A new study has revealed that sharks off the coast of Brazil are getting high on cocaine. The study, titled “Cocaine Shark,” was conducted by Brazilian scientists who dissected 13 sharpnose sharks caught by fishermen and found that all 13 contained traces of cocaine in both their muscles and livers. Researchers fear that this ingestion of cocaine could change the behavior of these sharks, causing “serious toxicological effects” in sea creatures around the Santos Bay area.
The most likely explanation for this unusual finding is that cocaine is entering the sea from untreated sewage, or in a less likely explanation, the drug is dumped overboard during smuggling operations. Dr. Rachel Ann Hauser-Davis, the scientist and cocaine shark researcher, explained that “We don’t usually see many bales of coke dumped or lost at sea here, unlike in Mexico and Florida.”
Sharks are not the only marine creatures affected by drugs. In the UK, cocaine and ketamine are being found in river wildlife, with 100% of freshwater shrimp testing positive for cocaine. In a separate study conducted in 2018, researchers also found that Britain’s eels are getting high on cocaine and it’s making them “hyperactive.”
Last year, scientists in Florida said that large packages of paraphernalia dropped into the seas by drug traffickers are affecting fish, sharks, and other sea creatures. This problem has been seen with pharmaceuticals, cocaine, methamphetamines, ketamine, and all of these where fish are being affected by drugs.
The study has serious implications for the ocean’s ecosystem, and points to the need for greater regulation of drug use and disposal. It also highlights the need for government, industry, and public involvement in efforts to prevent drug pollution
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