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Results show two shark species present during the latter half of the 19th century—Spot-tail (Carcharhinus sorrah) and Dusky (C. obscurus)—but absent from regional historical and survey reports, highlighting shifting predator baselines with implications for ecological and cultural restoration.",{"@graph":14,"@context":72},[15,34,55],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & 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fauna.",{"name":69,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":70},"Which shark species were found to be present in the islands during the late 19th century?",{"text":71,"@type":63},"Spot-tail (Carcharhinus sorrah) and Dusky (C. obscurus) were present during the last half of the 19th century, even though they were not reported in regional historical literature or contemporary surveys.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":74,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":76,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":78,"site_id":7},140420,1787574465,{"code":4,"msg":81,"data":82},"success",[83,87,91,95,100,105,110,114,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":84,"show_sort_weight":85,"slug":86},"Story & 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Baselines in Central Pacific Predator Assemblies\n\nJoshua Drew¹,2*,Christopher Philipp³,Mark W.Westneat¹  \n1 Division of Fishes and Biodiversity Synthesis Center,Field Museum of Natural History,Chicago,llinis,United States of America,2 Department of Ecology,Evolution andEnvironmental Biology,Columbia University,New York,New York,United States of America,3 Department of Anthropology,Field Museum of Natural History,Chicago,Illinois,United States of America  \n## Abstract\n\nThe reefs surrounding the Gilbert Islands(Republic of Kiribati,Central Pacific),like many throughout the world,haveundergone a period of rapid and intensive environmental perturbation over the past 100 years.A byproduct of thisperturbation has been a reduction of the number of shark species present in their waters,even though sharks play animportant in the economy and culture of the Gilbertese.Here we examine how shark communities changed over timeperiods that predate the written record in order to understand the magnitude of ecosystem changes in the Central Pacific.Using a novel data source,the shark tooth weapons of the Gilbertese Islanders housed in natural history museums,we showthat two species of shark,the Spot-tail (Carcharhinus sorrah)and the Dusky (C.obscurus),were present in the islands duringthe last half of the 19ᵗcentury but not reported in any historical literature or contemporary ichthyological surveys of theregion.Given the importance of these species to the ecology of the Gilbert Island reefs and to the culture of the Gilbertesepeople,documenting these shifts in baseline fauna represents an important step toward restoring the vivid splendor ofboth ecological and cultural diversity.  \nCitation:Drew J,Philip C,Westneat MW (2013)Shark Tooth Weapons from the 19 Century Reflect Shifting Baselines in Central Pacific PredatorAssemblies.PLoS ONE 8(4):e59855.doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0059855Editor:John P.Hart,New York State Museum,United States of AmericaReceived November 12,2012;Accepted February 19,2013;Published April 3,2013  \nCopyright:◎ 2013 Drew et al.This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License,which permitsunrestricted use,distribution,and reproduction in any medium,provided the original author and source are credited.Funding:The authors have no support or funding to report.  \nCompeting Interests:The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.*E-mail:jd2977@columbia.edu  \nhave dropped by as much as 99%in areas where there is activefishing pressure [17]and 90%within no-take marine protectedareas,which are subject to poaching [18].  \n## Introduction\n\nUnderstanding historical ecological conditions is an importantfirst step in evaluating conservation measures [1].However,insystems where empirically derived ecological data are lacking,wemust rely on non-traditional measures of community composition[2].Examples of non-traditional data sources include fisherinterviews [3,4],historical photographs [5],fisheries'catch records[6],and the archaeological record [7,8].In some cases,thematerial culture of indigenous peoples may represent an under-utilized source of data.These data,when housed in natural historymuseum collections,represent spatially and temporally fixedcollection points [9].By examining the materials used inconstructing these items,we can gain access to the flora andfauna present during the time of their construction,and whenthese materials are assigned to a particular species,they canindicate which species were present in the past.We are able totrack the changes in community composition through time bycomparing these records with modern faunal lists.  \nSharks are culturally significant in the worldview of indigenousGilbertese people who inhabit the Gilbert Islands.Sharks featureprominently in their settlement mythology [19]and in historicalceremonies to initiate boys into adulthood [20].Historically,theGilbertese Isl","cbCaifs8OvOaAslz","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaifs8OvOaAslz","pdf",1625347,"English","# Abstract\n# Introduction","[{\"question\":\"Why do the Gilbert Islands’ shark communities require non-traditional historical evidence?\",\"answer\":\"Empirically derived ecological data are limited for earlier periods, so the study relies on non-traditional records of community composition, including material culture preserved in museum collections.\"},{\"question\":\"What data source does the study use to examine historical shark presence?\",\"answer\":\"The study analyzes shark tooth weapons made by the Gilbertese and housed in natural history museums, using species-diagnostic shark teeth as time-linked evidence of past fauna.\"},{\"question\":\"Which shark species were found to be present in the islands during the late 19th century?\",\"answer\":\"Spot-tail (Carcharhinus sorrah) and Dusky (C. obscurus) were present during the last half of the 19th century, even though they were not reported in regional historical literature or contemporary surveys.\"}]","Shark Tooth Weapons from the 19th Century - Reflect Shifting Baselines in Central Pacific Predator Assemblies | PDF",18]