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Our oceans are changing fast – and not for the better. As global temperatures rise and ecosystems shift, marine life is taking a hit. Sharks, once the apex predators of the sea, are now facing serious challenges.
Sharks are known for their razor-sharp teeth, which they shed and regrow throughout their lives. But now, even these iconic tools of survival are under threat.
A new study has revealed an alarming trend: ocean acidification is damaging the structure of shark teeth and may be making it harder for them to regrow them properly.
The regeneration of shark teeth depends heavily on seawater minerals like calcium and phosphate, and those are being affected by our changing oceans.
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To explore how acidification impacts sharks, Maximilian Baum, a biologist at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, and his team collected shed teeth from captive blacktip reef sharks (Carcharhinus melanopterus).
They placed 26 undamaged teeth in seawater with a normal pH of 8.1, and another 26 in slightly more acidic water at pH 7.3.
After eight weeks, the results were stark: the teeth exposed to the more acidic conditions were significantly more damaged and structurally weaker.
Although the experiment used shed teeth, Baum explained that wild sharks would likely suffer similar effects as acidification worsens, especially since sharks swim with their mouths slightly open, meaning their teeth are constantly exposed to seawater.
"An increased need for new teeth combined with reduced mineral availability could create a biological bottleneck that affects shark performance and resilience," he explained to Mongabay. "Future studies on living animals are needed [if] we want to understand these dynamics better."
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