Sharks Have Personality Differences, Says Study

Sharks' personality differences were studied for the first time. A group of researchers at the Macquarie University, Department of Biological Sciences was able to observe the individual personalities of sharks in Port Jackson. Based on the study, the behavior of sharks from Australia's east coast reveals consistent and unique responses when they experience stress and unfamiliar environment.

To test sharks' boldness - a measure of readiness to take risks, yet also an authority when it comes to individual health by its connection to stress hormones, including associated physiological profiles. They were initially introduced to a tank with a shelter and fish  as food, and were timed to observe the length of time it took for each of them to appear from their refuge box into a new surroundings. The next behavior test made each shark handle stress prior to letting them go and checking how fast they recovered, according to Science Daily.

Each shark's behavior was observed to be consistent over recurring trials, which shows ingrained behavior instead of the chance reactions. This means that some sharks were constantly bolder compared to others, and those that were the most reactive to managing stress in the initial trial were the most reactive in the next trial as well.

According to MU associate professor Culum Brown, they are excited about the results due to the fact that the findings show that sharks are not only mindless machines. He added that every shark is an individual having unique behavior and preferences just like humans. In addition, the results raise several questions concerning individual differences in the behavior of top predators as well as the management and ecological significance that this may have.  

If every shark is an individual, doing its own thing, this means managing the populations of shark is more complex that what was thought about. The understanding of the influence of personality differences in shark behavior, like habitat use, prey choice and activity levels, is important in handling these top predators that play crucial ecological roles in marine ecosystems, IB Times reported.