Learn why sharks and rays jump out of the water in this beautiful, strange behavior called breaching, from parasite removal to communication and courtship. Take a deep dive into the newest study and learn about all that energy-hungry, but spell-binding spectacle is used for.
Killer parasites ,predators, and prey are going to make it hard on us too.
Breaching, the often spectacular leaps of sharks and rays out of the water or over the surface which they sometimes perform for various reasons. The most often cited reason is to remove external parasites from their coats. Fresh blemishes found on sunning sharks indeed perfectly conformed to the shape and size of a lamprey’s maw, as well as surveys demonstrating how lampricide can latch onto the giant fish some ten billion times.
Another idea is that breaching is a form of predator avoidance. Hammerhead sharks have been observed in the wild pursuing rays through large congregations in shallow water and causing the rays to leap out of the water en masse in an attempt to escape. In addition, some sharks breach to focus or incapacitate their prey, making them easier to eat. For instance, enormous aggregations of manta and devil rays have been observed taking simultaneous flight through cobweb-like clouds of plankton, possibly to corral or disorientate the plankton before they take their fill.
Communication and Courtship
In the marine world, breaching may also be a form of communication and courtship. White sharks near the Farallon Island have been observed launching themselves into the air as a potential means to chase off other sharks that were lying in wait for their turn at the carrion of a seal. Perhaps this was the sharks’ way of establishing their presence in the area
Some researchers have speculated that during breaching events, male sharks and rays might be doing a kind of mating dance, pursuing females as they jump. The animals may be doing an energetically expensive display to demonstrate their fitness, much as birds do in mating displays. Appreciating the significance and function of breaching in communication and courtship may therefore give us a new window on the behaviors involved in these fabulous marine creatures.
Conclusion
Sharks and rays breaching behaviour is a fascinating phenomenon that continues to captivate scientists with researchers. We gain more insight into the lives of these marine creatures and their actions outside harlequin hunter-gatherer settings by revealing that even having an energy-virtuous display motivates in activities ranging from parasite removal to communication and courtship. As we continue to learn more about breaches, there is still much more that may be discovered that can help inform conservation and our appreciation of the unique adaptations and behaviors these incredible species have.
