A recent study, published in Ecology and Evolution, addresses the long-standing mystery of where Greenland sharks (Somniosus microcephalus) give birth. Researchers from the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources and the University of Copenhagen analyzed data from more than 1,600 specimens across the North Atlantic. Findings show that newborn and juvenile Greenland sharks are absent from Arctic regions—including Greenland—refuting assumptions that birth occurs there. Instead, the Skagerrak Sea (between Denmark, Norway, and Sweden) emerges as a key nursery area, hosting a high proportion of young sharks measuring 90 to 200 cm. Moreover, museum collections and unpublished databases reveal that actual birth locations are likely in deep oceanic zones, such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge or the Irminger Sea, south of Iceland—areas far from human activity.
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