b'FeatureAn adult school shark with Mini-PAT satellite tag. Image courtesy of Sue Tindale IDENTIFYING SHARK SPECIES hosts the last stable populationOne aspect of school shark To tell school sharks apart fromand viable fishery of school sharks,reproduction that I studied was other common coastal species, suchgiving us a unique opportunityhow big school sharks are when as bronze whalers (Carcharhinusto learn more about their biologythey are born and reach maturity. brachyurus), spiny dogfish (Squalusto inform management andTo answer this question, this acanthias), and rig/spotted smoothrecovery strategies worldwide.research involved examining hound (Mustelus lenticulatus), lookBy studying the local population,reproductive structures such for their pointed, translucent snout,the aim of my PhD research wasas claspers, the external mating greyish upper body, distinctivelyto improve knowledge on schoolstructure for males, to indicate shaped tail, and lack of dorsalshark biology to better inform localan individuals life stage. School spines. Young school sharks can alsomanagement and internationalsharks were found to mature have black tips on their dorsal finsrecovery efforts. Specifically, myaround 128cm total length for and the upper lobe of their tail. research focused on filling gapsmales and 137.5cm total length for Globally, school shark populationsin our knowledge on school sharkfemales. Whereas school sharks have collapsed in recent decadeslife history including reproduction,are born around 30cm total length due to overfishing. New Zealandmovement, and habitat use. small enough to fit in your hand.56FISHING IN GODZONE MAGAZINE'