Text by Zenia Dietz Ørskov, Communications Officer
Photo: Colourbox

This is evidenced by former history student Camilla Bøgeskov, from AAU, in her master's thesis from 2021, about the fishery of the Greenland shark in the late 1800s and early 1900s, which also earned her an award at the Danish Marine Scientist Meeting 2022.

Here, her study is based on the interdisciplinary research tradition of marine environmental history, which combines the two sciences of history and marine biology. The focus of the thesis is the development of the Greenland shark fishery in terms of its size and the technology used, along with the role of the environment in the same regard.

Opportunity for interdisciplinary collaboration

"Many biologists came up to us and wanted to know more. They were very interested in our historical methods and the cultural aspects of fishery and fishing environments, which they do not work with, says Camilla Bøgeskov at the Danish Marine Scientists' Meeting.

Camilla is pleased that opportunities for more interdisciplinary collaboration now seem to have been opened up.

It is important to make science aware of what we can do and what we can do in interaction with each other, says Camilla Bøgeskov.

The importance of fishery of the Greenland shark in both a commercial and environmental sense has so far been overlooked in historical research, but as Camilla's thesis has demonstrated, in the history of shark fishing there are innovative fisheries technological developments, a relationship of dependence between man and nature and an exploitation of a resource where the demand of which reflects the importance of oil for industrial society.

This is therefore a historical subject which should certainly be given greater attention, not least because the consequences of human exploitation are still unknown. Especially since the Greenland shark reaches sexual maturity at a very old age (possibly when it is 134 years old), the study may help explain why pregnant Greenland sharks have not been observed for the past 60 years, as the fishermen thus mostly caught sharks that would make up the sexually mature part of the population today. Here, an awareness of the historical conditions will bring us closer to an understanding of the present.

Humans have influenced the ocean for centuries

"We humans have influenced the ocean in many ways over the centuries. When marine life is additionally under pressure from global warming, the historical depth of time can help to better understand cause and effect," says Professor Bo Poulsen, History Studies, Aalborg University.

Continuing fisheries research

Camilla Bøgeskov started as a PhD student at the Department of Politics and Society in October. Here she will examine the historical fisheries of salmon and sturgeon to learn more about when we started demanding fresh fish.

Sustainable Development Goals

Target 14: Life below water

Want to read more?

• The article "Det danske fiskeri af grønlandshajen"  ["The Danish fishing of the Greenland shark"] (open access)
• Historian received award for best presentation at science conference
• Camilla Bøgeskov's research profile