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Showing posts with label Bullshark Research. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bullshark Research. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
Shark attacks don't warrant increased cull
Shark attacks don't warrant increased cull - ABC News
Australia is not alone in having large sharks near populated beaches or for having a reputation for shark attacks.
South Africa is the world's hotspot for great white sharks. It is where documentary makers come to film the dramatic scenes of white sharks breaching in the chase for Cape fur seals and it is the centre of the great white shark cage diving tourism industry where, on a daily basis, fleets of boats head out of the tourism centres packed with people wanting to view a great white shark from the safety of a cage.
In terms of documented attacks, there were six in the period from 1951 to 1970, 25 incidents between 1981 and 1990, 23 incidents reported from 1991 to 2000, and 11 reported great white attacks in the first half of this decade.
In some years, there were anomalously high numbers of attacks, such as Black December in 1957 when five people were bitten by sharks south of Durban, or 1998 when a total of 18 attacks were recorded in South Africa.
The longer term trend of rising incidents since the 50s and 60s mirrors an increase in beach use but cannot explain the year-to-year variations. To date, science cannot conclusively say why there are higher numbers of shark incidents in some years compared to others. It is likely that an array of oceanographic, ecological or behavioural factors are to blame for bringing more or fewer sharks in contact with people in any particular year, but the specific causes remain unknown.
Already it looks like 2009 will go down in the record books as having an anomalously high number of shark attacks in Australia and in the Sydney region in particular. Just as with South Africa, more people in the water increases the chance of an interaction. A cleaner Sydney harbour also increases the chance of finding sharks as well as fish, but it is not clear what other biological, environmental or behavioural factors, if any, are adding to the high recent number of attacks.
There is no doubt that any shark attack is a terribly unfortunate and traumatic incident. Our sympathies are with the victims and their families. On a global scale, elephants, bees, crocodiles and lightning strikes kill more people each year than shark attacks, and beachgoers are at a far greater risk of death by drowning from rips or surf, yet the thought of being attacked by a shark remains a terrifying prospect.
Actions that can help ensure bather safety include increased investment in education and awareness program so that people understand basic rules. Some of these include avoid swimming alone, avoid being in the water when there are low light levels or reduced visibility, don't swim in waters with known effluents or sewage and stay away from fish or gull feeding areas.
Increased investment is needed in research and development, and testing of options such as observer programs, use of electromagnetic field technology and new shark repellent advances in concert with research into sharks, so that we understand more about the behaviour, ecology and environmental cues that affect these species. Together these will allow bather safety programs to be designed to be as targeted and effective as possible without also causing the deaths of marine creatures such as dolphins and turtles that also call the ocean home.
Of the more than 300 species of shark found in Australian waters, there are only a couple of species, most notably the great white shark and bull shark, that are recorded as attacking humans. The vast majority of sharks are shy elusive creatures that appear in a range of often bizarre shapes and sizes, patrolling reefs and open oceans where they fulfil a critically important role at the top of the food chain.
In terms of their reproduction, sharks are long-lived, slow growing and produce relatively few young, which gives them a population dynamic that is more similar to whales and dolphins than to fish. This makes shark populations vulnerable to over-fishing.
The history of shark fisheries the world over is one of 'boom and bust' where excessive fishing pressure causes populations to crash.
The result is that shark species are increasingly finding their way onto the lists of at-risk or endangered species, almost as quickly as new species are being described.
The high price being paid for shark fin in the Asian marketplace appears to be driving a gold rush type mentality around shark fisheries in Queensland and New South Wales. Opportunistic fishers push fisheries managers to increase shark catches and create new shark fishing licences, despite there being no scientific basis that such levels of take are within safe limits for the large numbers of species involved.
With sharks very much in the spotlight, cool heads need to prevail.
The calls for an increase to the shark fishing quota in NSW are driven by this opportunism. Some fishers are using the current media feeding frenzy around sharks to call for an increase in shark hunting levels and are making claims that have no scientific basis. They should be ignored.
Many of the sharks they already catch are docile creatures that are not involved in attacks on bathers. Some of the populations of shark species that these fishers pull out of the water for their fins and flesh are in steep decline.
This is not to deny that we need to find ways to ease the interaction between sharks and humans along our beaches. There needs to be an investment in education, awareness and research and development, so that bather safety programs can be as effective as possible.
But equally, we need to protect the dwindling populations of sharks that have lived in our planet's seas for millions of years. There is no justification for increasing a fishing quota that could see these ancient creatures disappear from our oceans.
Dr Gilly Llewellyn is World Wildlife Fund-Australia's oceans program leader
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Australia is not alone in having large sharks near populated beaches or for having a reputation for shark attacks.
South Africa is the world's hotspot for great white sharks. It is where documentary makers come to film the dramatic scenes of white sharks breaching in the chase for Cape fur seals and it is the centre of the great white shark cage diving tourism industry where, on a daily basis, fleets of boats head out of the tourism centres packed with people wanting to view a great white shark from the safety of a cage.
In terms of documented attacks, there were six in the period from 1951 to 1970, 25 incidents between 1981 and 1990, 23 incidents reported from 1991 to 2000, and 11 reported great white attacks in the first half of this decade.
In some years, there were anomalously high numbers of attacks, such as Black December in 1957 when five people were bitten by sharks south of Durban, or 1998 when a total of 18 attacks were recorded in South Africa.
The longer term trend of rising incidents since the 50s and 60s mirrors an increase in beach use but cannot explain the year-to-year variations. To date, science cannot conclusively say why there are higher numbers of shark incidents in some years compared to others. It is likely that an array of oceanographic, ecological or behavioural factors are to blame for bringing more or fewer sharks in contact with people in any particular year, but the specific causes remain unknown.
Already it looks like 2009 will go down in the record books as having an anomalously high number of shark attacks in Australia and in the Sydney region in particular. Just as with South Africa, more people in the water increases the chance of an interaction. A cleaner Sydney harbour also increases the chance of finding sharks as well as fish, but it is not clear what other biological, environmental or behavioural factors, if any, are adding to the high recent number of attacks.
There is no doubt that any shark attack is a terribly unfortunate and traumatic incident. Our sympathies are with the victims and their families. On a global scale, elephants, bees, crocodiles and lightning strikes kill more people each year than shark attacks, and beachgoers are at a far greater risk of death by drowning from rips or surf, yet the thought of being attacked by a shark remains a terrifying prospect.
Actions that can help ensure bather safety include increased investment in education and awareness program so that people understand basic rules. Some of these include avoid swimming alone, avoid being in the water when there are low light levels or reduced visibility, don't swim in waters with known effluents or sewage and stay away from fish or gull feeding areas.
Increased investment is needed in research and development, and testing of options such as observer programs, use of electromagnetic field technology and new shark repellent advances in concert with research into sharks, so that we understand more about the behaviour, ecology and environmental cues that affect these species. Together these will allow bather safety programs to be designed to be as targeted and effective as possible without also causing the deaths of marine creatures such as dolphins and turtles that also call the ocean home.
Of the more than 300 species of shark found in Australian waters, there are only a couple of species, most notably the great white shark and bull shark, that are recorded as attacking humans. The vast majority of sharks are shy elusive creatures that appear in a range of often bizarre shapes and sizes, patrolling reefs and open oceans where they fulfil a critically important role at the top of the food chain.
In terms of their reproduction, sharks are long-lived, slow growing and produce relatively few young, which gives them a population dynamic that is more similar to whales and dolphins than to fish. This makes shark populations vulnerable to over-fishing.
The history of shark fisheries the world over is one of 'boom and bust' where excessive fishing pressure causes populations to crash.
The result is that shark species are increasingly finding their way onto the lists of at-risk or endangered species, almost as quickly as new species are being described.
The high price being paid for shark fin in the Asian marketplace appears to be driving a gold rush type mentality around shark fisheries in Queensland and New South Wales. Opportunistic fishers push fisheries managers to increase shark catches and create new shark fishing licences, despite there being no scientific basis that such levels of take are within safe limits for the large numbers of species involved.
With sharks very much in the spotlight, cool heads need to prevail.
The calls for an increase to the shark fishing quota in NSW are driven by this opportunism. Some fishers are using the current media feeding frenzy around sharks to call for an increase in shark hunting levels and are making claims that have no scientific basis. They should be ignored.
Many of the sharks they already catch are docile creatures that are not involved in attacks on bathers. Some of the populations of shark species that these fishers pull out of the water for their fins and flesh are in steep decline.
This is not to deny that we need to find ways to ease the interaction between sharks and humans along our beaches. There needs to be an investment in education, awareness and research and development, so that bather safety programs can be as effective as possible.
But equally, we need to protect the dwindling populations of sharks that have lived in our planet's seas for millions of years. There is no justification for increasing a fishing quota that could see these ancient creatures disappear from our oceans.
Dr Gilly Llewellyn is World Wildlife Fund-Australia's oceans program leader
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
NSW releases shark attack proposals
NSW releases shark attack proposals - ABC News
The New South Wales Government has released a number of new proposals to prevent shark attacks, as it defends itself against claims it is failing to protect swimmers after three attacks in Sydney in as many weeks.
The measures include a new shark tagging program, the use of GPS to monitor shark nets and a list of shark attacks by beach since 1900.
The Government is also considering upgrading shark fishing gear and researching shark movements, attacks and population trends to try to identify hotspots and high-risk periods.
The proposals are part of the first review of the long-standing shark net program since 1972. They also include publishing an annual report about the nets' performance.
Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald says the Government will also consult with surf lifesavers.
'The Government in the past has provided a number of jet skis to surf lifesavers that have helped them monitor and deter sharks and we'll be discussing these on Thursday,' he said.
The Opposition says the Government has not done enough to protect swimmers and surfers. It says shark nets are deteriorating, the shark fishing quota should be increased and beaches need more aerial patrols.
But Mr Macdonald says aerial patrols do not spot sharks at dawn and dusk, the high-risk periods when the three latest shark attacks occurred. He says the patrols sometimes confuse big fish with sharks.
The Minister also says only 4.2 per cent of sharks caught in the fishing quota are dangerous.
In the latest shark attack, 15-year-old Andrew Lindop was bitten on the leg while surfing with his father, a veteran lifesaver, at Sydney's Avalon Beach at dawn on Sunday.
The boy is recovering in a stable condition in hospital after being rescued by his father.
This year's first Sydney victim, elite Navy diver Paul de Gelder, lost a hand and a leg after being attacked by a bull shark at dawn off Garden Island in Sydney Harbour on February 11.
The following day, surfer Glenn Orgias was mauled by a great white shark at the southern end of Bondi Beach at dusk.
His hand was hanging off his wrist by a three-centimetre piece of skin but doctors have managed to save it in what they have described as a 'minor miracle'.
The proposals will be made open to public consultation next month.
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
The New South Wales Government has released a number of new proposals to prevent shark attacks, as it defends itself against claims it is failing to protect swimmers after three attacks in Sydney in as many weeks.
The measures include a new shark tagging program, the use of GPS to monitor shark nets and a list of shark attacks by beach since 1900.
The Government is also considering upgrading shark fishing gear and researching shark movements, attacks and population trends to try to identify hotspots and high-risk periods.
The proposals are part of the first review of the long-standing shark net program since 1972. They also include publishing an annual report about the nets' performance.
Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald says the Government will also consult with surf lifesavers.
'The Government in the past has provided a number of jet skis to surf lifesavers that have helped them monitor and deter sharks and we'll be discussing these on Thursday,' he said.
The Opposition says the Government has not done enough to protect swimmers and surfers. It says shark nets are deteriorating, the shark fishing quota should be increased and beaches need more aerial patrols.
But Mr Macdonald says aerial patrols do not spot sharks at dawn and dusk, the high-risk periods when the three latest shark attacks occurred. He says the patrols sometimes confuse big fish with sharks.
The Minister also says only 4.2 per cent of sharks caught in the fishing quota are dangerous.
In the latest shark attack, 15-year-old Andrew Lindop was bitten on the leg while surfing with his father, a veteran lifesaver, at Sydney's Avalon Beach at dawn on Sunday.
The boy is recovering in a stable condition in hospital after being rescued by his father.
This year's first Sydney victim, elite Navy diver Paul de Gelder, lost a hand and a leg after being attacked by a bull shark at dawn off Garden Island in Sydney Harbour on February 11.
The following day, surfer Glenn Orgias was mauled by a great white shark at the southern end of Bondi Beach at dusk.
His hand was hanging off his wrist by a three-centimetre piece of skin but doctors have managed to save it in what they have described as a 'minor miracle'.
The proposals will be made open to public consultation next month.
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Why Study Shark Attacks
Because they provide a glimpse - a window - into the world of sharks and their behaviors. By understanding when and why sharks sometimes bite humans it is possible to lessen the likelihood of such accidents. Humans are familiar with predators found on land; we know enough not to walk into a pride of lions and we don't try to pet a growling dog that is baring its teeth. Similarly, we need to recognize and avoid potentially dangerous situations in the water. The individual case histories provide insights about specific geographical areas and their indigenous species of sharks. However, when all known case histories are examined, much is revealed about species behavior, and specific patterns emerge.
Most of the incidents in the Global Shark Attack File have nothing to do with predation. Some incidents are motivated by displacement or are a territorial behavior, or when the shark feels threatened; still others are the result of the shark responding to sensory predatory input (i.e., overwhelmed by the presence of many fishes) and environmental conditions (murky water) which may cause the animal to respond in a reflexive response to stimuli. Sharks also exhibit curiosity and may investigate unknown or unfamiliar objects; they learn by exploring their environment, and - lacking hands - they use their mouths and teeth to examine unfamiliar objects.
A very small percentage of shark species, about two dozen, are considered potentially dangerous to humans because of their size and dentition. Yet each year, for every human killed by a shark, our species slaughters more than 10 million sharks - about 100 million sharks last year. We are stripping the world's oceans of one of its most valuable predators - animals that play a critical role in maintaining the health of the world's oceans. An unreasonable fear of sharks has been implanted in our minds by the hype that surrounds the rare shark attack and by movies that exploit our primal fears. It is the mission of the Global Shark Attack File to present facts about these events, thus enabling them to be put in perspective. Sharks are necessary and vital to the ocean ecosystem. Without sharks our planet's ocean could eventually become a watery graveyard, with little sustainable life. This is not the legacy the Global Shark Attack File and the Shark Research Institute wishes to leave our children and our children's children.
The Global Shark Attack File was created to provide medical personnel, shark behaviorists, lifesavers, and the media with meaningful information resulting from the scientific forensic examination of shark accidents. Whenever possible, GSAF investigators conduct personal interviews with patients and witnesses, medical personnel and other professionals, and conduct examinations of the incident site. Weather and sea conditions and environmental data are evaluated in an attempt to identify factors that contributed to the incident.
Early on, we became aware that the word "attack" was usually a misnomer. An "attack" by a shark is an extremely rare event, even less likely than statistics suggest. When a shark bites a surfboard, leaving the surfer unharmed, it was historically recorded as an "attack". Collisions between humans and sharks in low visibility water were also recorded as "attacks".
When a shark grabs a person by the hand/wrist and tows them along the surface, tosses a surfboard (or a Frisbee as in case 1968.08.24) it is probably "play behavior", not aggression. How can case 1971.04.11 which the swimmer was repeatedly bitten by a large shark and case 1985.01.04 in which the diver's injury necessitated a Band-aid be compared? It is akin to comparing a head-on high-speed vehicular collision with a shopping cart ding on the door of a parked car. Global Shark Attack File believes the only way to sort fact from hype is by forensic examination of each incident.
Although incidents that occur in remote areas may go unrecorded, the Global Shark Attack File is a compilation of a number of data sources, and we have a team of qualified researchers throughout the world that actively investigate these incidents. One of our objectives is to provide a clear picture of the actual threat presented by sharks to humans. In this regard, we remind our visitors that more people drown in a single year in the United States than have been killed by sharks throughout the entire world in the last two centuries.
Most of the incidents in the Global Shark Attack File have nothing to do with predation. Some incidents are motivated by displacement or are a territorial behavior, or when the shark feels threatened; still others are the result of the shark responding to sensory predatory input (i.e., overwhelmed by the presence of many fishes) and environmental conditions (murky water) which may cause the animal to respond in a reflexive response to stimuli. Sharks also exhibit curiosity and may investigate unknown or unfamiliar objects; they learn by exploring their environment, and - lacking hands - they use their mouths and teeth to examine unfamiliar objects. A very small percentage of shark species, about two dozen, are considered potentially dangerous to humans because of their size and dentition. Yet each year, for every human killed by a shark, our species slaughters more than 10 million sharks - about 100 million sharks last year. We are stripping the world's oceans of one of its most valuable predators - animals that play a critical role in maintaining the health of the world's oceans. An unreasonable fear of sharks has been implanted in our minds by the hype that surrounds the rare shark attack and by movies that exploit our primal fears. It is the mission of the Global Shark Attack File to present facts about these events, thus enabling them to be put in perspective. Sharks are necessary and vital to the ocean ecosystem. Without sharks our planet's ocean could eventually become a watery graveyard, with little sustainable life. This is not the legacy the Global Shark Attack File and the Shark Research Institute wishes to leave our children and our children's children.
The Global Shark Attack File was created to provide medical personnel, shark behaviorists, lifesavers, and the media with meaningful information resulting from the scientific forensic examination of shark accidents. Whenever possible, GSAF investigators conduct personal interviews with patients and witnesses, medical personnel and other professionals, and conduct examinations of the incident site. Weather and sea conditions and environmental data are evaluated in an attempt to identify factors that contributed to the incident.
Early on, we became aware that the word "attack" was usually a misnomer. An "attack" by a shark is an extremely rare event, even less likely than statistics suggest. When a shark bites a surfboard, leaving the surfer unharmed, it was historically recorded as an "attack". Collisions between humans and sharks in low visibility water were also recorded as "attacks".
When a shark grabs a person by the hand/wrist and tows them along the surface, tosses a surfboard (or a Frisbee as in case 1968.08.24) it is probably "play behavior", not aggression. How can case 1971.04.11 which the swimmer was repeatedly bitten by a large shark and case 1985.01.04 in which the diver's injury necessitated a Band-aid be compared? It is akin to comparing a head-on high-speed vehicular collision with a shopping cart ding on the door of a parked car. Global Shark Attack File believes the only way to sort fact from hype is by forensic examination of each incident.
Although incidents that occur in remote areas may go unrecorded, the Global Shark Attack File is a compilation of a number of data sources, and we have a team of qualified researchers throughout the world that actively investigate these incidents. One of our objectives is to provide a clear picture of the actual threat presented by sharks to humans. In this regard, we remind our visitors that more people drown in a single year in the United States than have been killed by sharks throughout the entire world in the last two centuries.
Source: Global Shark Attack File
Website: http://www.sharkattackfile.net
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Freak Bull Shark?
Bizarre Bull Shark Record:
Wednesday 28 January 2009
Cape Town: In a bizarre twist, the day before a lifeguard lost his life to a Zambezi shark on the Wild Coast, the world's largest was caught 5.5 kms up a river in the Western Cape, reports Wavescape
Yes, the Western Cape! International and local records tumbled as a team of shark conservationists hooked the largest Zambezi shark known to science - a massive pregnant female four metres in length and weighing almost half a ton. But wait for it. This awesome creature was found 5.5 kms up the Breede River, a large river that comes out near the southernmost tip of Africa, Cape Agulhas. It is the furthest south a bull shark has been found in Africa.
Visitors, holidaymakers and home owners who have frolicked in the river over the years, expressed stunned surprise at the news.
But for conservationist Meaghen McCord, managing director of the SA Shark Conservancy, this is a ground-breaking realisation of carefully planned scientific research. For a while now, fishermen have spoken about huge Zambezi sharks interfering with their lines in the river. More than a few have laughed at this claim. Well, the second expedition by McCord and her team has proved it to be true.
Joining them were representatives from Marine and Coastal Management, officers from the Lower Breede River Conservancy, a marine biologist from Marine Dynamics, and professional anglers from Big Fish Safari, said McCord. Running from 19 to 25 January, the first three days of their reserach yielded nothing, despite a gruelling regimen fishing with live bait for 16 hours a day.
However, on the fourth day, Friday January 23, a female they affectionately named Nyami Nyami after the Zambezi river God, was hooked by professional angler Hennie Papenfuss. According to McCord, 'Hennie gently handled the shark, letting her tow him a further 2.5km (say what? - ed), tiring her out before we brought her close to shore and landed her on a mud bank'.
'One can only imagine how excited we were to finally see such a magnificent animal in the river, but our excitement did not prevent us from gathering all the necessary scientific data and attaching two acoustic tags to track her movements during the following days.'
Over the next few days, the team discovered three amazing facts:
1 Nyami Nyami is the largest Zambezi shark known to science (four metres long and weighing between 400 and 500 kilos). The previous known maximum length is about 3.5m
2 The furthest south Zambezis have been found is Cape St Francis in the Eastern Cape. Nyami Nyami is the only animal ever observed in the Western Cape, and she is the biggest ever!
3 Nyami Nyami looked heavily pregnant, suggesting the Breede River could be an important nursery
Nyami Nyami was subsequently tracked for 43 consecutive hours. 'As far as we know, this is the longest time this species has been tracked. She moved up and down the estuary, following fishing boats and looking for an easy source of food, swimming as far as 15km upriver,' McCord said.
Bru, put that in your pipe and smoke it. How weird is that? I mean, this is a river that flows through the Cape winelands, passing Tulbagh and Swellendam on its way to the waters east of Cape Agulhas. Classic!
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Wednesday 28 January 2009
Cape Town: In a bizarre twist, the day before a lifeguard lost his life to a Zambezi shark on the Wild Coast, the world's largest was caught 5.5 kms up a river in the Western Cape, reports Wavescape
Yes, the Western Cape! International and local records tumbled as a team of shark conservationists hooked the largest Zambezi shark known to science - a massive pregnant female four metres in length and weighing almost half a ton. But wait for it. This awesome creature was found 5.5 kms up the Breede River, a large river that comes out near the southernmost tip of Africa, Cape Agulhas. It is the furthest south a bull shark has been found in Africa.
Visitors, holidaymakers and home owners who have frolicked in the river over the years, expressed stunned surprise at the news.
But for conservationist Meaghen McCord, managing director of the SA Shark Conservancy, this is a ground-breaking realisation of carefully planned scientific research. For a while now, fishermen have spoken about huge Zambezi sharks interfering with their lines in the river. More than a few have laughed at this claim. Well, the second expedition by McCord and her team has proved it to be true.
Joining them were representatives from Marine and Coastal Management, officers from the Lower Breede River Conservancy, a marine biologist from Marine Dynamics, and professional anglers from Big Fish Safari, said McCord. Running from 19 to 25 January, the first three days of their reserach yielded nothing, despite a gruelling regimen fishing with live bait for 16 hours a day.
However, on the fourth day, Friday January 23, a female they affectionately named Nyami Nyami after the Zambezi river God, was hooked by professional angler Hennie Papenfuss. According to McCord, 'Hennie gently handled the shark, letting her tow him a further 2.5km (say what? - ed), tiring her out before we brought her close to shore and landed her on a mud bank'.
'One can only imagine how excited we were to finally see such a magnificent animal in the river, but our excitement did not prevent us from gathering all the necessary scientific data and attaching two acoustic tags to track her movements during the following days.'
Over the next few days, the team discovered three amazing facts:
1 Nyami Nyami is the largest Zambezi shark known to science (four metres long and weighing between 400 and 500 kilos). The previous known maximum length is about 3.5m
2 The furthest south Zambezis have been found is Cape St Francis in the Eastern Cape. Nyami Nyami is the only animal ever observed in the Western Cape, and she is the biggest ever!
3 Nyami Nyami looked heavily pregnant, suggesting the Breede River could be an important nursery
Nyami Nyami was subsequently tracked for 43 consecutive hours. 'As far as we know, this is the longest time this species has been tracked. She moved up and down the estuary, following fishing boats and looking for an easy source of food, swimming as far as 15km upriver,' McCord said.
Bru, put that in your pipe and smoke it. How weird is that? I mean, this is a river that flows through the Cape winelands, passing Tulbagh and Swellendam on its way to the waters east of Cape Agulhas. Classic!
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
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