Ichthyology and Marine Biology

Sharks and rays, as apex predators and evolutionarily ancient lineages, shape the structure of marine ecosystems in ways that ripple through food webs and coastal economies alike. Researchers study how these animals move across ocean habitats, how their populations are connected across vast distances, and how centuries of fishing pressure have altered their abundance and distribution. A central challenge is reconciling the slow reproductive rates of many elasmobranchs with the pace of commercial exploitation, making accurate population assessments both ecologically urgent and technically difficult. Open questions remain around how phylogenetic diversity maps onto functional roles in ecosystems, and whether habitat protections or fisheries reforms can realistically reverse declines in some of the most vulnerable species.

Works

190,172

Total citations

635,955

Keywords

SharksRaysConservationEcologyFisheriesPhylogeny