Great whites and now Tigers too? Yo-rific!

Thanks to researchers in California, South Africa, and Guadalupe we know that white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) spend a lot of time yo-yo'ing through the water column. This behavior is often attributed to hunting activity with animals moving up and down in a straight line seeking prey items.

Tigers (Galeocerdo cuvier) on the other hand were thought to be generalized migrants, but all that has changed with an interesting study coming out of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa where a join effort with University of Tokyo, the Japanese National Institute of Polar Research, and the University of Florida, is shedding new light on the hunting behavior of tiger sharks by studying their swimming dynamics off the west coast of Hawai‘i Island.

As it turns out Tigers yo-yo too, as described by lead scientist Dr.Carl Meyer:

"These findings are exciting because they have given us unprecedented new insights into the behavior of these huge and difficult to study marine predators," explains Dr. Carl Meyer, a researcher at HIMB and the lead U.S. scientist of the project. Meyer also emphasizes the importance of these results “although we have long debated the reasons for the yo-yo diving, we have only recently developed tools allowing us to directly measure the behavior in sufficient detail to understand what these animals are actually doing”.

Complete study here.

Shark Tourism Under Siege - Second Boat Burned

We have been following the news out of Hawaii this month as things are once again heating up for the commercial shark diving industry there.

This morning news of a second commercial shark diving boat that has been set ablaze on Oahu less than one week after a first boat was burnt almost to the waterline.

The cause?

Arson.

The blame?

Local island politics, and an atmosphere of anger, fear, and politically enabled groups and individuals who have created this terror campaign.

This ongoing campaign was started in one small political office in the Capitol seeking a wedge issue to stir up local constituents and has lead to two vessels deliberately burned, and a failed court case involving Super Secret GPS devices with excuses about national security.

By either stirring up groups with false information and fear tactics about sharks, enabled with town hall style political meetings, to not curbing starkly terroristic threats and anger directed at two small commercial shark diving operations, a few local politicians, in our minds, are responsible for two boat burnings in Hawaii.

Angry rhetoric in any form can be a boon for politicians, especially when the target is defenseless.

Angry rhetoric can also be dangerous in the hands of politicians who fail to see what long term effects false information and fear can have on unstable members of the populace.

It is time for the politicians involved in the ongoing attempt to destroy two commercial shark diving operations on Oahu to step up to the plate and calm their troops down. Two boat burnings in one month is a legacy that no one wants on their political record and clearly someone in the politically created, fueled, and enabled anti-shark diving crowd is not firing on all cylinders.

We say enough is enough. For all the fear that the anti-shark diving crowd has directed at the sharks, it is the groups themselves who have become the most predatory and who have caused the most damage.

Honolulu fire investigators say arson was cause of shark tour boat blaze

We have been following the increasingly ugly, partisan, and mis-informed anti-shark diving movement in Hawaii.

A movement that started two years ago and this week culminated in an arson attack on a local commercial shark diving vessel.

Just when you thought things in Hawaii could not get any worse for two first rate commercial shark diving operations - they just did:

Honolulu Fire Department investigators have determined that arson is to blame for a blaze that destroyed a shark tour boat in Haleiwa Harbor early Friday.

The case has now been turned over to the Honolulu Police Department, which has opened an arson case, said HPD spokeswoman Michelle Yu.

The fire on board the 30-foot North Shore Shark Adventures boat was reported at 12:40 a.m. Flames burned the bridge and cabin of the boat and the heat from the fire damaged a nearby vessel, said fire Capt. Terry Seelig.

Damage was estimated at $225,000.

North Shore Shark Adventures is one of two shark-tour operators operating out of Haleiwa that have been the source of constant debate in recent years.

Officials with the company could not be reached for comment.

Update Here.

Shark Operators Plan To Challenge Law - Hawaii

Shark Industry Watch 8.21.2010

Shark tour operators who were cited for allegedly chumming off the North Shore say they will challenge the law.The case will likely cost more than the cost of paying a fine because it will raise some complex issues in court.

"It's basically a ridiculous charge and we are going to fight it all the way even to an appeal," attorney Ken Kuniyuki said.Five employees of two Haleiwa shark tour companies were charged with illegal chumming last week, nearly a year after federal investigators collected evidence.

The charge is a petty misdemeanor with up to a $1,000 fine, but an attorney for one of the men said state game wardens treated the defendants like felons.

The Story.

North Shore Hawaii - Commercial Shark Divers Charged?

Shark Industry Watch 8.19.2010

A federal undercover investigation uncovered alleged criminal activity at two of Oahu’s North Shore shark tour companies.Five shark tour employees have been charged with illegal shark feeding.

Law enforcement officers, who posed as visitors, posing as pretended to video tape their shark tour adventures but instead, they allegedly, caught tour operators red-handed.

Complete Story.

Hawaii - Shark Fin Bill 2169 Almost Law?

Hawaii's complete ban on shark fins and shark fishing could soon be be made into law after Tuesday's vote.

A vote that has the potential to open a deep fissure in the worldwide trade and sales of shark fin and a vote that will set a unique precedent.

Under the new Bill 2169 shark fins could not be harvested, sold or owned.

The bill is heading for final votes in the Hawaii Legislature. The bills main stumbling block, a conference committee, agreed on the measure Tuesday, sending it to the House and Senate for approval.

Shark conservationists maintain the ban is key to shutting down the overfishing of sharks for their fins is causing an imbalance in the oceans. Currently the price of shark fin is hovering at 1980's gold price levels and is used primarily for soup.

As Stefani Brendl from Shark Allies put it when the final vote was read:

"It's Alive! Getting it out of conference was by far one of the most difficult and critical steps in this process. Many people would have bet that it won't happen. There was doubt and criticism until the very last moment. But here it is! The impossible became possible! This is really a historic moment!!!"

Hawaii - Shark Fin Bill 2169 and what's in it

Complete and revised Shark Fin Bill SB 2160bill here.

Add your voice to this important issue here with an email or phone call this week.

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO SHARK FINS

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION

Sharks are one of the top predators in the marine food chain and play an important role in our ocean's ecosystem. Sharks have characteristics that make them more vulnerable to overfishing than most fish, and data from state, federal, and international agencies show a decline in the shark populations both locally and worldwide. Unlike other fish species, most sharks do not reach sexual maturity until seven to twelve years of age and then only give birth to a small litter of young. Thus, sharks cannot rebuild their populations quickly onnce they are overfished.

The practice of shark finning, where a shark is caught, the fin is cut off, and the shark is returned to the water, causes tens of millions of sharks to die a slow death each year. Some sharks starve to death, others are slowly eaten by other fish, and some drown, because most sharks need to keep moving to force water through their gills for oxygen. Shark fins are the principal ingredient in shark fin soup, and the demand for the delicacy has skyrocketed in recent years.

Despite state and federal laws to ban the practice of shark finning, fishers continue the practice on a massive scale. Since 1972 the number of blacktip sharks has fallen by ninety-three per cent, tiger sharks by ninety-seven per cent, and bull sharks, dusky sharks, and smooth hammerheads by ninety-nine per cent. The rapid reduction of sharks is disrupting the ocean's equilibrium.

Sharks are an essential element of the ocean's ecosystem, and by reducing the demand for shark fins, Hawaii can help ensure that sharks will not become extinct.

SECTION 2. Chapter 188, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

Shark fins; prohibited.

(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to possess, sell, offer for sale, trade, or distribute shark fins.

(b) Any person violating this section or any rule adopted pursuant to this section shall be subject to:

(1) Seizure and forfeiture of shark fins; and
(2) An administrative fine of not less than $5,000 and not more than $15,000. In addition, the violator may be assessed administrative fees and costs, and attorney's 1 fees and costs.
(c) The department may adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 necessary for the purposes of this section.
(d) For the purpose of this section, "shark fin" means the raw or dried fin of a shark with the shark carcass removed."

SECTION 3. Section 188-40.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is repealed.

Sharks; prohibitions; administrative penalties.

(a) No person shall knowingly harvest shark fins from the territorial waters of the State, or land shark fins in the State, unless the fins were taken from a shark landed whole in the State.
(b) Any person violating this section or any rule adopted thereunder shall be subject to:

(1) Seizure and forfeiture of shark fins, commercial marine license, vessel, and fishing equipment; and
(2) An administrative fine of not less than $5,000 and not more than $15,000. In addition, the violator may be assessed administrative fees and costs, and attorney's fees and costs.

(c) Any criminal prosecution or penalty imposed for violation of this section or any rule adopted thereunder shall not preclude seizure and forfeiture pursuant to chapter 712A, or the imposition of any administrative fines and costs or attorney's fees and costs under this section.

(d) This section shall apply to the following vessels when fishing outside the territorial waters of the State:

(1) Vessels that hold a fishing license or permit issued by the State as a prerequisite to participation in the fishery, or that have owners or captains who hold a fishing license or permit issued by the State as a prerequisite to participation in the fishery;

(2) Vessels that are registered under section 200-31; or

(3) Vessels with federal documentation that lists as a homeport a location within the State;
provided that the enforcement of this section on these vessels outside the territorial waters of the State shall not apply if enforcement of this section is in violation of, or in conflict with, federal law.

(e) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, this section shall apply only to vessels that off-load cargo in the State or its territorial waters.

(f) As used in this section:

"Land" or "landed" means when the shark or any part thereof is first brought to shore.

"Shark fin" means the raw or dried fin of a shark with the shark carcass removed.

"Whole" means the entire shark with its head and flesh intact, allowing for the removal of the blood, internal organs, and tail at sea."

SECTION 4. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 5. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2010.

Urgent - Hawaii Shark Fin Bill Needs a Push

If you have some time in your busy schedule over the next two days please add your voice to excellent efforts in Hawaii to help conserve sharks with a new bill SB2169:

Hello everyone,

For some reason the Representative that is the chair of our LAST
committee, Riki Karamatsu, is unresponsive and hasn't scheduled a hearing for our shark finning bill.

If you have the time today or tomorrow, please take a minute and send a message/call to to urge him to hear SB2169.

We have come so far with this bill and I can't believe it is stuck now! Very frustrating.

Tell him how important this is for Hawaii, but also the rest of the US/world.

Tell him that the desire for people to eat shark fin soup should not
override the decision to pass this bill. A delicacy should not cause
the destruction of the ocean... etc

Express yourself as strongly as you can and if you are from Hawaii
make sure you let him know that too.

We have been sending messages and have been stopping by his office. We
have given him photos, letters and videos.

Apparently he needs more pressure to be convinced. I think there are a couple of member in the House that really like to eat their shark fin soup that may have asked him to not hear the bill.

I will go to the capitol this afternoon to park myself outside his
office until he speaks to me.

Here is his info:

Jon Riki Karamatsu
Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee
phone 808-586-8490; fax 808-586-8494
E-mail repkaramatsu@Capitol.hawaii.gov

thank you
Stefanie

Philopatry and migration of Pacific white sharks

Fascinating reading coming from The Proceedings of The Royal Society this week (click on image) with tracking/DNA data from a multi year effort at the Farallons, Point Reyes and Ano Nuevo off the coast of California.

Paper Highlights

"Hawaii is likely to be an important foraging area for white sharks. Extensive use of waters surrounding the Hawaiian island archipelago in winter and spring was evident from 13 satellite tag records (22% of tags with offshore tracks) and five acoustic tags (10% of 2006 and 2007 deployments) detected opportunistically by receivers stationed near the islands of Oahu and Hawaii (together comprising six males, six females and six unsexed individuals) (figure 1). The most precise geopositions and acoustic records from Hawaii included Argos endpoint transmissions (n = 8) with location errors of 150 m s.d. (Teo et al. 2004) and acoustic tags detected at fixed locations (n = 5). These occurred in slope and near shore waters along the entire 3000 km archipelago from the big island of Hawaii extending through the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument to Laysan Island and Midway Atoll (electronic supplementary material, figure S2). While this distribution includes areas with colonies of endangered monk seals (Baker et al. 2007), detailed dive records from four recovered satellite tags (three females and one unsexed; three separate years) indicated that the dominant behaviour, when not transiting (Weng et al. 2007), was a precise diel vertical migration, between the surface and 600 m, consistent with foraging within the deep scattering layer community (Shepard et al. 2006) (electronic supplementary material, figure S3)."

Read study here.

Hawaii Shark Diving - Meyer Study

Back in May we posted an update on the Carl Meyer study that looked into Hawaii shark tourism and habituation of sharks to chum.

The study concluded that existing commercial shark diving operations pose little risk to public safety.

This landmark study has come at a time when a virulent anti-shark diving effort has been pushing to have commercial shark diving banned in Hawaii's waters.

The relentless anti-shark diving campaign has culminated on the island of Maui, which has no commercial shark diving in its waters, proposing a bill to ban it.

There's still time to save two very good shark diving operations in Hawaii. Follow the media trail and make a few of your own. The major news media has grabbed on to the Meyer study (which makes for great reading) and have positively reported the conclusion.

The news of this study should be posted to every chat room, scubaboard, and social network site for divers as soon as possible. The anti-shark diving lobby plays one card and one card only - fear.

Without the fear of sharks commercial shark diving wins on the argument of sharks=tourism=economy.

Help Hawaii make the right decisions about the future of off shore (3 mile) shark diving.


Kohn2

Miami Herald

Honolulu Star

KITV ABC

Hawaii Shark Diving - Rep Gene Ward

Like a tuna's ability to attract sharks in waters seemingly devoid of them, a politician will also be attracted to "an issue" just as quickly. Rep Gene Ward of Hawaii has chosen his next big platform to be commercial shark diving and has opened his candidacy as the lead spokesman against the entire industry with an Op-Ed this week. His folksy approach to the industry is peppered with themes and sentiments taken from 1976.

Posing a series of innocent questions couched in a framework of "raw meat and fear" Mr.Ward has masterfully pushed the agenda forward and set the table for existing shark diving closures in Hawaii.

Rep Gene Ward is not the problem but a symptom of how our industry fails itself. Mr.Wards newly discovered public anti-shark diving persona was spawned at the sight of 300 angry residents, protesting a simply ludicrous commercial shark diving roll out in Hawaii Kai. The arrogance and outright stupidity of that single effort is the reason Mr.Ward has chosen to make the banning of all shark diving operations his "new cause".

As we have said before and to whoever will listen - commercial shark diving is under siege. As an industry in the western hemisphere there is not one well known commercial site that is currently not under new rules or under review by politicians and agencies.

This is the face of the anti-shark diving lobby - they are well spoken, well networked, and agenda driven. When will our industry get it's collective head out of it's ass and start working on solutions?

Tiger Sharks - "Wandering About Like Moses"

A four year study on the movement patterns of Tiger sharks in Hawaii has once again surprised the CW folks - opening a new and better understanding of these remarkable critters.

Shark researcher Carl Meyer, a biologist with the Hawai'i Institute for Marine Biology says these animals are not the territorial hunters once thought. Rather, these animals are pelagic wanderers often traveling great distances to find and ambush prey items. Kinda like those 40 lost years Moses spent wandering around the deserts. Except Moses never brought down a sickly Humpback whale calf. We digress.

Great study and better news coming out of Hawaii where local shark diving operators need data like this to bolster claims about chumming and animal behavior. Now if the folks over there can put this data together.

Hawaii - Chumming=Sharks=Attacks

As expected on a vote of 11-2, the Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board approved a resolution calling for a statewide ban on shark-feeding tour operations. This is the "opening salvo" of a long term battle for the right to dive commercially with sharks in Hawaii. Currently there are two existing operations who are under siege.

This battle will be won or lost in the mainstream media. Unfortunately the operators on island have been slow to realize this and have done little to change the current anti-shark diving media platform of:

Chumming=Sharks=Attacks

Where operators should focus is on the economic benefits of commercial shark diving on a statewide, regional, and local level. Following the shark diving tourism dollars as they flow through the worst economic downturn in 30 years is a media point that few politicians want to argue against. The pro-shark diving media platform of:

Shark Diving=Tourism=Economy

As with all media campaigns timing is everything and as the weeks drag into months and neighborhood groups band together gathering political and media steam - the likelihood of changing the media's focus becomes more and more distant.

The commercial shark diving industry saw this same anti-shark diving roll out in Florida from 1999-2001. Let's get to work.

Hawaii Shark Diving - An Angry Mob

With the news coming out of Hawaii for existing commercial shark diving operations sounding grim, the old adage "a good offence" is "good advice".

Still buzzing from a failed commercial roll out last month, islanders and the Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board will decide tonight on a resolution measure that will ask for the closure of all shark diving activities in Hawaii.

The same pitchforks and flaming torches anti-shark diving "resolutions" that forever closed commercial operations in Florida back in 2001. This is the most serious challenge to commercial shark diving seen in many years and operators need to move fast now to head off possible closures at the hands of those few who see commercial shark diving as negative. Chumming data from credible sources worldwide exists to counter many of the arguments, but this challenge will not be met in public meetings, the media will decide the fate of operations on these islands.

Food for thought - and a clarion cry for serious and lasting action:

The Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board will consider a resolution to support a
statewide ban on commercial shark tours during its meeting tonight.

The meeting begins at 7 at Hahaione Elementary School.

The resolution is in response to community opposition to a proposed shark
tour operation outside Maunalua Bay, and to questions raised about the
legality of existing shark tours on Oahu's North Shore.

State and federal laws currently prohibit feeding sharks within 200 miles of
shore.

More than 300 people attended a community meeting on the issue at Kamiloiki
Elementary on April 16. Opponents of shark tours said that sharks learn to
identify the sound of vessels that have chummed the water, that chumming
causes sharks to associate feeding with humans, and that sharks have been
observed to follow shark tour boats back toward shore.

The Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board resolution calls for "city and state
legislation to effectively ban commercial shark tours in Maunalua Bay and
throughout the state."

To close existing loopholes, the resolution also calls for legislation to:
"(1) prohibit use of public facilities such as parks, piers, ramps, and
harbors by shark tour operations; (2) prohibit advertising of commercial
shark tours in any print and electronic media; and, (3) prohibit commercial
use of shark cages or other devices designed to place humans in close
proximity to sharks or within shark habitats."

The public is invited to attend the meeting and offer testimony.

Complete Story

Hawaii Shark Diving Under Siege?

The most serious challenge to US based commercial shark diving since the Farallones final shark diving policy last month is now unfolding in Hawaii. An angry crowd gathered this week to shut down a commercial cage diving effort on the island of Oahu - opening a renewed and heated conversation about shutting down existing operations as well.

We have said it before and we'll say it again, commercial shark diving efforts must be guided by conservation efforts with a strong political game plan in the matrix. This recent commercial efforts failure was at the hands of poorly guided media output and a complete lack of local outreach and education efforts.

You fail to properly roll out a commercial shark diving company at your own peril.

Just how the owner of this new company ever manged to find himself in a room full of angry locals with the major media on site is a testament to poor planning and execution. Unfortunately the rusted can of anti-shark diving sentiment opened by this effort is effecting all operations in the region. We'll be following this closely:

Like blood in the water an angry crowd of about 200 people converged on a town hall meeting about shark tours.

The shark tour owner told them the business is done. Koko Marina already pulled his boat slip because of the controversy. At issue is the proposed shark tours and feeding them to bring them closer to spectators in cages. Iolani Lewis is the man with the plan. Its tough to say what's more intimidating, swimming with the sharks or facing a crowded cafeteria full of people looking to run him out of town.

"You have immense nerve coming in here telling us how to enjoy the ocean," scolded one unidentified man to Lewis.

Complete Story/Video

Cookie Cutter Shark Attack!

One of the strangest man vs shark encounters took place on a recent moonless night in the Alenuihaha Channel, Hawaii.

Swimmer Mike Spalding was attacked by this unlikely shark, known for taking "quarter sized bites" from it's victims and ending his long distance swim attempt.

This critter is known as the Cookie Cutter Shark and no this blog post is not an Underwater Onion.

As a shark diving operators we see many Elephant Seals at Isla Guadalupe with round bites all over them - but as far as we know humans are rarely ever on the menu.

Kudos to shark attack blog (yes one exists) Swim at Your Own Risk for the in depth coverage.