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  • Pictured here are sardines (Clupeidae) fleeing from predators in the early morning. They were being herded and chased by trevallies and blacktip reef sharks in the water, and picked off by brown boobies and terns from the air. This coordinated hunting took place primarily before sunrise.
    sardines-fleeing-from-predators-tong...tif
  • Pictured here are sardines (Clupeidae) fleeing from predators in the early morning. They were being herded and chased by trevallies and blacktip reef sharks in the water, and picked off by brown boobies and terns from the air. This coordinated hunting took place primarily before sunrise.
    sardines-fleeing-predators-tonga-201...tif
  • Pictured here are sardines (Clupeidae) fleeing from predators in the early morning. They were being herded and chased by trevallies and blacktip reef sharks in the water, and picked off by brown boobies and terns from the air. This coordinated hunting took place primarily before sunrise. Here, the sun was just peeking over the horizon.
    sardines-fleeing-from-predators-tong...tif
  • This is a blacktip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) slicing through shallow water in pursuit of sardines, some of which can be seen jumping into the air to avoid being caught. This occurred in the early morning, usually commencing just before sunrise, when large schools of the baitfish gathered in shallow water. Several species worked together to herd and catch the fish. In the water, trevallies and blacktip reef sharks herded the fish, forcing them into concentrated groups. From the air, brown boobies and terns hovered. The predators coordinated their attacks, usually with trevallies making high-speed runs through the groups of fish. This caused panic, sending the sardines in every direction. Blacktip reef sharks then charged in, chasing sardines into shallow water and sometimes onto shore, while boobies and terns picked off fish at the surface, separated from the other fish. This action was rapid, often resulting in sweeping waves of panicked fish washing down the length of the shoreline. Here, the sun has just come up over the horizon. The action usually slowed down and stopped within 20-30 minutes after sunrise.
    blacktip-reef-shark-hunting-sardines...tif
  • This small fish, likely a species of sardine, jumped aboard our boat when Eden’s whales were engaged in lunge feeding in the Gulf of Thailand. I believe it likely that the lunge feeding technique is suited to hunting this type of fish, perhaps due to density of aggregations and/ or behavioral characteristics. The whales appear to herd fish into ever greater concentrations before lunging through the aggregated fish. The same whales do not seem to do this with the anchovy species in the Gulf. This suggests that the whales apply different strategies for different prey.
    sardinella-prey-for-balaenoptera-ede...tif
  • This is a blacktip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) beaching itself to catch sardines. This occurred in the early morning, just before sunrise, when large schools of the baitfish gathered in shallow water. Several species worked together to herd and catch the fish. In the water, trevallies and blacktip reef sharks herded the fish, forcing them into concentrated groups. From the air, brown boobies and terns hovered. The predators coordinated their attacks, usually with trevallies making high-speed runs through the groups of fish. This caused panic, sending the sardines in every direction. Blacktip reef sharks then charged in and beached themselves, chasing baitfish onto shore, while boobies and terns picked off fish at the surface, separated from the other fish. This action was rapid, often resulting in sweeping waves of panicked fish washing down the length of the shoreline. Once the sun came up, the action slowed down and usually stopped within 20-30 minutes after sunrise.
    blacktip-reef-shark-hunting-sardines...tif
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Tony Wu Underwater Photography

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