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The iconic great white in the Mediterranean basin are in danger of disappearing, with unlawful fishing practices being a major contributor to their worrying decrease.

This assessment is based on investigations carried out by researchers, who worked alongside an marine preservation group. They indicate that some of the most threatened species – including great white sharks – are found on sale in fish markets across the North African coast.

These sharks are one of in excess of 20 Mediterranean shark species shielded by international agreements, which makes it illegal to catch them or to offer them for sale.

However, by observing harbors along the coastline of North Africa, investigators uncovered that no fewer than 40 great white sharks have been killed there in 2025 alone.

Social media clips showing protected sharks being landed at North African ports has been independently verified.

One piece of footage showed a sizeable great white shark being pulled from a boat from a trawler in an Algerian port. Additional footage, taken in a Tunisian location, shows remains and fins of what appears to be a mako shark, which is also a protected and endangered species.

Last Shark Stronghold

The lead researcher, clarified that many populations of sharks – great whites especially – had plummeted in the Mediterranean in the past years.

"No other sea is fished like the Mediterranean Sea," he said. "The impact of industrial fishing has been growing... and it's plausible that they will go extinct in the coming years."

The Mediterranean white shark population is now classified as Critically Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

In their latest attempt to locate and research the predators, the team worked in the Strait of Sicily – an area identified as a "last stronghold" in the Mediterranean for several sharks at risk.

An important goal of their expedition was to deploy a tracking device onto a great white – something that has not yet been accomplished in the Mediterranean Sea.

To do this, the researchers used a large amount of chum – including frozen fish parts and hundreds of liters of fish oil to create a "scent trail" that many sharks can detect from a great distance.

Even after a fortnight of effort – baiting the ocean, collecting water samples to look for genetic material and using subsea cameras – the researchers were unable to locate any sharks to tag.

They captured only a short sighting of one blue shark on their underwater cameras.

"It's disappointing," the lead researcher said. "It just shows how degraded this marine environment is."

As the team searched for living sharks, they also learned that a small great white had been taken in a fishery off North Africa – just 20 nautical miles from where they were working.

It is uncertain whether that specimen was caught by accident in gear, or if it was targeted.

The team, however, calculates that in excess of 40 great white sharks have been caught around that coast. "This is a lot for a critically endangered population," the researcher emphasized.

Illegal Shark Trade

The team, along with regional contacts, are keeping watch on multiple ports in the region. Findings shows that protected sharks are taken and traded in countries including the region.

The rules that protect sharks are complicated. Currently, 24 threatened species have global protection – such as makos, angel sharks, threshers, and hammerheads.

An multinational pact states that those species cannot be "kept on boats, transferred, landed, stored, or sold".

The agreement states "they must be returned to the sea alive [where] possible". Those rules are not designed for incidental capture and compliance varies from country to country.

A expert noted that his own inquiry found several great whites on sale. But, he said, there was a seeming silver lining in the fact that white sharks were turning up for sale.

"It shows that there is wildlife left," he said. "And if we can preserve this, there is a possibility of comeback."

What Can Be Done?

In economically challenged regions in North Africa, fishermen who catch sharks might face the dilemma of whether to feed their family, or release a protected animal to the ocean.

"Why would they release sharks into the sea when they require sustenance for their families?" asked a local expert. "If you assist and guide them in more sustainable fishing, they will not catch white sharks."

Another expert added that if countries around the Mediterranean worked together, "there is hope."

"But," he added, "we've got to act very quickly."