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Spinner Shark

Spinner sharks live up to their name! These fast-swimming predators are known for leaping high above the water and spinning while chasing their prey. 

 

Spinner sharks are found in warm temperate and tropical waters worldwide, although they prefer inshore, shallower water no more than 106 meters (350 feet) deep. Their coloration is generally gray on top with a white underside, and many adults display black tips on their fins, which can sometimes lead them to be confused with blacktip sharks. 

 These sharks are named for their acrobatic hunting style: when feeding on schools of small fish, they spin their bodies as they swim rapidly upward to snatch prey, sometimes breaching completely out of the water up to 6 meters (20 feet) above the surface while spinning in the air. They primarily eat small fish like sardines, herring, and mackerel, as well as cephalopods like octopus and squid. Although they only grow up to about 2.7 meters (9 feet) long, this sleek shark is an adept hunter that plays an important role in marine ecosystems by helping to regulate fish populations. 

 

 

Although found relatively commonly, spinner sharks face several threats that have led to them being considered vulnerable to extinction. 

Overfishing 

Spinner sharks are actively targeted by fishers in regions such as the Gulf of Mexico, West Africa, and Indonesia. An average of 79 million sharks per year were killed globally by fishing from 2017-2019, and overfishing presents a serious threat to a variety of shark species. 

Bycatch 

In addition to targeted fishing, spinner sharks are frequently caught unintentionally as bycatch in industrial, small-scale, and recreational fisheries. Various fishing gear types—including trawls, longlines, and gillnets—are known to capture these sharks, often with deadly consequences. 

Habitat Destruction 

Coastal development and shoreline modification threaten the essential inshore nursery grounds that spinner sharks rely on, especially for pupping. Widespread destruction of key habitats, including coastal mangrove forests has eliminated important nursery areas, further reducing survival prospects for young sharks. 

 

 

The combined threats they face, along with the species’ slow reproductive rate, make conservation efforts critical to the long-term survival of spinner sharks. Better fisheries management is needed, as well as policies to reduce bycatch and protect shoreline habitat.  

Oceana is continuing to work around the world to mitigate the effects of overfishing, reduce bycatch, and protect habitat. In the past few years, we have won key victories implementing science-based catch limits for fisheries to rebuild ocean abundance as well as to stop animals like sharks being caught as bycatch.  

 

 

 

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