How do sharks know a hurricane is coming?
- Ric Kearbey
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
How do sharks know a hurricane is coming?
Sharks know a hurricane is coming because they can sense tiny changes in atmospheric pressure. In fact, researchers have found that some species begin changing their behavior up to two weeks before a storm arrives, even while the ocean still looks calm.
Scientists have tracked sharks leaving shallow coastal waters long before hurricanes make landfall, suggesting they can detect an approaching storm well before most people notice anything unusual.
But how can a shark sense something humans can’t?
How do sharks know a hurricane is coming before people do?
They detect the drop in atmospheric pressure.
As a hurricane develops, air pressure slowly falls. Researchers believe sharks sense that change through their inner ear and possibly their lateral line, a pressure-sensitive organ that runs along each side of their body.
It’s like having a built-in barometer that’s been evolving for more than 400 million years.
Knowing a storm is coming is one thing.
What do sharks actually do once they know?
What do sharks do when they know a hurricane is coming?
Most head for deeper water.
Researchers from the University of Miami tracked nurse sharks, bull sharks, and great hammerheads during Hurricanes Matthew (2016) and Irma (2017) using acoustic transmitters in Biscayne Bay.
Before either hurricane arrived, those sharks abandoned the shallow waters and moved offshore into deeper, calmer water.
Why?
Because hurricanes don’t just stir up the surface. Powerful waves and storm surge can churn the ocean as deep as 300 feet, turning shallow coastal waters into an underwater washing machine.
Most of the tagged sharks returned days to weeks after the storm passed.
But one shark species reacted very differently.
Which sharks don’t leave before a hurricane?
Tiger sharks often stay put.
While nurse sharks, bull sharks, and great hammerheads evacuated before Hurricane Irma, tiger sharks frequently remained in the shallows.
Researchers believe their larger size makes them better equipped to handle rough conditions.
Some scientists also think tiger sharks stay because hurricanes create feeding opportunities. Storms can leave fish and other prey injured, disoriented, or trapped, creating an easy meal after the worst weather passes.
For a tiger shark, a hurricane may not just be something to survive.
It might be a dinner bell.
That surprising behavior leads to another fascinating question.
Could sharks help scientists predict hurricanes?
Maybe.
Scientists have proposed using shark-mounted sensors to collect valuable weather and ocean data.
Since sharks naturally respond to changing pressure and spend their lives swimming through the very water that fuels hurricanes, they’re already gathering information where traditional instruments are limited.
Tagged sharks can measure temperature, depth, salinity, and pressure while transmitting valuable ocean data back to researchers.
Some scientists have even nicknamed the concept…
“Hurrisharks.”
The idea is still being studied, but one day sharks could become part of an early-warning network that helps scientists better understand the oceans that power tropical cyclones.
So what’s the biggest takeaway from all of this?
What’s the biggest surprise about sharks and hurricanes?
It’s not that sharks survive hurricanes. It’s that many know a hurricane is coming long before we do.
The next time forecasters begin watching a tropical disturbance hundreds of miles offshore, remember that somewhere beneath the waves, sharks may have already started changing their behavior.
They don’t need radar.
They don’t need satellites.
They simply sense a change in the atmosphere and respond.
The ocean’s oldest apex predators may also be some of nature’s earliest storm detectors.
Nerdy Nugget
Can sharks hear thunder?
Sort of.
Sharks and other fish don’t hear thunder the same way we do because sound travels differently underwater.
But many species can detect the low-frequency vibrations created by waves, currents, and disturbances associated with approaching storms.
For animals living beneath the surface, the ocean is constantly sending signals that most of us never notice.
Talk Weather To Me
Enjoyed this Weather Nerdy deep dive? Subscribe to Talk Weather To Me and get fascinating weather explanations, surprising science, and practical forecasting tips delivered straight to your inbox. Because understanding the weather makes every forecast a little more interesting.
Comments