Northern River Shark-New Species

The fine folks over at National Geographic Digital Media initiatives asked us to cover the following eco news that has been making sharkies excited planet wide. We were just about to cover it with the following post:

Finally some good news...no scratch that...great news about sharks. As you probably already know over 100 new shark and ray species have been newly classified in Australia-leading to a virtual land rush of photographers seeking to collect them all.

Here's one recently re-classified critter the Northern River Shark. Once thought to be another species it is only one of two freshwater sharks in the region, and a very handsome looking beastie at that!

Isla Guadalupe-Shark Diver Jeff Cannada Review

With two of our vessels completing their final day in the North Bay today it would seem for now the turmoil of the last few weeks has settled down to quick and thorough vessel inspections by the MX Navy and happy divers. Here's another diver review from last weeks adventures with Shark Diver aboard the MV Islander:

Hi Patric,

I just wanted to tell you that my recent shark diving adventure really exceeded my expectations. To be honest, I was a little concerned about safety -- not only of the great white sharks, but also the commute to the Isle of Guadalupe. However, those concerns quickly evaporated upon arriving at the boat and meeting your crew. This boat meets the strictest of US Coast Guard standards and the crew was very thorough in explaining the safety of the boat and procedures necessary to ensure everyone's safety.

Throughout the trip, the crew remained focused and continued to educate us on the "do's and don'ts"...again, focusing on safety first. I was also impressed that the crew doesn't consume any alcoholic beverages during the trip, even though all the guests are free to drink (except while shark diving). Also, the food was very good....really a pleasant surprise.

As far as the shark diving, it was incredible. We saw multiple sharks on every dive and, although you don't guarantee that result, your crew obviously knew the best area for viewing and we benefited from that knowledge. We saw a lot of activity and the size of the sharks were incredible -- 14-15 feet long, in many cases. They were close enough to touch, if you so desired. I will never forget this experience and many thanks to the shark diving team for making this trip so enjoyable. I highly recommend this trip to anyone!

Regards,

Jeff Cannada

Editors Note: Thanks for the kind words Jeff. A note about drinking, yes it's tough on a young crew who work hard all day and would like nothing more than to kick back with a few cold ones at dinner. It also says a lot about their dedication to the job. You would be amazed at the local bar tabs in Ensenada and San Diego though, I hear tell they are in the "4 figure range".

Hawaii Shark Diving-Got Sharks?

They say that "marketing is everything" in the world of commercial shark diving. Along with safety, education, and activism...whoever "they" are anyway.

Regardless, if you're debating about flying to Oahu this week and cage diving with sharks, may we suggest Hawaii Shark Encounters.

As far as the marketing goes who can beat a boatload of bikini clad sharkies? As far as safety, education, and activism. Yeah they got that too.

Editors Note: Do the "sharkies" come with the package?

Sharks-Super 8 Fun from 1978

We decided to share with you a Super 8 Shark Film from the 70's. That is when we were finished spitting up coffee all over the place (again). You gotta check out the braces, cars, telephones with cords and rotary faces, and the very old archival white shark footage (Ron and Val Taylor?). This film is a classic: