Introducing Bruce, one of the biggest male Great White Sharks at Guadalupe.

Continuing to bring you some positivity during our home confinement due to the Coronavirus,  I want to introduce you to "Bruce", another regular Great White Shark at Guadalupe Island. Bruce has been around since we started shark diving at Guadalupe in 2001. When we first encountered him, he was just a "little" teenager, probably not much longer than 11-12'. Of course we had no idea that we would see him year after year and that he would grow into one of the larger males at the Island. He is now on the north side of 16' and one of the dominant shark at the site. Despite his size, he is one of the more mellow sharks around. He keeps swimming around with, what seems to be, a grin that looks like he stole something and got away with it.

Bruce saying hello to Whitney, one of our divers!

Bruce is also the shark who got me interested in shark research. I have to admit, that reading scientific papers held about as much excitement to me as watching grass grow. It simply wasn't my thing. When Dr. Domeier tagged Bruce with a satellite transmitter and used some of the data it produced for his paper on white shark migration, Nicole Nasby-Lucas, who works with Dr. Domeier and is responsible for the Guadalupe photo ID database, gave me a copy of the research paper. I started reading it, and realized that this paper was not just a research paper, but more like Bruce's travel journal. It was exciting to find out where he was going, when not at Guadalupe and what he was doing. Who knew that he was vacationing near Hawaii?! I mean, who wouldn't want to vacation there? Did you know that Great White Sharks can go deeper than 3000'? Well, I didn't, until I read that paper.

Even though he is one of the more mellow sharks around, being a great white shark and male, Bruce was not averse to a little fighting here and there. I remember one particular morning. I was just getting into the cages to sort out all the regulators when I noticed some movement behind me. I turned and saw Bruce who looked me straight into the eyes. He sported a huge bite injury, just in front of his gills, with a hole that let me look straight through it and out his mouth. The amazing thing was, it didn't seem to bother him. He just kept swimming around and stayed active, like nothing had happened.

Bruce about a week after the bite.

Just like Chugey, when he came back the following year, his wound was closed and there was barely a scar to indicate that he was ever injured.

Bruce with his closed bite injury.

So that is Bruce.

Since we started shark diving at Guadalupe Island, we have met over 360 different individual sharks. Who is going to be back this year? Who is going to make its first appearance? Hopefully by the time we are ready to go back to Guadalupe, this coronavirus will be a thing of the past and we will find out! Maybe you'll be able to join us and get to meet them up close and personal. They do pose for pictures with you! Next time you watch shark week, you can say, "Hey, I know that guy!"


Hopefully, we will start our expeditions in August.  4 of our trips are research trips. On those trips, you'd get to meet the researcher who knows all about those sharks, Nicole Nasby-Lucas, along with all the rock-star white sharks of Guadalupe Island. Call us at 619.887.4275 or email crew@sharkdiver.com for more information.

Let's go shark diving!

Cheers,
Martin Graf
CEO Shark Diver

About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at crew@sharkdiver.com.

Introducing "Lucy", a Great White Shark at Guadalupe Island

 
With the coronavirus holding us hostage in our homes, I decided to bring something positive into all of us shark lovers lives and introduce you to some of the sharks at Guadalupe Island.

First up is  Lucy! I love "Lucy", and I'm not referring to the popular TV show of the 50ies. "Lucy" is a large female Great White Shark, that is regularly visiting Guadalupe Island. Most mature females are only seen every other year. They mate at Guadalupe Island and then stay away from the Island until after they give birth off the coast of Baja and in the Sea of Cortes, about 18 months after they get pregnant at Guadalupe.

In 2008 she suffered an injury to her tail, most likely from a bite by another shark. Her tail is pretty much mangled and it probably affects her speed. Even though she is definitely a mature female,  we saw her every year until 2014, which meant that she didn't get pregnant, since pregnant females stay away from Guadalupe for a season and return every other year. I don't know if the mangled tail was the reason she didn't seem to get pregnant for all those years, but fortunately, she has started showing up every other year since then. Hopefully, this means that she is indeed getting pregnant now. We last saw her in 2018, so hopefully, we'll see her again this fall.

"Lucy's" tail makes it very easy to identify her. Usually we identify the individual sharks by their coloration. The transition from the white underbelly to the grey top is unique for every individual. Some people try to identify the sharks by their scars. That is how "Bite Face" got his name. The problem with scars is that they heal and if that is the only identifying characteristic you have, you would not recognize that same shark when it comes back the following year. Mutilations, like Lucy's tail, don't change and can be used in conjunction with the markings to identify her. We have a photo id database that is managed by Nicole Nasby-Lucas from the Marine Conservation Science Institute, with over 220 individual sharks identified.

If you are coming out on one of our "science" expeditions, you'll get a chance to learn how to identify these sharks from Nicole herself. You will also get the complete photo ID database, so you can identify all the sharks you encountered and what's really cool, you will then be able to identify the sharks you see on TV. How awesome will it be, when you see a shark on TV and realize that this is the individual that swam inches from your face at Guadalupe?

Even with her tail slowing her down, she seems to be healthy in every other way. She is definitely getting enough food and is holding her own among all the sharks at the Island. Lucy is a very curious shark and she swims very closely to the cages, making eye contact with our divers as she is gliding by slowly.

I hope to see Lucy when we return in the fall. She truly is one of my favorites.
If you would like to get more information, call 619.887.4275, email crew@sharkdiver.com or visit our website www.sharkdiver.com

Once this coronavirus allows us to get out of the house again, let's go shark diving!

Cheers,

Martin Graf
CEO Shark Diver

About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives, Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at crew@sharkdiver.com.

Is shark diving good for conservation?

Conservation and Shark Diving are often seen as opposites and not compatible. Let's look at some of the concerns raised and see how valid they are.


The biggest issue a lot of people have with shark diving and specifically feeding dives is that "It conditions sharks to associate people and divers with food!" While it does indeed condition sharks to associate divers with food, it definitely doesn't condition those sharks to associate divers AS food. The sharks at the Shark Reef Marine Reserve are being fed 5 days a week and I dove on a non feeding day. I got to about 45 ft when a few Bull Sharks sharks approached me, clearly looking for food. After they swam around me for a little bit, they realized that I didn't bring any food and they left. At no point did they show any indication that they looked at me as food or made any attempt to bite me. I actually think that being around divers at feeding sites makes the sharks less likely to attack. If I would be approached by a bunch of Bull Sharks at a non feeding site, I would be a lot more concerned, since it is unusual for them to approach divers without being attracted by some kind of food or chum source.

Another argument against feeding sharks is that it alters their feeding and migration behavior. Since I'm not a scientist that has studied this issue,  my experience comes from observing and diving with sharks, I defer to those who actually studied this issue. There are a few good papers out that are addressing this.

This one is from 2013 by Juerg Brunnschweiler and Adam Barnett: https://fijisharkdiving.blogspot.com/2013/03/feeding-bull-sharks-in-fiji-paper.html 

Or this one: http://fijisharkdiving.blogspot.com/2010/06/does-shark-feeding-influence-shark.html 

Essentially they are saying that it has no real impact on their migration and hunting behavior. Click on the links above for more detailed information.

OK, so shark feeding is not as bad as people think, but is it actually good for conservation? While there are certainly some outfits that don't have conservation in mind when they do their shark dives, there are also responsible operators who care deeply about conservation and who have accomplished some amazing things.

We all know about the problem associated with the overfishing of sharks. If we want to protect sharks, we have to find a way for the shark fishermen to make a living doing something else.When we argue that a life sharks is worth hundreds of times the amount of a dead shark, we have to make sure that a life shark is worth more to the fishermen as well and not just to the tourism industry.

This is what Beqa Adventure Divers (BAD) has accomplished in Fiji. They got a fishing village to agree to not fish on a reef in exchange for a fee paid by all the divers. "They also hired people from fishing villages and trained them to be Divemasters, Instructors and Boat Captains. When they started diving at that reef, an initial fish count netted about 280 different species of fish, which for the south pacific is very dismal. Ten years later, another fish count showed over 480 different species. The number of sharks seen at the feeds also increased from a handful to sometimes over 100.

The efforts of BAD has resulted in the reef the shark dive takes place on being declared a national underwater marine park, the Shark Reef Marine Reserve. To my knowledge this is the first time a private entity managed to create a national park. Not only does the fishing village continue to receive money from the divers, which they use for educating their children, creating opportunities outside of fishing for them, but the ones who are still fishing now catch more fish outside of the reserve than they ever caught in and outside. This is clearly a win win situation, where the sharks, the divers and the fishermen all profit.

So clearly, operating a shark feeding dive has benefited not only the sharks, but the reef as a whole. Shark Diver is proud to support BAD by taking a group of divers to dive with them every year. This year we are heading there in May. Since we are based out of a hotel, the dates are flexible. Call Cindy at 619.887.4275 or email crew@sharkdiver.com for more info.

Here is a little video of what you can expect to see on your trip.

 

Let's go Shark Diving!

Cheers,
Martin Graf

About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at staff@sharkdiver.com.

Talking about Sharks, Feeds the Frenzy

A Growing Attraction

Some might say diving with sharks is the last thing they would ever want to do...until they do it! For many, it has become an addiction and more and more repeat divers are getting their yearly thrill with Shark Diver, based out of San Diego. For 14 years, Shark Diver has been introducing the public (those who are dive certified and not certified) to the underwater world of great white sharks. They don't plan to stop. Why? Because people keep coming to get their 'fix.' The shark phenomenon has continued to rise for the last few years, due to local and national television news and social media coverage, cable television programming, and of course, silly movies. The 'News' has put us in touch with shark sightings off the coasts of Australia, South Africa, the Eastern and Western United States, and Guadalupe Island in Mexico; all right at our fingertips. The more we talk about sharks, the more popular they become.

Photo: Cindy Michaels

Every year, starting the first week of August, Shark Diver takes more than 200 divers to Guadalupe Island to see these misunderstood creatures, up close. During a 5-day adventure, divers fulfill their bucket list items, unique wedding anniversary or honeymoon celebrations, birthday milestones, or childhood dreams. In 2014, Shark Diver's sold out season saw a record number of divers wanting to see great whites, but it was also one of the biggest years for shark encounters at the cages. Things were only going to grow after that. Already, since the company's first dive this year on August 9th, there have been more than 120 great white shark sightings and it is expected that the same amount, if not more, will be seen by the time the 2015 season ends in November.

Get to Know Your Sharks

Shark Diver has worked with the Discovery Channel for some of its Shark Week episodes as well as countless other operations that partner for filming. But the company's greatest passion is to bring those who have never seen a shark...to the sharks, themselves. For the past 2 seasons, a researcher from the Marine Conservation Science Institute (MCSI) in San Diego has joined Shark Diver in educating divers about specific markings, migratory habits, and all the fun stuff you don't learn in school or on television. On the hosted adventures, divers have the opportunity to name any new shark that is spotted, while in the cages. That named shark is then registered in MCSI's photo database, which features more than 150 already identified sharks, such as Bite Face, Shredder, and Bruce. By naming and identifying the new great white, the divers are helping out with MCSI's research; dedicated to conserving and protecting marine resources. Shouldn't naming a shark be on your bucket list?

Photo: Cindy Michaels

What to Expect without Expecting

Like other highly feared fish, great whites are unpredictable. There may be curious juveniles that try to bite delicately on the cages, or a large adult that just wants to stroll by slowly to check you out. There is no expecting one behavior or another from these boys and girls. Divers prepare themselves for a scary time, but walk away awe-inspired by what they just witnessed. Every trip reveals something different. 

When you decide that life is too short to only watch sharks on television, venture out on a dive with Shark Diver. You will see a great white shark while on your trip or the crew will take you back to Guadalupe Island at no extra charge. It is the company's guarantee. Whether or not Shark Diver sees you year after year, there is a good chance you will never view great white sharks the same way, again.


~Cindy Michaels 
   Shark Diver


About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at staff@sharkdiver.com.

Great Whites: From the Eyes of our Divers!

More Great Videos from this Season's Divers!

There is nothing more exhilarating than experiencing seeing a massive creature in its natural habitat. Our divers who come out with Shark Diver to swim with the great whites of Isla Guadalupe are so often 'blown away' by what they witness, that when speaking with them after their trip, they are at a loss for words.  ...except for these....

Smiles, the Great White

"Seeing these creatures up close and taking this trip with you guys, exceeded my every expectation!" is a common response when we ask them... "how was it?"  We have been receiving so many videos and awesome pictures from the divers on this season's trips!  We love it!  Every shark is different and so is each individual diver's encounter.

Chugey, the Great White

They have asked us to share their adventures which have been captured in video and stills so that more people can see for themselves how incredibly mind-blowing swimming with these amazing animals can be.  We thank them so much!
We have linked you up with videos from two very excited divers, who just couldn't get enough.



Video: Brian Arnone, Shark Diver Diver

Video: Mike Laspina, Shark Diver Diver

Click on their names to see what they saw.

If you have taken a dive with Shark Diver, we encourage you to send us your videos or pictures so that we may share with those who tell us and you, "you're crazy!"  If they saw what you have seen, we doubt they'd say that anymore.

~Cindy Michaels, Dir. of Communications, Shark Diver


About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at sharkoperations@gmail.com.

Best Shark Dive in the world?

Valerie Taylor called Beqa Adventure Divers'  "Shark Dive",  "The best shark dive in the world!". That is high praise from one of the most respected shark divers in the industry and given the fact that we at Shark Diver pride ourselves in offering our divers the best shark diving experience possible, I just had to go and check it out for myself.

After a 10.5 hr. flight on Air Pacific, I arrived in Nadi, Fiji at 5am, where a Taxi that the dive shop arranged, was waiting to take me to Pacific Harbour, a 2.5 hr. drive away. So right away I was impressed with their service and couldn't wait to find out, how their dives would stack up to my high expectations.

The pearl resort

But before I would get to dive, I had to check into the Pearl South Pacific Resort, to get some much needed rest. After a good night sleep and a nice breakfast from an awesome breakfast buffet at the resort, I was ready to go dive.

Bull shark stopping in front of me

The free shuttle from the dive shop picked me up at the front desk and drove me over to Beqa Adventure Divers, where I boarded the "MV Predator", a modern, very comfortable and fast hydrofoil dive boat, that took us out to the dive site in about 15 minutes. The water conditions were a little rough and I was worried that some passengers would get seasick, but the boat handled the choppy seas amazingly well and we barely felt the motion of the ocean and nobody got sick.

After a detailed and informative briefing, we suited up to do our first shark dive. Even though I've been diving with anything from Great White-, Hammerhead-, Tiger- to Leopard-sharks for the last 15 years, I felt like a kid in a candy store and was all excited to finally meet the Bull sharks of Beqa.

Bull Shark coming close.

We descended to 100ft. where the Bull sharks were waiting for us. Did I say Bull sharks? ..... I meant to say a ton of Bull sharks. There were way too many sharks to count. My best guess would be that we saw at least 70 sharks. I took a picture that shows 34 sharks in one frame, and it is not showing all the sharks that were beside and behind me. I was grinning from ear to ear. When a big, 10-12 ft female came right up to me and pretty much stopped right in front of my lens, I was thinking that Valerie Taylor may not have been exaggerating. This dive was awesome!

The best safety stop in the world!

We ascended to a shallower depth, where the divemaster was feeding the reef sharks, before we ascended to about 15 ft for our safety stop. Now for all of you who think a safety stop is boring, you haven't been doing the "Shark Dive" with Beqa Adventure Divers. This safety stop featured a divemaster feeding the White- and Black-Tip reef sharks, with Grey reef sharks circling behind us. We had dozens of sharks swimming around us, trying to get to the tasty morsels being handed out by the divemaster. This is easily the "Best safety stop in the world!"

I surfaced and just couldn't wipe that smile off my face. This was unbelievable! It wasn't over yet, there was still the second dive. After a nice surface interval, where "Papa" the divemaster told us a bit about Fijian history, we descended to 60 feet for our second dive.

Divemaster feeding Bull shark

This dive featured the divemaster hand feeding the Bull sharks right in front of the divers. The set-up is awesome. The divers lay on their stomachs, behind a ridge in the reef and the divemaster is right in front of them, just a little below, feeding the sharks. The sharks come up to the DM, get a tuna head and then swim up and right in front of the divers, making for great pictures and an incredible, safe and close encounter with those magnificent Bull sharks. After the hand feeding, the DM drops tuna heads down to the sharks and they show off their feeding behavior to the lucky divers, watching them.

What an experience! I have to say that I'm definitely partial to "my" Great White Sharks at Isla Guadalupe and get more excited every year to go back and visit them, but this dive is definitely not to be missed. Shark Diver is proud to announce that we will start offering trips to Beqa next year.

I hope you all will come and join us!

Cheers,

Martin Graf
CEO
Shark Diver

About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at sharkcrew@gmail.com.

Awesome Guadalupe Trip 2012

After  a fair ride to Guadalupe, we were greeted by a beautiful sunrise and perfect conditions for Shark Diving.  

Calm seas, current and no other boats around and just as we got started with diving, a full breach, with the Shark actually touching the boat on the way down! What a way to start out! The entire day was full of Shark action, with 6 different sharks competing for our attention.

Day 2 of Shark Diving started at 7am with an open rotation.

The lucky few that woke up early were in for a treat. "Jaques", a  16ft. regular at Guadalupe put on a show for the divers. The day continued to bring in a bunch of other Sharks, some coming right up to the cages, including one that investigated the corner of our port cage very, very closely! ..... oh, did I mention that we had another full breach just off our bow?

"Smiles" a Guadalupe regular, smiling for the camera

Since we had such great action during our 7 am rotation on the second day, we started out with everyone wanting in. The Sharks must have decided that Sunday was a good day to sleep in and there was not much going on during the first hour. Having been spoiled the first couple days with continuous great action, only a few divers decided to go in for the later rotations. The ones who did got rewarded. Big time! "Smiles", another regular, that we haven't seen in the past 2 years, showed up and put on a show for the ones in the cages, as well as everyone on deck.

Passing very close to the cages, looking the divers straight into the eyes. Everyone was excited.

The ride home started out a bit rolly, but by dinnertime it was a lot smoother and it continued to be nice for the rest of the way home!

I love my job!

Cheers,

Martin Graf

Dive Operations Manager

Horizon Charters
Shark Diver

About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at sharkcrew@gmail.com.

Body Glove Knows Shark Diving

It is refreshing if not downright appealing to notice the stance wetsuit maker Body Glove has taken in regards to the shark diving industry.

Where many makers of water apparel and dive gear shy away from commercial shark diving - Body Glove embraces it.

Kudos for the industry vision and the upcoming blog posts featuring twin shark expeditions with Body Glove, whale sharks and white sharks.

The commercial shark diving industry needs more outreach within the manufacturing side of the dive, surf, and water sports worlds.

As high profile ambassadors for our industry forward thinking companies like Body Glove can begin to dispel many of the myths surrounding commercial shark diving.

What begins as a blog post today, with a little vision, often becomes much more.

Goblin girl on... Endless Ocean!

At the moment I'm looking after my three beloved godchildren while my sister got a well deserved weekend in a nice hotel with her husband. My plan was to finally get to play the Wii-game "Endless Ocean". You see, I found out that you can dive with... goblin sharks in the game! The children - twins of 6.5 years and a boy of 4.5 - found the game very boring. Lots of English text and then you are slowly swimming around. They went out to play with their friends instead, so I got the game all for myself and fell in some sort of trance... It almost felt like diving - without the pain in my ears that I always get after a few dives irl.

I've been finning around quite a good deal, but so far no goblin sharks. I need to get equipment to be able to dive deep, I guess. Now I'm waiting until I can put the children in bed so I can continue my quest!

I also have the game "Fishing Master". Somehow you will be able to see goblin sharks in the fish market, but so far I haven't found out how. Has anyone else tried these games?

Fine Shark Television - BAD

South Pacific is a simply gorgeous piece of underwater film making, shot by the BBC and producer Jonathan Clay.

Naturally you do not shoot the entirety of the South Pacific without a visit with sharks - and the good folks over at Beqa Adventure Divers provided the site, animals, and adventure for this crew.

South Pacific is currently airing in the U.K in an 8 part series to rave reviews.

Keep your eyes open for this glorious piece of underwater eye candy as it makes the rounds to a high definition, 80 inch flat screen, with surround sound, near you.

If you have been waiting to acquire an 80 inch flat screen consider this fair warning. Kudos again to BAD for being involved in this shoot.

Man Bites Shark-Saves Dog

....or something to that effect went down in Florida this week as dog owner Greg LeNoir jumped into "shark infested waters" to save his Rat Terrier from a shark that was happily munching on it:

ISLAMORADA -- Greg LeNoir watched in horror as a shark's mouth opened wide Friday, chomping a large set of teeth on his beloved 14-pound dog, Jake.

''Noooooo,'' LeNoir shrieked, fearing the worst.

But the case of the rat terrier versus shark has a happy ending.

Editors Note: The dog featured in this post is none other than our sharky mascot Sierra-a slightly overweight and completely fearless Rottweiler. Knowing that dogs should be able to fend off sharks and other predatory critters we chose a slightly more "robust companion" with Sierra. Hat Tip: Squid Force Media news bite.

Shark Shield Announces New Strategic Partnership

In response to increased use of Shark Shield technology by film and television companies, Shark Shield Pty Ltd has appointed Shark Divers as its official regulatory authority for the Northern Hemisphere. Director of Operations, Luke Tipple, will oversee all production issues concerning Shark Shield while Ian (shark) Gordon will represent the Southern Hemisphere. Our mutual goal is to ensure safe and effective use of our product while ensuring our strict standards of use are maintained.

Northern Hemisphere contact: staff@sharkdivers.com
Southern Hemisphere contact: ote@ozemail.co.au

Shark Shield TM is a unique shark deterrent system utilizing a technologically advanced three-dimensional electronic wave form. Shark Shield units are designed for recreational users and water sports professionals alike and aim to help all people enjoy and work in the ocean with a new dimension of peace of mind for themselves, their families and employers.

Shark Shield provides proven protection against all predatory shark species including Great Whites, Tigers, Zambezi's (Bulls), Makos and Bronze Whalers, among others. The electronic pulse emitted repels the shark by inducing muscle spasms via stimulation of the Ampluae of Lorenzini, the sensory organs present on sharks' snouts. There is no permanent damage to the animal, or harm to the environment. Shark Shield products are proven to repel sharks.

Filming shark sequences for commercial use frequently requires manufacturing an unnatural environment to attract sharks which can change their behavior and create a heightened danger for humans. The incorrect deployment of a Shark Shield product either intentionally or unintentionally could reduce the effectiveness of our products. For both safety and legal reasons we cannot and will not permit this to occur and have implemented a film and television usage policy which is conditional.

Shark Shield products must only be used by film and television productions after written approval is obtained from either of our official authorities or Shark Shield Pty Ltd itself and Shark Shield products must only be used in accordance with the conditional terms provided by the authority. Both authorities are recognised authorities in the field of working with sharks and understand Shark Shield technology.

Legal action may be taken against film or television companies using a Shark Shield for shoots when approval has not been granted.

Important Note

No shark deterrent system should be a replacement for the understanding of sharks and the site you are operating in, as well as the safety crews you employ. Shark deterrent systems are and always will be a last line of defense for any shark shoot or shark site you have in place. Certain water activities inherently involve the danger of potential shark encounters or attacks. Shark Shield has proven effective in deterring said instances however, due to the variables present with ocean and animal behaviors it should not be considered a completely foolproof system.

SharkDivers.com: Consulting on the future of shark eco-tourism

Editors Note: From the RTSea Blog, what can we say Richard? When you're lucky enough to have talent like yours available on 10 digit speed dial-the future is very bright indeed:

"The times, they are a-changing." There seems to be a subtle but growing shift in strategy among many conservation organizations. In the face of past regulations/prohibitions or designated protected areas for endangered animals that have often proven less successful due to lack of resources for effective enforcement, greater attention is being turned towards eco-tourism as a means of increasing public support and providing a more attractive economic model for government and commercial entities to endorse.

I am on the consulting team of Shark Divers providing consulting expertise for shark tourism and the film/television industry. As a marketing communications and media production professional, I look forward to the opportunity to advance the cause of responsible shark eco-tourism as a means of providing effective support to shark conservation.

As new strategies emerge, there will be challenges to address - ecological impact, potential behavioral changes, shifts in third world economies, tourist/diver impact, safety issues for both people and animals, and more. But shark tourism - carefully planned - holds great promise. It can generate enlightenment in people, preserve marine ecosystems that depend on their predators as vital members of the aquatic community, and it can provide economic proof that a living shark is infinitely more valuable than a dead one.

Albino Whale Shark-You Bet!

Nature has a way or surprising us and none more so then this unlikely critter a 30 foot albino Whale Shark:

It is one of the rarest sights of the ocean. A 30ft albino whale shark glides through the water with majestic grace.

It was captured by diver and naturalist Antonio Moreano off the coast of Darwin, the northern-most island of the Galapagos.

And this female is thought to be one of a kind.

Bill Wieger-Shark Artiste

Shark diver Bill Wieger joined us a few years ago at Isla Guadalupe.

At the time he was fresh face in another week long batch of excited divers we see each season, but we quickly came to know Bill as an artist.

On his first expedition to I.G he was introduced to a simply stunning female shark we named "Mystery" for her ability to just appear when she wanted to and vanish just as quickly.

As you know by now the I.G site is known for 100 foot visibility-so that's a pretty neat trick considering this animal is simply huge.

Bill went home and reproduced "Mystery" as a sculpture and now produces limited editions for interested divers and shark fans worldwide. As you can see from this image, he's got talent!

Right about now about 20% of you have your credit card out and we're pretty sure he will not mind if we post his email for interested buyers: billwieger@att.net

Shark Animations CGI

Long time shark fan-Tom from Texas sent this in today with the following email:

" Hey Shark Divers, I know I should be working right now but I would rather be playing with sharks. Here's something i found on You Tube to pass the hours until closing time".

Editors Note:This is a pretty hypnotic time waster:

Whale Sharks in the "Millions" we tells ya!

Maybe not in the millions, but for an increasing number of divers and tour operators this site has become the defacto "Valhalla for Whale Sharks".

Kind of like finding the lost City of Atlantis, or the fabled African Elephants Graveyard, except this site is in Mexico.

Here's one the the latest operations to join the pile. The cost? $2995...oh and do not forget that $695 Singles Supplement (makes you want to get married, right?) :

Just off the tip of Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula is a small island largely untouched by tourism, despite its proximity to Cancún. Isla Holbox might go unnoticed entirely, except for some unique visitors who come to its warm ocean waters each summer. Their presence is hard to ignore, since they are 40 feet long and weigh 15 tons. These are gentle whale sharks – not whales at all, despite their size, but actually the world’s largest fish. Docile and unafraid, they allow us to swim close enough to observe the checkerboard pattern of pale yellow dots and stripes covering their thick gray skin.

Whale Sharks Data-Ultimate Gliders

Discovers blog for those of you who have not yet "discovered it" is very comprehensive and when they tackle sharks they generally do an excellent job.

Case in point researchers looking into the giant whale shark found they use their great weight to plummet to the oceans depths and rise up again like giant raptors using air currents with little to no mechanical effort involved in the process of movement.

For critters that feed on the oceans smallest lifeforms this makes a lot of sense. Another case for supporting shark research wherever you can, data coming back from next gen sat tags and tracking gear is revealing whole secret worlds of sharks we never knew until now.

New Zealand-Great White Shark Dive Site Opens Soon

Editors Note: This page has been removed. Shark Diver, and Shark New Zealand have removed all support and marketing efforts for the Stewart Island dive site until further notice.

6 Meter White Shark-South Africa

Let's run down the numbers here. For those of you, like us, who calculate our sharks in feet, 6 meters=19.6850 feet.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is one huge white shark.

The following story is naturally out of South Africa where nothing is small-and next to Australia, almost everything is out to bite, maim, or eat you:

A Six-metre great white shark was spotted by divers on Thursday about 3.5km off Durban after they had launched from uShaka Marine World beach. Aquabud Scuba instructor trainer Miguel Nunes said he had been invited to try out a shark diving experience by Patrick Voorma of Calypso Dive and Adventure at uShaka.

"We saw two black-tip sharks, but they disappeared very quickly,"said Nunes.

"Although we spent about an hour in the water the sea was eerily quiet". "There seemed to be no fish, nothing," he said. This was soon explained . . .

They had only been back in their boat for about 30 seconds after completing their dive when they spotted a huge, black shadow. Nunes said at first they thought it might be a whale shark, but the colours were wrong. "Maybe it's a Zambezi on steroids," he joked.