018We\u0027re in freshwater. Jaws isn\u0027t in there.\u2019\u0022 \u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHay said that while the movie remains a favorite of his, its depiction of sharks isn\u0027t representative of their behavior in the wild, as shark attacks are often accidents, not predatory actions. Like Perry, Hay believes that education can help protect sharks and bring a renewed focus to solving the ongoing issues facing the oceans. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022These ecosystems are degrading, and it\u0027s us that\u0027s doing it. What I am trying to do in my teaching is to go beyond cataloging the demise and take a more Georgia Tech-type approach by saying, \u0027If the bridge is broken, we have to be the ones to rebuild it,\u0027\u0022 he said. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHay keeps a saber-toothed tiger fossil on his desk as a constant reminder to himself that \u0022everything I study was shaped by what used to be here,\u0022 and how understanding nature can help preserve it for the future. Sharks are a captivating species, and both Perry and Hay stress that continued research and a commitment to education are the key to their conservation.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Experts say that more accurate depictions of sharks can help protect them and highlight their role in global ecosystems.  "}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EExperts say that more accurate depictions of sharks can help protect them and highlight their role in global ecosystems. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Experts say that more accurate depictions of sharks can help protect them and highlight their role in global ecosystems.  "}],"uid":"36418","created_gmt":"2025-07-24 16:47:25","changed_gmt":"2025-07-24 19:08:53","author":"sgagliano3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2025-07-24T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2025-07-24T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"677479":{"id":"677479","type":"image","title":"Cameron Perry with Whale Shark","body":"\u003Cp\u003ECameron Perry swims alongside a whale shark on a Georgia Aquarium expedition off the coast of St. Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. Submitted photo.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1753377191","gmt_created":"2025-07-24 17:13:11","changed":"1753377191","gmt_changed":"2025-07-24 17:13:11","alt":"Whale shark in the ocean. ","file":{"fid":"261381","name":"Unknown-1.jpeg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/07\/24\/Unknown-1.jpeg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/07\/24\/Unknown-1.jpeg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":116048,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2025\/07\/24\/Unknown-1.jpeg?itok=PECHZ5jE"}}},"media_ids":["677479"],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"},{"id":"565971","name":"Ocean Science and Engineering (OSE)"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"},{"id":"1275","name":"School of Biological Sciences"},{"id":"364801","name":"School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (EAS)"}],"categories":[{"id":"143","name":"Digital Media and Entertainment"},{"id":"154","name":"Environment"},{"id":"146","name":"Life Sciences and Biology"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"169673","name":"Sharks"},{"id":"50821","name":"Whale Sharks"},{"id":"783","name":"conservation"},{"id":"4896","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71911","name":"Earth and Environment"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:Steven.gagliano@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESteven Gagliano\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 Institute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["Steven.gagliano@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}