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Grey reef sharks captured by baited remote underwater video system in French Polynesia. A new landmark study has revealed sharks are absent on many of the world’s coral reefs, indicating they are too rare to fulfill their normal role in the ecosystem, and have become “functionally extinct”. Of the 371 reefs surveyed in 58 countries, sharks were not observed on nearly 20 percent, indicating a widespread decline that has gone undocumented on this scale until now. The survey also identified conservation measures that could lead to recovery of these iconic predators. Essentially no sharks were detected on any of the reefs of six nations. (Photo by Global Finprint/AFP Photo)
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