Cookie-cutter shark bitemarks on whales!

Peter Best and our very own Theoni Photopoulou recently published a paper on a rather bizarre natural phenomenon.

Historic data collected from Donkergat whaling station in the 1960s by Peter Best revealed seasonal and species-specific trends in the bitemarks inflicted on large whales by cookie-cutter sharks. A detailed analysis of these crater-like wounds provided amazing insights into the mechanisms of attack as well as the migration patterns of the whales.

This paper also featured in New Scientist and in the UCT research newsletter! Well done Theoni!