The Atlantic Shark Institute

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The Atlantic Shark Institute Atlantic Shark Institute - RI based non-profit 501(c)(3). Conducts critical shark research.

10/18/2026

NEW PAPER ALERT: The oceans are constantly changing and it’s critcal that research on sharks keeps up with that pace of change. It is what makes your support of the ASI critical to ocean health.

In that spirit we are delighted to share that the ASI was recognized for our scientific contributions to the brand new IUCN Shark Specialists Group - Important Shark and Ray Areas (ISRA) assessment for North America. This new research added 191 ISRAs and 39 Areas of Interest in the North American & Caribbean Atlantic.

The ASI was specifically recognized for our contributions in the Southern Cape Cod to Florida Corridor, New York Bight to Nantucket Sound, the Delaware Coast to Block Island Sound and the Great South Channel corridor! This study provides new additions to the global ISRA eAtlas and reveals major migration corridors, nursery grounds, and aggregation sites across the Atlantic, Caribbean and Pacific waters. All critical to shark health, ocean health and our health! Huge thanks to our volunteer team of more than 50 dedicated individuals, all of our research colleagues and of course our donors that make all this work possible! You are making a difference!

10/11/2026

The sandbar shark (aka brown shark) could be found in many places throughout Southern New England this season. We saw them in numbers we have not seen in over 40 years of research and after more than 15 years of protection, they are showing signs of recovery. NOAA is conducting a comprehensive stock assessment to evaluate if the prohibited status of this shark may change as a result.

Tomas Koeck, the ASI’ Director of Cinematography/Film and Emmy Award nominee, captured these two beautiful videos while diving off of Block Island, RI this summer. To learn more about this important research and the beautiful RI coast, please check out Ocean State: Rhode Island’s Wild Coast on PBS tomorrow night (October 12th) at 9 PM! It’s the third film in Tomas’ Emmy nominated series and you can see the ASI conducting sandbar shark research with a front row seat! Tomas Koeck

10/04/2026

Meet Abby Grace! She’s a 5’4” shortfin mako shark that we tagged in June of 2025 as part of our migration/distribution research on these protected sharks. Our data set is significant as we have deployed more than 60 ten-year acoustic tags as part of this research and this is simply a short 120 day view of Abby Grace following her tag and release last summer. This video was produced by the ASI’s Lead Research Analyst Kimmie Lavoie using more than 500 detections in that short period of time! This project began in 2021 and is a collaboration between the ASI and Dr. Conor McManus at NOAA. The beautiful shortfin mako drawing was done by Marc Dando.

09/27/2026

We’ve seen a lot of interesting things during our Baited Remote Underwater Video System (BRUVs) research this season but this one is pretty unique! This video was taken at a depth of a little over 30 feet off Sakonnet Point of a cormorant! While it may surprise some, the cormorant has actually been recorded at depths exceeding 100 feet! They are aggressive hunters of fish, can stay submerged for up to two minutes and their upper bill acts as a sharp hook. Real formidable! Big thank you to Dr. David Taylor and his Roger Williams University team of Michael Natoli, Grace Baldwin, Adele Kasper, Ryan Rubino and captain Finn Morrissey for this awesome video. Roger Williams University

09/20/2026

Well, this is the definition of hot off the press! Tyler O’Brien and Carrie Drayton were driving on Nantucket a couple of hours ago and witnessed a once in a lifetime predation between a great white shark and a seal. They were just North of Coskata Pond on Great Point Beach when they saw a seal jump from the water being pursued by what they estimated to be a 12-14 foot great white. They thought the shark had missed its prey until they saw the water turn red as the shark had apparently been successful on another seal.

It was a first for both of them but a scene that repeats itself continually along this stretch of New England and up into Canada. Big thank you to Carrie and Tyler for sharing this interesting video and to Rick Ramos for letting us know about it! Carrie Drayton

09/13/2026

We’d bet that you thought that roughtail stingrays only used their pectoral fins (aka wings) to flap and guide them across the ocean floor. Well, you’d be mostly right! As you can see here, this roughtail has figured out to use them to hold onto our BRUVs (Baited Remote Underwater Video System) for a free meal! It’s really fascinating to see what goes on under the water when nobody is watching. Best of all, you can hear this roughtail crunching away as it devours all the herring strapped to the top of the bait cage. Well done! Big thanks to boat captain Tom Fetherston and crew Catie Kass, Paul James and Rhea Burmeister for getting this video as part of our Block Island BRUVs research. stingray

09/06/2026

Our oceans are always changing, and this juvenile spinner shark caught in RI in the last couple of weeks may just be another example of that. In 2024, Dr. Josh Moyer, the ASI, and Dr. Stephen Kajiura published a communication in the Journal of Fish Biology on a juvenile spinner shark also caught in RI waters. The title was, “A juvenile spinner shark in southern New England: A rare visitor or a sign of change?”

The focus of the communication centered on the newborn spinner shark being found in an area not recognized as primary or secondary habitat for these young sharks. And it was believed to be the first confirmation of such an event. Well, this is now the second and it begins to raise yet more questions about our changing oceans, these juvenile spinner sharks and what it may mean.

It is a small and yet important example of why we love what we do and the importance of this research. Huge thank you once again to Captain Carl Granquist and his mate Bryce Briggs for noting this important catch and getting this little guy back into the ocean and on his way! He likely doesn’t realize how important his visit was that day!

08/30/2026

Meet the elusive Nessorhamphus ingolfianus. Its name comes from the Greek “nessa/netta” (duck) and “rhamphos” (bill) for its, well, bird-like mouth. This one had us stumped for a while. Its elongated body pointed to it being an eel. But the lobed tail shape pointed elsewhere. Finally, we found the oceanic duckbill eel and its unique caudal fin shape. Even though it looks like a separate fin, like other eels, its dorsal, caudal, and a**l fins are all connected. The more you know!

Luckily, the crabs weren’t hard to identify - red crabs, Chaceon quinquedens, are seen all along the deepwater slopes of our canyon systems. They love stealing our bait and chasing off other fishes!

This video was taken at an astounding 2625 feet deep, roughly 120 miles off Cape Cod as part of our deep sea BRUVs study collaboration with Christine de Silva. Christine (Christine de Silva) is an ASI Research Fellow grant recipient and a PhD candidate at the University of RI, Graduate School of Oceanography. We believe this may be the first sighting of an oceanic duckbill eel alive in its own habitat!

08/23/2026

If you live in Southern New England or along the South shore of Long Island you have likely heard A LOT about the significant increase in sandbar (aka brown) sharks this summer. Many fisherman have been racing to get their striped bass, sea bass and tuna to the boat before having them stolen by this species of shark. Well, here it is!

This wonderful video was taken recently off of Block Island, RI during our Baited Remote Underwater Video System (BRUVs) research. The sandbar shark has been been protected in the US since 2009 after being severely overfished. They are one of two shark species that evidence suggests can learn from previous interactions with anglers and many have found that to be true this season! The sandbar shark population is currently being assessed with final results expected in early 2027 and we will share that assessment when it become available.

Big thanks to Tom Fetherston, Paul James, Ella Schubert, Seton Smith and Rhea Burmeister and for this great video and for BRUVs a**lysis by Tessa Seebeck. What a team!

Many sharks can be difficult to identify but not this one! The common thresher shark is easily identified by its long ta...
08/16/2026

Many sharks can be difficult to identify but not this one! The common thresher shark is easily identified by its long tail which is often the same length as the rest of its body. And as you can see, they can jump to signficant heights!

The Atlantic Shark Institute (ASI), Dr. Conor McManus (NOAA) and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) are collaborating on a multi-year study on the common thresher shark here in the Northwest Atlantic. In fact, so far this season we have added Tilly, Virginia, Debra, Dex, Nicole, Thea and more to this important work. Yes, all ladies!

The need for this research is highlighted by the ICES Working Group of Elasmobranch Fishes (WGEF), which has consistently emphasized a critical lack of information regarding common thresher stock identity in the NWA across its reports from 2009 through 2025. The team is assessing ontogenetic habitat shifts and seasonal movement patterns by sampling these sharks in waters from Virginia through southern New England, including the deployment of 10-year acoustic tags. We look forward to sharing more over the coming months and years!

Photo credit (first photo): Steve Momot

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