NPS Know Your Park Series Continues With Sharks Of NC
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The National Park Service Outer Banks Group Know Your Park citizen science program series continues this winter with upcoming scheduled presentations.
Charles Bangley, a PhD candidate in the Coastal Resources Management Program at East Carolina University, will share his knowledge of the status and significance of shark populations along the Outer Banks. The program will take place in two locations: the Ocracoke Community Center on Monday, March 9 at 7:00 p.m. and the Fessenden Center in Buxton on Tuesday, March 10 at 7:00 p.m. Both programs are free and will last approximately 1 hour.
Mr. Bangley’s research uses a combination of tagging, scientific surveys, and local knowledge to identify and describe the environmental conditions that determine which sharks are here, when they are present, where they spend most of their time, and what brings them into North Carolina waters. By looking at sharks on both sides of the barrier islands, Mr. Bangley can help to assess the role of these predators in North Carolina’s marine ecosystem.
North Carolina’s coast is the transition zone between temperate waters to the north and subtropical waters to the south–Cape Hatteras is thought to represent the boundary between these two marine ecosystems. This makes North Carolina an ideal habitat for coastal sharks. The waters surrounding Cape Hatteras National Seashore hosts a variety of shark species, from spiny dogfish to great whites, and represents a gathering place for sharks migrating from all along the US east coast.
The Know Your Park citizen science program series is designed to further connect the Outer Banks communities and residents with the rich natural world and cultural heritage of their neighboring national park sites; Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Wright Brothers National Memorial, and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site.
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