Goblin girl on.... diving with Herman!

A couple of weeks ago, I made something I've dreamed about for ten years now. It's not as cool as what most of the other people here get to do, but for me, in Sweden, this is about the best that you get!

Over the years, TV and newspapers that want to interview me have "dragged" me to our local aquarium here in Gothenburg. I always have to do the same thing: stand next to the tank or walk in the tunnel and stare at Herman - the resident sand tiger and KING of the tank. The aquarium is ten years old now and ever since they opened I've wanted to get into that tank!

We were filming a children's program that will be shown on Swedish telly in spring. Only, this time, instead of just gazing at Herman and the others, I was allowed to finally dive into the tank. I was in safe hands as I wasn't alone. My good friend Klas, who works at the aquarium, was with me. The last thing he said to me wasn't "Watch out for the sharks". No, it was "Remember they see EVERYTHING outside that window - LOOK GOOD!".

So down we went. Like ten times?! (Remember we were filming!) I'm such an inexperienced diver and those shallow depths... I was more like a yo-yo - trying to look GOOD! - than anything else.

Then he came, Herman. Out of the dark like a slow moving ghost. The other sharks: nurse, zebra and black tips kept their distance all the time. Even the often sulky sawfish was staying away. No, it would be impossible for anyone around to miss that Herman is the king of that tank.

I could of course understand that the guys filming me wanted me to be closer to the window, but that would mean no sharks close to the camera (we had no uw-cam) so I kept my distance. Maybe it's not the best time to practice your buoyancy when you are in a tank full of sharks, but since it's so seldom I get wet with a tank on my back, I took the opportunity (still trying to look GOOD). I think both me and Herman was kind of surprised when I suddenly were about to drop down on his head!

I've learned one very important thing from Manny Puig (we went snorkeling with great hammerheads once. Did I tell you about that?): always keep someone else in between you and the sharks! At least someone more experienced. So, I was very happy that Klas was with me when Herman decided to show us that we were invading his private space with our presence.

Like before, he came slowly towards us. Klas was little bit closer to him, when he suddenly turned 180 degrees, making a sound like a gun went off! It looked very much like when you see them testing the shark pod - only Klas hadn't done anything. Afterwards he told me that this is Herman's way to show that he is not too happy with us being there.

Anyway, we continued our dive for quite a while and nothing more happened. Then I had to break the surface a few times (for the show), but by then my ears were making so much unpleasant noise that it's only now that I start to hear ok again.

So, IF Herman had wanted to eat me he could easily have done that! And no, I wasn't really behaving "like you should around sharks", as I - as a very lousy diver - must have been making signals and noise like those of a whole shoal of wounded fish! Maybe he is just lazy and doesn't want to peel his food, but I think he knows me... After all, we've been seeing each other for ten years now ;-)


(The photo is an old one, showing me and Herman on one of our first dates.)

Goblin Girl on... sharks in captivity!

Ok, I guess I SHOULD comment on the EU plan of action for sharks that was released on the 5th of February, but since both my hard drive and I decided to crash on the same day (no worries, it was just a cold for me and I had a recent back up of my hard drive so I didn’t loose that much data), I haven’t had the time or energy to go through it yet. I will return to it later.

So, my blog today will be about sharks in captivity. I have to admit that I have a very split opinion about this. Or maybe not… Let’s say I have an opinion. Here it is:

I love sharks! I love to swim with them, dive with them, watch others dive with them on tv and I like to see them ”live” in aquariums. For you, it might be the last statement that is the hardest to understand (since this is a blog which I guess mainly people who likes to go diving with sharks read. I often meet people who think that it is crazy to go diving with sharks!).

All my holidays I tend to plan so that I will either be able to swim with sharks or see them in nice aquariums.

But - there is always a but - I want the sharks to be healthy in the aquariums and I like diversity above ”mass consumption”.

I realize that any aquarium most likely is too small to be an ideal place for a shark. They should be allowed to swim freely in the ocean. Still, I think that letting people see sharks with their own eyes makes them more willing to help saving them. Sharks are not as easy to love as a seal pup or a smiling dolphin (I don’t know about that really – I have loved sharks ever since I could talk, but many people tell me about their fear of sharks). You have to work harder to make people as aware and fascinated as you are yourself. One way is to show them sharks on tv, an other to have them on display in aquariums.

But not all aquariums are ok. The film clips below were shot in Denmark. So far that is my favourite shark aquarium in the world. I guess the tank is a bit crowded, but the sharks look fine. No bruises or nasty wounds, no strange swimming patterns and a high diversity. I’ve been to several aquariums in the US where there have been lots of sharks – in fact, they have been lying in droves – but just 2 or 3 species. Those aquariums have not impressed me at all – although the sharks look ok. I don’t know if it’s because we in Scandinavia have to buy all our tropical sharks and ship them for lots of money to our aquariums – and therefore we can’t afford to overcrowd our tanks - whereas aquariums in Florida just go out with some fishing gear and takes as many sharks as they want. It could be that the sharks give birth to pups in captivity as well, but monocultures are boring and makes me a bit sick.

I went to a shark aqaurium in Germany. The tank was big and not too crowded with the four sandtigers that they had, but it also contained a poor lemon shark that was swimming in circles just above the floor. You could see a circle in the sand where it had been spinning around. That was very sad to see! Especially since I have since learned that you can cure this behavior with the correct medicine!

There is an other reason why that dive below was so excellent. As a biologist I know that nature is unpredictable. You might pay a lot of money to go very far away to end up with… scrubbing the boat from fishblood and not seeing a white shark for a whole day (that happend to me in South Africa in 1995). In an aquarium I know that I will have sharks around me – for sure! Also, since I took up diving I became what we in Sweden call an “ear child”. After a few dives I get ear infections and are not allowed to dive anymore for a while. If you spend a lot of money to go on a diving holiday you don’t want to get ill! Especially not before you have seen those sharks! Luckily I can snorkel ok and many sharks prefer that, but still there are some adventures where you will have to dive to see the sharks. The hammerheads off Cocos Islands are at the moment just a dream dive for me.

So, do I think that it is ok to have any specie of sharks in captivity? No I don’t think so. Some species adopt better than others to being held in captivity. That said, given the chance, I would gladly watch the captive whale sharks in Georgia, the white sharks that they have had in Monterey and the goblin sharks in Japan. I know it’s not politically correct, but if that is my best chance to see them “live” at all, I’m in.

In the best of worlds I would just have to grab my snorkel and jump into the water and be surrounded by sharks. For me here in Scandinavia, it isn’t as easy as that.

P.S. Since over 18 years I share my life with a pet tarantula. Yup, 18 years. In the wild, she would probably not have lasted more than a few years. Now we can look forward to say, 45 years together… Sometimes the sharks might be safer from predators – like humans - in aquariums… D.S.

Shark dive 2


Shark dive 3

Saving sharks at the expense of fishermen

We're huge fans of shark biologist Andy DeHart-he's got a way of drilling down to the issue at hand in a way everyone can understand:

“We’re taking sharks out of the water faster than we are putting them back in,” said Andy Dehart, a shark biologist who works with the National Aquarium in Washington.

Sharks are a vital part of the ocean’s eco system because they are an apex predator.

“An apex predator is key in maintaining balance,” said Ray Owczarzak, an assistant curator at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. “They eliminate the weakest population of fish so the biggest and strongest are the breeding animals.”

Without sharks, the ocean would be out of whack: In North American Atlantic water, Hammerhead Sharks eat Cownose Rays, which feed on Bay Scallops. If there are no sharks, the ray population explodes and eats the scallops, leaving fewer scallops for people to eat.

Sharky Commercial Aquarium Trends

We have blogged about the current trend of commercial aquariums that allow "divers" into their enclosures for face to face encounters with sharks.

Like it or not this is a trend-and a poor one at that. Commercial aquaria were never constructed and designed as underwater public encounter spaces. In 98% of them-these for profit public encounters-are an afterthought. Basically these aquaria are becoming hybrid organizations at best.

Why not build a state of the art public dive encounter site complete with sharks, safety and education? Seems like a far fetched idea? We're closer than ever.

Here's the growing list of aquarium adventure dives for your review:

Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta. A whale shark, the world's largest fish, is the prime attraction. One 30-minute dive daily. There is also a swim option, with no diving experience required ($290; www.georgiaaquarium.org).

Florida Aquarium, Tampa. Dive with the Sharks. One 30-minute dive daily ($150; www.flaquarium.org).

National Aquarium, Baltimore. Wings in the Water and Atlantic Coral Reef tanks are available for diving. One 30-minute dive in each tank, every other Saturday. ($295; www.aqua.org).

Epcot Center, Orlando. Epcot Dive Quest, sharks, eagle rays, sea turtles, plus 60-plus fish species, 40-minute dive twice daily. ($150; disneyworld.disney.go.com).

Underwater Adventure at the Mall of America. Offers dives to Fisherman's Hollow and Shark Cove on Wednesday evenings and Saturday and Sunday afternoons ($195). There is a swim option for those without diving experience: snorkeling Rainbow Reef, on Friday afternoons and Saturday and Sunday mornings ($80; www.underwaterworld.com).

UltraMarine Magazine-Taking hobbies to a whole new level

Yeah, we know this has little to do with sharks, file this one under "Ocean".

We got introduced to this magazine last week, it's a glossy take on perhaps one of the world's toughest occupations...building and maintaining saltwater aquaria. This magazine is not your fathers "Tanks Unlimited".

Written with articles taken from an in water diver perspective coupled with amazing images. Here's the write up:

"The UK’s most in-depth marine fish magazine! Ultramarine Magazine released its first issue in December 2006 and is rapidly becoming the most comprehensive journal published in its field. We cover all aspects of the Reef Keeping hobby, from beginner subjects such as fish and coral choices, to more advanced articles - a selection of which can be seen on this website".

Aquarium's Get Into The Action $$$ For Sharks

Since when did big aquariums decide that they would open their tanks to every Joe Diver in the world for instant shark thrills?

It started a few years ago with one or two smaller aquariums offering shark dives. Then as we reported last month the Grand Daddy of them all the Georgia Aquarium decided to offer interactive Whale Shark encounters.

Here's the rub, for years, aquariums have fought for legitimacy, saying that animals in captivity were ambassadors for the species. In 99% of these cases they were right.

Now the party line has shifted as aquariums look for new ways to generate revenue and to attract media attention. In the case of Florida they have been at this since 2001, about the same time that all commercial shark diving in the ocean was banned.

May we suggest a middle ground here?

Perhaps, if someone with say, $500,000,000 would be interested in building the ultimate dive attraction, it could be created for divers from around the world, indoors, with plenty of sharks for all.

Total commercial, total experience, instant sharks for all. Shark Diver is standing by with site plans and a logo.

Georgia Aquarium-Calling Bullshit!

Let us be the first of what will probably be many people, eco-groups, and divers to call "Bull-Shit" when we see it.

Recently, the Georgia Aquarium announced to one and all-real live scuba diving experiences and snorkeling experiences with their much coveted Whale Sharks...part two.

You see, the first set of Whale Sharks they had in captivity died mysteriously and they just Fed Ex'ed in another set a few months ago.

Look, this is not the way to run an aquarium, and the good folks in Georgia should know this. Whale Sharks are a unique and amazing shark species. While we are all for wild encounters with these critters, aquarium dives are just plain wrong.

Fact: If you cannot even keep the Whale Sharks you have alive for more than a year, then you absolutely shouldn't be charging "Scuba Yabbo's" to go dive with them.

We had a feeling that something like this was going to happen, after all this corporate aquarium is sponsored by the Home Depot, and what do they know about sharks?

Sand Tigers: Hit Men of The Aquarium

We have a lot of respect for big Aquariums.

It's not easy maintaining all that diverse underwater wildlife inside 300,000 gallons of saltwater.


Ever tried to maintain a goldfish?

Then again, you'll have have to shake your head harder than a Sand Tiger with a fresh kill in it's mouth when you see this next video.

Yesterday at the Mall of America in the World's Largest Underground Aquarium a Sand Tiger took out a perfectly good White Tip.

We called Steve Blair assistant curator of the Aquarium of the Pacific for clarification, "These guys are known in aquariums as reactive hunters, they bite other animals quite frequently. The good news is they do not have tearing and ripping teeth, otherwise that white tip would have been a goner".

Which reminds us to remind you. Never trust a Sand Tiger. Here's the story and here's the video:

Radisson Hotel-Where's Da Sharks?

So they built another hotel in Berlin. It's got 427 rooms, swimming pool, sauna, steam bath and fitness room.

They also went all out with their high tech conference area on the ground floor-offering a conference foyer and 10 air-conditioned meeting rooms. All pretty standard stuff as far as mega hotels go.

Oh, and it's also got the world's largest cylindrical aquarium, the AquaDom. Filled with one million litres of saltwater and the new home to about 2,500 tropical fish. Making the AquaDom the largest free standing aquarium on the entire planet.

The only problem is that they totally forgot to add the sharks. How can any self respecting hotel with a giant aquarium in the lobby hope for any business without a few sharks swimming around!?