Marine biologists from the University of Exeter and Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) will attach satellite tracking tags to 20 basking sharks in the seas around the Inner Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland.
The area where the study is being undertaken overlaps with an offshore wind farm proposal west of Tiree, known as the Argyll Array. The tagging project will provide information about the use of this area by the sharks, giving additional confidence to the advice which SNH provides to Marine Scotland as the development goes through the licensing process.
The tagging work will take place in the waters around Coll and Tiree, and the small island of Hyskeir, near Canna. Research has shown these areas are hotspots for basking sharks, with consistently large numbers sighted there during the summer months.
The tags, which are attached to the sharks using titanium darts and darting poles, will record information on the movement of the sharks, including depth and water temperature. The tags will detach from the sharks after several months.
Once fitted, the tags will allow people to track the movements of the sharks on the SNH website in close-to-real time.
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Offshore WIND staff, July 13, 2012; Image: Scottish Power Renewables