06/01/2026
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While we are seeing some areas where whites are known to frequent showing signs of population growth, sadly other areas are still declining at an alarming rate. The problem for white sharks is not simply low fecundity and slow growth, but also, and equally, their migratory existence. While an aggregation area may show a population number each year, during the year those sharks do not remain at the location. Throughout the year the population continually changes- ratio of males to females alters as also does ratio of mature to juveniles. Little is really understood why this happens but we are clear on is the population will disperse and individuals will migrate, some travelling huge distances (a documented female white, Nicole, famously migrated from the South African coast across to Perth, Western Australia and this was not a one off, as marine scientists recorded her returning to SA and the Australian coast several times).
White sharks have remained in the ocean unchanged for over 5 million years. It’s incredibly sad they are now threatened by an animal that doesn’t even live in the shark’s domain.
Illegal fishing is pushing Mediterranean great whites toward extinction.
Researchers working with the Blue Marine Foundation say the region’s great white population has collapsed to dangerously low levels. The species is now listed as Critically Endangered in the Mediterranean, with extinction considered a real possibility in the near future.
In 2025 alone, scientists documented at least 40 great white sharks killed along the North African coast. Despite international protections that make it illegal to catch or sell them, investigators found great whites and other protected shark species being landed at ports and sold in fish markets in countries including Tunisia and Algeria. Social media videos independently verified by journalists show dead sharks being hauled ashore and prepared for sale.
The Mediterranean is one of the most heavily fished seas on Earth. Industrial fishing, combined with accidental bycatch, has steadily erased shark populations over decades. According to researchers, great whites have declined more sharply here than almost anywhere else in the world.
To understand how bad the situation has become, scientists spent two weeks searching the Strait of Sicily, considered one of the last remaining strongholds for Mediterranean sharks. They deployed underwater cameras, collected seawater to detect shark DNA, and released over 6,600 pounds (3,000 kilograms) of fish bait and 132 gallons (500 liters) of tuna oil to attract sharks.
They didn’t find a single great white.
During the expedition, the team learned that a juvenile great white had been caught and killed just 20 nautical miles from their research vessel.
Conservationists say many fishers face impossible choices between obeying conservation laws and feeding their families. Without coordinated enforcement and support for sustainable fishing, protections on paper offer little protection in practice.
Great white sharks have ruled these waters for millions of years. Their sudden absence would reshape the Mediterranean ecosystem forever.
Learn more:
"Great white sharks face extinction in Mediterranean, say researchers." BBC, 2025.
