White Sharks Recorded in Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary for the First Time

New Research Reveals Connections Between Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary and the Wider Gulf and Atlantic

For the first time, researchers have documented white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) in Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS).

A new publication resulting from the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science research grant Determining Habitat Requirements and Connectivity for Reef Fishes in the Gulf of America reports acoustic detections of nine white sharks within the sanctuary between 2022 and 2025.

The findings offer a new glimpse into the role FGBNMS plays within a much larger network of marine habitats and reveal that animals traveling through the sanctuary may be connected to ecosystems thousands of miles away.

Tracking Sharks Across the Gulf

Researchers used an acoustic receiver array located throughout FGBNMS to detect white sharks that had previously been tagged by researchers along the northeastern coast of North America.

Some of these sharks traveled nearly 3,800 kilometers (approximately 2,360 miles) before reaching the FGBNMS region.

The receivers detected white sharks from January through August across seven banks within the sanctuary, including detections near the coral reef at East Flower Garden Bank.

Even more significantly, some individual sharks were detected returning to the region over multiple years.

A Connected Ocean

These observations expand our understanding of white shark movements and habitat use in the Gulf of Mexico while also highlighting the interconnected nature of marine ecosystems.

Although FGBNMS is located hundreds of miles from other habitats used by these sharks, their movements demonstrate that the sanctuary is part of a much larger, interconnected network supporting highly mobile marine species.

The study also demonstrates the value of maintaining acoustic telemetry arrays within marine protected areas. Researchers do not necessarily need to tag an animal at FGBNMS to learn that it is using the sanctuary. When animals tagged by researchers elsewhere pass through the area, existing acoustic receivers can detect them and provide valuable information about their movements.

This creates opportunities to learn more about connectivity, migratory species, and the ecological role of marine protected areas such as FGBNMS.

A New Chapter in Understanding Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary

The discovery of white sharks within FGBNMS adds another piece to our understanding of the species that move through and depend on the Gulf of Mexico.

It also reinforces why long-term monitoring and research are so important. The more we learn about the animals using FGBNMS and the connections they have to ecosystems beyond the sanctuary, the clearer the picture becomes of the sanctuary's role within the broader Gulf and Atlantic ecosystems.

Content for this article was provided by Taylor Galaviz, National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, for Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary and the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.