Anguilla's Reef Sharks Get Tagged, and Four New Species Get Recorded

Anguilla Shark Conservation, a three-year Darwin Plus project from July 2021 to January 2025 led by the Marine Conservation Society with the University of Exeter, the Anguilla National Trust and the Government of Anguilla, ran more than 250 baited underwater video deployments at 12 sites and recorded 12 shark and ray species. Four shark species were recorded in Anguilla for the first time, including the rarely seen Atlantic sixgill. It also interviewed fishers and held public events to build local ownership of shark protection. A follow-on project run by the Anguilla National Trust with the Fisheries Unit and Dr Matthew Witt of the University of Exeter, backed by a GBP 50,000 Darwin Plus grant, had tagged ten Caribbean reef sharks by December 2025 and placed acoustic listening stations inside and outside the marine parks, with a second round of tagging planned.