{"id":42505,"date":"2024-10-08T16:01:12","date_gmt":"2024-10-08T14:01:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/50f519c0-be98-454d-a6ff-3a7fc4fd61e3"},"modified":"2024-10-08T17:27:28","modified_gmt":"2024-10-08T15:27:28","slug":"divers-set-up-a-camera-in-a-lobster-den-what-happened-next-shocked-them-all","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/divers-set-up-a-camera-in-a-lobster-den-what-happened-next-shocked-them-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Divers set up a camera in a lobster den. What happened next shocked them all…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Scientists in Australia were surprised to find Port Jackson and crested horn sharks munching on the urchins. <\/p>

By Melissa Hobson\n <\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 08 October 2024 at 14:01 PM<\/p>

\n\n

Researchers studying lobster predation on sea urchins were surprised to record footage of an unexpected urchin predator: sharks. <\/strong><\/p>

After setting up a camera in a lobster<\/a> den overnight \u2013 with \u201cstrategically placed\u201d urchins inside the den \u2013 they were shocked when most of the urchins<\/a> were eaten by Port Jackson<\/a> and crested horn sharks.\u00a0<\/p>

Port Jackson and crested horn sharks raided the lobster den\/Jeremy Day<\/figcaption><\/figure>

\u201c<\/strong>This was designed to be a lobster experiment, but sharks came in and ate the majority (45%) of the tethered urchins while lobsters ate few (4%),\u201d says Jeremy Day, a PhD student at University of Newcastle who led the study. <\/p>

\u201cLobsters seemed generally uninterested in eating urchins,\u201d he says.<\/p>

The footage shows the sharks sneaking in to snack on huge sea urchins, which they can handle with ease. <\/p>

Watch the sharks snacking on the urchins\/Jeremy Day\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>