lauttimur.com - From coastal cities to landlocked towns the ocean plays a crucial role in our environment. The biodiversity of the ocean breathes fresh air into our atmosphere and brings rainfall and food to us all around the world. Our existence and the existence of all the world’s creatures hangs in the balance of this vast life support system. Each and every creature that lives below the surface contributes to that ecosystem, playing an integral part in the balancing act that is life on Earth.

As apex predators, sharks play an important role in the ecosystem by maintaining the species below them in the food chain and serving as an indicator for ocean health. They help remove the weak and the sick as well as keeping the balance with competitors helping to ensure species diversity.

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1.    Shark balance the ecosystem
Alongside other predators, sharks play important roles in helping to maintain the delicately balanced ecosystems that keep our oceans healthy. Their feeding can affect prey population numbers, but also prey distribution as they select a habitat to avoid being eaten. 

For example, the presence of tiger sharks has been shown to prevent green turtles from overgrazing seagrass beds, making healthy populations of sharks and turtles critical to the structure and function of seagrass ecosystems.

2.    Helps reducing carbon from the ocean
Large predators like sharks are even effective carbon sinks themselves, so more large fish in our oceans could reduce the carbon dioxide being released into our atmosphere.

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3.    Cycling the ocean nutrients
Through their migrations and diving behaviour, sharks also help cycle nutrients between different locations and the depths and shallow. 

4.    They promotes sustainable tourism
As more people are becoming aware of shark research and conservation, they're more likely to want to see these creatures up close. Shark-related tourism can benefit local communities and states by bringing money into their economies. 

5.    They helps unlock cure for disease
Shark tissue works well as an anticoagulant and antibacterial. So it could become a potent weapon for scientists and doctors in finding potentials new medicines. 

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