Pelagic Shark Satellite Tag data - Blue Shark

The blue shark (Prionace glauca), is a species found in Atlantic Canadian waters which is commonly encountered in commercial and recreational fisheries. Pop-up Satellite Archival Tags (PSAT) and Smart Position and Temperature tag (SPOT) from Wildlife Computers were applied to blue sharks from 2004 to 2008 to collect data on depth (pressure), temperature and ambient light level (for position estimation). Deployments were conducted in Canada on commercial and recreational vessels from mid-August to early October, but mostly in September. A variety of tag models were deployed: PAT 4 (n=16), Mk10 (N=28), and SPOT3 (N=2) and 39 of 46 tags reported. The blue sharks tagged ranged in size from 124 cm to 251 cm Fork Length (curved); 30 were female, 15 were male and 1 was unknown sex. Time at liberty ranged from 4 – 210 days and 16 tags remained on for the programmed duration. Raw data transmitted from the PSAT’s after release was processed through Wildlife Computers software (GPE3) to get summary files, assuming a maximum swimming speed of 2m/s, NOAA OI SST V2 High Resolution data set for SST reference and ETOPO1-Bedrock dataset for bathymetry reference. The maximum likelihood position estimates are available in .csv and .kmz format and depth and temperature profiles are also in .csv format. Other tag outputs as well as metadata from the deployments can be obtained upon request from: warren.joyce@dfo-mpo.gc.ca or heather.bowlby@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Last Updated April 17, 2026, 20:45 (UTC)
Created April 17, 2026, 20:45 (UTC)
contact_email DFO.MAR-PED-Data-Request-Demande-de-donnes-DEP-MAR.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
contact_person {"en": "Government of Canada; Fisheries and Oceans Canada", "fr": "Gouvernement du Canada; Pêches et Océans Canada"}
criticality_level []
data_dictionary EPSG:4326,https://epsg.io,8.2.6
geographic_scope []
open_canada_collection fgp
open_canada_date_published 2025-06-24 00:00:00
open_canada_keywords {"en": ["Shark", "Shark Tagging", "Satellite Tag", "Oceans"], "fr": ["Le Requin", "Marquage des requins", "Étiquette satellite", "Océan"]}
open_canada_subject ["nature_and_environment", "science_and_technology"]
sensitivity_level unrestricted
title_fr Données des étiquettes satellites de requins pélagiques - Requin bleu
update_frequency not_planned