Researchers made a shocking — and disturbing — discovery off the coast of Brazil.
More than a dozen sharks roaming the waters tested positive for cocaine.
According to a report from CNN, researchers from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in Brazil said total of 13 Brazilian sharpnose sharks were tested by scientists who discovered the cocaine in both the muscle tissue and liver of the sharks.
More than 10 sharks in waters off the coast of Brazil tested positive for cocaine, according to a first-of-its-kind studyhttps://t.co/dHRPzdURCJ
— NBC New York (@NBCNewYork) July 24, 2024
The sharks were chosen both because of their small size and that they live in the coastal waters that are in close proximity to a significant contaminant discharge for their entire life cycle, according to the report. According to the report, it is the first time the drug has ever been detected in free range sharks.
The study found that the cocaine levels in the 13 sharks had a concentration as much as 100 times higher than previously reported for other aquatic creatures, the study found.
And the cocaine concentration in muscle tissue was higher in female sharks than in their male counterparts.
What exactly could lead to this startling find?
Researchers believe the rise in cocaine consumption around the world is most likely the cause.
22% of users of the drug users live in South America, with Brazil being the second largest consumer market in the area, the report found.
The report also found that the increased consumption and poor sewage treatment infrastructure was the likely cause for the increased cocaine in the sea, rather than it being due to cocaine being dumped by traffickers.
“We don’t usually see many bales of coke dumped or lost at sea here, unlike what is reported in Mexico and Florida,” Mendes Saggioro said, noting that the sea gets polluted by cocaine due to illegal laboratories producing the drug and along with the sewage discharges from humans users.
This exposure could cause a detrimental, long-term impact on the sharks as previous research on how the drug affects fish and mussels showed that it was harmful.
“It is probable, although not yet proven that exposure would have deleterious physiological effects on the sharks,” a joint statement from Mendes Saggioro and study co-author Rachel Ann Hauser Davis from the foundation, read.