Great white sharks off South Africa's coast are protected by law, but not in practice—this needs to change

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Great white sharks off South Africa’s coast are protected by law, but not in practice. Why this needs to change

In less than eight years, white sharks in South Africa have all but disappeared from their historical hotspots in False Bay and Gansbaai, on the Western Cape coast. These areas were once known as the “white shark capital of the world” and were home to a flourishing ecotourism industry. One possible explanation for this change would be a declining white shark population. We are part of an international research team with expertise in shark ecolog…