Mediterranean’s great white sharks face extinction as illegal fishing persists

Great white sharks in the Mediterranean Sea are at risk of vanishing within years, according to scientists who warn that illegal fishing and weak enforcement of international protections are pushing the iconic predators toward extinction.

Research by US scientists working with the UK charity Blue Marine Foundation has found that dozens of protected sharks, including great whites, are still being killed and sold in North African fish markets, BBC writes.

Despite international laws banning their capture and sale, researchers estimate that at least 40 great white sharks have been killed along the North African Mediterranean coast in 2025 alone.

The BBC has independently verified social media footage showing protected sharks being landed dead in ports across the region. One video shows a large great white shark being hauled ashore from a fishing boat in Algeria. Another, filmed in Tunisia, shows the heads and fins of what appears to be a short-finned mako shark – another threatened and protected species – being prepared for sale.

Great white sharks are among more than 20 Mediterranean shark species protected under international law. The Mediterranean population of white sharks is now classified as Critically Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

Lead researcher Dr Francesco Ferretti from Virginia Tech said shark populations, particularly white sharks, have collapsed dramatically in recent decades.

“No other stretch of water is fished like the Mediterranean Sea,” he said, speaking to the BBC News science team while working off the coast of Sicily in late 2025. “The impact of industrial fishing has been intensifying... and it's plausible that they will go extinct in the near future.”

Dr Ferretti’s team has been studying the Strait of Sicily, an area between Sicily and North Africa identified as a “last stronghold” for several threatened shark species. One major goal was to attach a satellite tracking tag to a great white shark – something never achieved in the Mediterranean.

To try to attract sharks, the researchers deployed more than three tonnes of bait, including frozen mackerel, tuna scraps and 500 litres of tuna oil to create a scent trail detectable over long distances. After two weeks of work, including DNA sampling and underwater cameras, they failed to find a single white shark, capturing only a fleeting image of a blue shark.

“It’s disheartening,” Dr Ferretti said. “It just shows how degraded this ecosystem is.”

During the expedition, the team received reports that a juvenile great white had been caught and killed in a North African fishery just 20 nautical miles away. Whether it was accidental or targeted remains unclear, but Dr Ferretti estimates more than 40 white sharks have been caught along that coast.

“This is a lot for a critically endangered population,” he said.

An international agreement signed by the EU and 23 Mediterranean nations bans the landing, sale or display of 24 threatened shark species. However, enforcement varies, and accidental bycatch is not fully addressed.

James Glancy from Blue Marine said his own investigations found white sharks openly sold in Tunisian markets.

“It shows that there is wildlife left,” he said. “And if we can preserve this, there is a chance of recovery.”

In poorer coastal communities, conservation can clash with survival. Sara Almabruk from the Libyan Marine Biology Society said most shark catches are accidental but added:

“Why would they throw sharks back into the sea when they need food for their children?”

She argues that supporting fishers with training in sustainable practices is key. Glancy agrees that regional cooperation could still save Mediterranean sharks – but warns time is running out.

By Sabina Mammadli