There are growing fears that sharks under the influence of cocaine could start attacking tourists this summer as gangs dump their cargo into the sea.
Earlier this week, the General Director of MundoPark, a zoo in Spain, warned that sharks which consume Class A drugs could become fearless and start attacking humans.
Speaking to local media, Mr Malpartida warned that drug traffickers were throwing their drugs into the sea, leaving them to be consumed by local wildlife.
While cocaine is known to be harmful to humans, its impact on sharks is less understood, according to Spanish news site Ultima Hora.
Mr Malpartida said that when the bales are thrown into the ocean “before they reach the bottom, a shark or any species of fish in the sea can eat them”.
He added: “If drugs go into the sea on a daily basis, and we all know this happens, it is normal for the nervous system of these animals to be altered.”
Mr Malpartida added that the emotional rush the animals get from ingesting the cocaine could make them more dangerous.
He explained: “The euphoria…makes them much more dangerous and aggressive.”
Mr Malpartida also said the sharks could remain dangerous even after they stop consuming the cocaine because of withdrawal symptoms.
He explained the “withdrawal syndrome” can make them “have less fear, which they already have little of, of approaching the coast”.
As a result of a reduced fear of humans, Mr Malpartida said this could increase the likelihood of shark attacks.
Some experts have suggested cocaine-fuelled sharks could be the reason why more have been spotted closer to the coastline in recent years.
This isn’t the first time cocaine-fuelled sharks have been a cause for concern. In the USA, scientist Tracy Fanara and biologist Tom Hird carried out a series of experiments to find out if sharks were feeding off dumped cocaine.
Speaking to Live Science, Mr Hird said their findings didn’t suggest sharks were eating cocaine, but further experiments were needed to find out about the impact on wildlife.
Mr Hird explained: “We have no idea what [cocaine] could do to the shark. So, we can’t even say well this is a baseline and go from here.
“The deeper story here is the way that chemicals, pharmaceuticals and illicit drugs are entering our waterways and what effect that they then could go on to have on these delicate ocean ecosystems.”
