The shark diving industry blog covering sharks, shark cage diving, shark conservation and things we find "amusing" since 2008 www.sharkdiver.com, www.sharkdivers.com, www.divingwithsharks.com
One of our blog fans sent us this link and video from a company in South Africa called Blue Wilderness . We told you about these guys last week. Here's the quote from their travel blog:
"Blue Wilderness does something a little different. They let you actually scuba dive with the sharks. That means no cage. No protection. No sh*t. Tiger sharks are what they’re looking for here. They’re big. 8-10 meters and they have stripes like, you guessed it, a tiger. More abundant are Black Tips which are much smaller, and have black tips on their fins. There’s also Whale Sharks, which are as big as a…you get the picture."
O.K so not the most eloquent description of a shark diving company, but heartfelt. The crew here at Shark Diver were impressed with the Washing Machine Drum Chum Machine, now that's cool...and so is this video:
The Earth is mostly covered by oceans, we're a blue planet.
For a shark diving company with a cool blog this pretty much gives us an unlimited supply of items to cover, like, for example this latest weird news coming out of NOAA.
NOAA has a series of deepwater microphones listening for any underwater sounds they can hear. These listening stations have recently heard "strange noises" in our oceans.
But don't take our word for it, click this link and have a listen yourself. We're not even going to try a speculate what this sound might be...O.K, maybe aliens?
While we're on the subject of Crazy Invasive Fish Species (CIFS) and what to do about them, we would be amiss if we didn't introduce you to the Asian Carp.
Now you might be asking yourself as we did, what's up with all these Asian Invasion Fish?
We have no idea.
Anyway, this carp, (from Asia) is also known as the Flying Carp and basically it has completely taken over half of America. Really.
Now here's where it gets interesting. Unlike our friends in the U.K who are all but crying over the Giant Snakehead invasion, and don't get us wrong, that's pretty scary. On this side of the pond, good old American know how, fueled no doubt by Coors Light, has come up with a novel way to deal with the problem, and yes, it has something to do with weapons.
Let us introduce you to the American answer to Invasive Species:
Pulled off the Internet and on to your desktop this morning...and we're not making this up.
What you are looking at is a nasty little invasive species of predatory fish from Asia called the Giant Snakehead.
The problem with this critter is what it eats, pretty much everything in sight. Naturally the good fisherfolks in the U.K do not want this fish in their waters and were dismayed when someone caught about a two feet long specimen last week.
Here's where it gets interesting:
"Giant Snakeheads caused chaos to indigenous fish and the environment when they were found living in rivers and lakes in the U.S. in 2002. Snipers with high-powered rifles even set up watch to shoot the fish as they crawled ashore and entire lakes were poisoned to get rid of them."
God bless America, take heed U.K people, we have plenty of high powered red necks with guns willing to come to your country, drink beer, and shoot fish off your banks...just give us the word!
When you have a shark diving company like ours you get hit with media requests almost daily.
Recently we just completed a three part article for a German Magazine due out in April. The trick with working with the media is credibility. Never do anything that makes you, the sharks, or your operation look like an idiot. This is just Media 101.
That's a trick here is most media sources come to you with a basic Discovery Channel understanding of how sharks work. It's our job to introduce them to an expanded view of things.
In all media is fun to work with and we have been blessed to work with some of the greats over the years producing what amounts to a massive amount of positive press for both us and the sites we operate in.
After all, we're on the front lines of not only shark research, as is the case of our Isla Guadalupe site, but if we say so ourselves, we run a pretty cool little operation as well.
In a quick reaction to unprecedented pressure from groups world wide South African authorities raided the home and then charged a man today for the killings of 8 Tiger sharks.
Aliwal Shoal Marine Protected Area on the KwaZulu-Natal south coast was the site of the recent shark slaughter, witnessed by shark eco tour operations and surfers.
"Conservationists are furious not only because is it illegal to catch tiger sharks in the protected area, but Aliwal Shoal is one of the top dive sites in the world."
As we commented in our blog on this subject a week ago, Marine Protected Areas are the key stone to protecting sharks. As unofficial site guardians, shark diving companies are often the first to report misdeeds at the hands of those who would harm sharks for either sport or profit.
The staff of Shark Diver remain committed to ongoing reporting of these important stories. With sharks being slaughtered by the millions each year and populations falling worldwide it might well be these few protected areas that save entire species in the years to come...if we can protect the sharks in them.
We tracked down famed underwater shooter and Editor at Large Ethan Gordon (hat tip image) to get his take on underwater photography and the future of his industry:
1. UW photography has changed from film to digital and with it an entire industry, your take?
Digital photography has definitely "upped" the game. Now amateurs can accomplish what only the pros could do before. However, this also works to the advantage of the pros - we can now do things we never thought possible before. I think it has also been great for diving in general - there are now lots of divers who are enthralled by their point and shoot digital camera results - this keeps them diving. Remember the days when people used to travel with a bag full of film, only to return home to find out they had their camera set wrong all week?
2. As harder dive sites and rarer animals are recorded at a seemingly record pace, are we running out of new things to shoot?
It's getting harder to find new things to shoot, but we'll probably never run out of those. On the other hand, this might be a good time to take a new look at sites and creatures we've taken for granted.
3. Innovation vs status quo, what's your take on the new generation of UW shooters?
I think there is a new, very talented generation of UW shooters out there. They're tech savvy, creative and hungry to shoot.
4. Latest promising tech for shooters, do you have a favorite?
The new generation of digital TTL systems will revolutionize UW photography once again. Gone will be the days of having to think about your aperture and distance to subject. The electronics are almost there... maybe they've already arrived.
5.Crystal ball time-what's the future of UW photography and magazines that serve these images?
A sad reality hit me recently when I was presenting a slide show to a local Audubon chapter. I was showing slides of sharks and talking about the woes of shark finning. I was shocked when I realized that almost no one in the room had ever heard of this atrocity. The group was largely made up of non-divers, but I falsely assumed that this was a known problem.
The underwater photography out there in magazines today is the best ever. But, if we want to see it continue... the underwater environment continue to be spectacular, then everyone that subscribes to a dive magazine has to convince their friends (non-divers) to start to take an interest too - before it's too late. And, every diver that doesn't support the mission of these magazines by subscribing, well, shame on them.
You gotta hand it to the TOPP's people (Tagging of Pacific Predators). They recently announced new findings from over 100 high tech sat tags placed on white sharks all over the Pacific in 2006. This last year was one of the most ambitious tagging projects on record:
"Every winter the sharks leave California's coast for one of two destinations. A minority of sharks head to the Hawaiian Island chain. The majority, however, congregate in a part of the open ocean halfway from California and Hawaii, 1,300 miles from land. Researchers have yet to uncover what attracts the shark to this particular spot. During these journey the sharks will occasionally dive up to a quarter-mile beneath the surface and stay at this depth, where light barely penetrates, for hours. On returning to California, the sharks display remarkable site-fidelity, always heading to the same area of coast they left before. “These animals appear again and again at very specific areas,” Salvador Jorgensen says, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station and the Monterey Bay Aquarium". Isla Guadalupe island located in Mexico plays into this ongoing migration drama every year with animals returning every season after visiting the same sites as their California cousins. Making the Pacific a very small body of water after all.
Thomas Peschak, photographer and shark eco friend sent us an update on the Tiger killings at Aliwal Shoal today. Turns out the dead animal count is rising every day, we're now at 8 dead animals.
"Less than 2 weeks after returning from a trip to photograph my favorite tiger sharks at the Aliwal Shoal Marine Protected Area off South Africa's east coast for a Africa Geographic magazine feature, my friend Mark Addison of Blue Wilderness Dive Expeditions called me with some devastating news.
A few days ago a young fishermen who should know better caught and killed three tiger sharks within the MPA and landed them openly in broad daylight. Tiger sharks are a protected species within the Aliwal MPA as they are the main attraction for thousands of tourists who come from across the world to dive the shoal and see these sharks. One dead tiger shark might fetch a once off payment of no more than $50-100 dollars for the fisherman, but alive that same shark might be worth in excess of $10 000 every year in marine eco-tourism.
Further investigations revealed the sobering news that a further five tiger sharks were killed the week before. Shark diving tourism at Aliwal shoal is one way to sustainably utilize our ocean resources in a non-consumptive manner and in the process create much needed employment for hundreds of people in the tourism and hospitality industry along this section of South Africa's coast. As this recent incident has demonstrated marine law enforcement at the Aliwal Shoal MPA is practically non-existant at present and poachers are able to operate with impunity from arrest or prosecution. If the sharks of Aliwal shoal are to remain a model of non-consumptive utilization of South Africa's marine wildlife heritage then the government, NGO's and tourism operators must combine forces and act quickly to stamp out these reckless, selfish and destructive acts that could destroy one of the world's true last shark paradises in just a matter of months."
India, the planets fastest growing population and economy has reached a crises point with rampant, unregulated shark finning off it's shores.
As reported by the Daily Star "At least 50 shark processing centres have sprung up along the South Western Coast, employing over 2000 fishermen".
Once again sharks are being harvested for the ballooning fin marketand the home cure market which more often than not is driven by hear-say and bogus science. Anyone remember the anti-cancer shark pill craze of the 80's-90's?
We are officially declaring India's cage diving industry DOA. If the global shark slaughter is not halted soon, by 2040 even finding sharks in any ocean will be a rare event. The only way to stop this slaughter is to show local populations another use for these magnificent animals and eco-tourism, so far, seems to be a leading contender.
The Pentagon announced today that it will be trying to shoot down a "highly toxic" dying U.S. spy satellite somewhere into the ocean on March 5th, 2008.
They are worried that this bird will impact an area where humans live-due to the onboard cargo of Hydrazine.
"Hydrazine is highly toxic and dangerously unstable, especially in the anhydrous form. Symptoms of acute exposure to high levels of hydrazine in humans may include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, dizziness, headache, nausea, pulmonary edema, seizures, coma, and it can also damage the liver, kidneys, and central nervous system. The liquid is corrosive and may produce dermatitis from skin contact in humans and animals. Effects to the lungs, liver, spleen, and thyroid have been reported in animals chronically exposed to hydrazine via inhalation. Increased incidences of lung, nasal cavity, and liver tumors have been observed in rodents exposed to hydrazine."
And that's just what WIKI says about this stuff. Obviously the folks in the Pentagon will not mention all the other super secret and potentially damaging chemicals on board for fear of mass panic on the land side of things. In fact they are even declining to mention what kind of bird this really is...which leaves us wondering along with about 7000 blogs nationwide, is this a Nuke Bird?
This has nothing to to with shark diving, so please excuse the break in format. It does have almost naked women in it. If you happen to be a Bikini Loving Politico read on.
With the GOP side pretty much wrapped up (Mc Cain) we look towards the Dems and the heated contest between Obama and Hillary.
Pretty much anywhere you go in L.A, New York, San Francisco, Florida and yes even Texas, you'll spot an "OCG".
Simply put, Hillary does not enjoy this kind of hot support. She's completely lacking the kind of bounce that Obama seems to attract. She cannot get the heft, the lift, the milkshakes, the...
O.K, enough of the grade school shots. Seriously speaking, this guys the real deal and it looks like he's going all the way. Look out America, in November it's going to be a show down between the 74 year old Mc Cain and the 44 year old Obama...should be an interesting November.
Now onto the video that launched 600,000,000 views on You Tube and swung our vote:
Or not. Turns out this is the week for the roll out of all manner of new underwater gadgets and gizmondo's designed to prove to the entire world two things:
1. That you Mr.Consumer have way too much money 2. That you Mr. Consumer will spend it an anything
Available at your local dive stores in and around 2015. This underwater electric car will take you anywhere in style. Estimated sticker price...$400,000.
Want to go white shark diving? Tiger diving? Whale sharks anyone?
O.K, so the concept is cool. But like we like to say with commercial shark diving operations...just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should.
Think we'll pass on this in favor of a ratty old BCD and dive computer that beeps too much, add a 50 square foot shark cage to that with a huge shark on the other side...now you got something!
Question: How can you tell the difference between an eco minded shark diving company and one that's perhaps...a bit lacking?
Answer: In today's website world anyone can make claims like "100% safety record", the fact is the consumer needs to digg a lot more than they do to discover the truth. Not all companies out there will admit serious and ongoing operational problems...even if it's the right thing to do.
In the case of these unrepentant yabbo's anyone with half a brain can see this is probably not the best of vacation ideas. Not only do you get a dorky looking pirate hat in Jamaica to go wrestle sharks, but chances are you'll be drunk in the process:
"See Pirates of the shark's cove and the rambunctious and hilarious Shark Show!" D'arrrr!
We'll say it again for anyone who cares to listen. "Sharks are magnificent animals, isn't it enough to just get to see them in their natural habitat?
This has nothing to do with the Muffin Man-sorry Richard. This has everything to do with another strange "Fish Rain" story reported in the small town of Guruvayur in India (where else).
We know some of you reading this will scream, Underwater Onion! and go back to your spread sheets, but wait, there's more:
"Late home-goers painter Babu and his friends felt something falling on their body along with raindrops while they were standing near the bus stop at Kandanassery. On a closer inspection, they found many two to two-and-a-half inch long fish writhing in the ground and road in the area."
Now if we were the painter "Babu", we'd be thinking "End of the world baby, George Bush was right!"
Four months ago the crew and divers of Shark Diver were treated to a rare and spectacular feeding event at our Isla Guadalupe white shark site. In this video-shot in part by CICIMAR shark researcher Mauricio Hoyos-a 15 foot Great White is ripping apart a 700lb elephant seal.
We wrapped the video up and stuck it on You Tube with Luke Tipple our dive operations manager as the front man. Much to our surprise this video just hit 500,000 views this morning. This kind of shark attack is a rare event at this site:
George Burgess, the world's top shark attack guy has described his latest shark attack data sets as ""spectacular".
He's been gushing to the media the fact that there had only been one fatality in 2007 resulting from a shark attack worldwide.
""The danger of a shark attack stays in the forefront of our psyches because of it being drilled into our brain for the last 30 years by the popular media, movies, books and television, but in reality the chances of dying from one are infinitesimal," Mr Burgess added."
The crew here at Shark Diver could not agree more with George.
This is pretty much the dumbest idea to come down the pike since the invention of the UW Pager For Business Travelers.
Once again some science/business guy has come up with a way to get non divers down to an incredible 60 feet without knowing the first thing about scuba.
"This year the company will build 100 Scuba Scooter units from fibreglass moulds for a chain of international resorts in Malaysia and by next Christmas it's hoped a million of the units will be out for sale".
Shark Diver will soon be marketing the all new "HUD-view mask" guaranteed to warn you when a Scuba Scooter, driven by a Narc'd Malaysian, is weaving its way towards you.
We caught up with Shark Diver Derek Heasley owner of the online underwater image site Sea Pixels. When he's not shooting some of the closest shark shots on the planet he's usually to be found in Ireland. He just stepped off a 14 day adventure in Socorros with the Nautilus Explorer. 1. What draws you to sharks?
They are shaped beautifully. Just look at the curves on them. They are streamlined for perfect hunting. I get a huge thrill taking images of this shape in motion. From a tiger sharks snout to a basking sharksmouth. There is a lot to see.
2. How hard is it to shoot sharks vs say, blennys?
Blennys are beautiful also.They generally stay in their own area and pop their little heads out to see whats going on. Always a close background in the image. Sharks are always on the prowl and open water is where their at. Blennys tend to be easier by their nature. Stay still and a 105mm macro lens, your sure to get a good image. With sharks its a different ball-game. I mostly stay still when the sharks are around and use either 10-22mm or 18-55mm lens. If your shooting upwards, watch out for your air bubbles in the frame.
3. Favourite shark story?
Coordinating a photo shoot with a great white and a diver. We noticed the great white sharks were coming up to try catch the bait on the surface. We were cage diving at Guadalupe with Shark Diver. But myself and Colin Ball from England arranged that when I give him the thumbs up sign, that he was to face me and put his two thumbs up while I captured the great white which was right behind him...We couldn't have planned it any more precise. I couldn't have laughed anymore while taking the images:)
4. Your take on shark finning and what to do about it?
Its like somebody coming up to you and cutting your arms and legs off.Then walking away.I think there must be a huge demand for these fins. You and I know that if you eat shark fins its no more going to cure you and make you healthy than it is if you drink pints of Guinness...If there was a pro active government agency in country's where shark finning takes place. A simple education system that categorically list benefits of NOT finning. So education is key.
5. Where's your next dive adventure?
Well, I live in Ireland, so there is plenty of good diving here. Abroad, I think the Coco Islands for the Hammerheads.
You had to know this was coming. For all you desk bound scuba fans who would rather be out in the deep blue playing with all manner of big toothy sea critters, here is the ultimate Lava Lamp.
At $169 it gets you where you want to be...at least for 15 minutes. While the promotional video below will put you to sleep, we still think this is pretty cool, and hey, it's a hit in Japan!
If you happen to live in Minneapolis, first of all, our condolences to you. Second thing we wanted to say was, "Stay out of Minnehaha Creek, it's teeeming with Bull Sharks!"
No kidding, and you can file this one under WTF!?. According to this article we found on the Internet (and you have to believe everything you read on the Internet) there's something really sharky about this spring fed creek.
"After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, a report by Gulf marine scientists had warned that the enormous amount of pollution back-flushed into the Gulf of Mexico would cause many species of marine animals to either relocate or perish."
So a team of divers goes down and discovers this female Bull Shark under the ice, and still alive.
This, hands down, wins the "bizzare shark story of the week"...of course this could also be a very amusing Underwater Onion-MinnehahaCreek?
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?
Karl Stanley, owner of the private deepwater submarine in Honduras sent us a link to a new reality movie he's just completed. We have a feeling it's going to be a very popular movie. Before you watch this let us explain Karl to you.
He can be summed up in three words:
1. Genius 2. Real 3. Adventurer
In the end this is what life is all about. One man, one submarine, and a whole undersea world that no one has ever seen before. Think of him as the Columbus of his time...with a crazy sense of humor:
Who didn't like Roy Scheider, the geeky tough guy town sheriff from Jaws?
In a movie that had more eco-blow back for sharks than any single movie on the planet, his was a legacy that no one could have imagined.
From the LA Times: He probably will be best remembered for his role as Martin Brody, the water-shy police chief in "Jaws" (1975) who uttered the immortal line: "You're gonna need a bigger boat," after seeing the size of the shark. He once lamented that the role "will be on my tombstone.
To his tribute, and as a reminder of how far we have come in the understanding of Great Whites here is that fateful scene from 1975 that sent us and 25 million others out of their pools, lakes, ponds and oceans for an entire summer:
Suffering from one of it's worst budget shortfalls in years, Florida has come up with a novel way to recoup falling tax revenues from crumbling home sales.
"State regulators offered a voice of support this week to West Florida's boutique shark (fishing) industry, which has all but shut down after federal scientists declared several key species dangerously overfished."
"St. Petersburg attorney G. Michael Mastry, who represents the shark (fishing) industry, estimated that about 75 fishermen and a dozen seafood processors would split up about $6-million to $8-million if the request is granted."
So once again sharks are going to the front lines of the continuing eco-slaughter. This time for the sake of 25% of the projected revenues going back into state coffers. As an eco tour company that champions all sharks we would just like to point out one thing:
Florida is the same state that banned sustainable shark diving eco tours off it's shores. To be replaced,not 4 years later, with state sponsored shark killing...all for 25%.
The Bible, that dusty old tome from times past has a lot to say about Virgin Births.
The Koran, an equally dusty old tome from times past has a lot to say about Virgin Births as well.
We're curious, what would the Bible and the Koran say about the latest virgin shark birth?
"Imprisoned in a tank hundreds of miles from a mate, Ibolya the female shark resorted to desperate measures. To the astonishment of her keepers, she spontaneously produced a perfectly healthy pup.The virgin birth is making biologists think again about one of the oldest and - in evolutionary terms - most successful creatures."
With the eco-wolves of both Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd out of the Southern Ocean, Japan has begun its "Scientific" whale slaughter in earnest this week.
"Exhausted and disoriented after a ruthless pursuit from high speed chaser ships, the whales caught on film this week were then shot with pointed harpoons, packed with explosives, to cause maximum damage".
Without any anti-whaling groups in the area to keep Japans fleet on the run-images like these featuring a mother Minkeand her calf will continue to surface.
As an eco minded shark diving company we would like to point out that these whales are being harvested as premium food source. It's just plain wrong anyway you slice it.
According to Ze German News, a 500 kilo (small) great white shark jumped into a tourist boat in South Africa (where else) and the whole thing was caught on tape. Three things come to mind when you watch this video:
1. German newscasters are hot 2. These tourists all look like they are ready to come home 3. Where's the crew?
If this had been our crew they would have grabbed the shark, tossed it back in, and then jumped in with the shark...hey, it's a living:
It's not all fun and games when you're a Shark Diver.
Case in point this slightly disgusting video from 2004.
Let us "set the scene". It's late November and we have three big white sharks swinging at the hang baits at the back deck- complete with two jam packed dive cages full of otherwise excited divers....that's when all hell broke loose.
Suddenly, this large 15 foot male lets loose an incredible stream of shark excrement out his tail end. Up until that exact point in time no one in the history of shark diving had ever filmed a white shark doing something like this.
Anyway, the story ending is the best part. Diver Jason Sullivan who shot the whole thing stays in the cage as the current moves this yellow "ort-cloud" of poo all over the guy. He comes up to the surface with with worlds biggest grin and says this "Dude, a white shark just crapped all over me, and I got it on film...cool", he then proceeds to get back in the cage and does not come out for the rest of the day:
O.K, you're probably wondering why in Neptunes Great Sea we would ever feature a T-shirt company here at Underwater Thrills: Diving With Sharks.
They're cool, we said it first. If you're not sporting a Dive Ninja T after your next shark encounter you ain't no kind of diver. And do not let the the £20 price tag sway you from owning a piece of dive history.
When you do buy one, and you will, tell 'em, Shark Diver sent you.
It's February, 2008. For divers who absolutely need to see sharks this time of year the big question is where to go in February?
Fortunately for you, Shark Diver, there's a small island chain in Mexico (where else) called the Revillagigedos-(just try saying this name correctly, we dare you)that is stuffed with more Shark, Ray, and Manta encounters than you can shake a regulator at. The crew of the long range expedition dive vessel Nautilus Explorer can take you there.
Dubai (CMN)- As conspiracy theories build over the sudden and "mysterious"disconnect of 5 intercontinental data cables connecting large areas of Asia, the Middle East and North Africa. A small team of specialized "cable divers" went down to investigate the reason for the sudden destruction.
What they discovered this week has shocked the world and answered the nagging question "Where did 5 Billion Dollars earmarked for Iraq's reconstruction go?".
Dive team leader John Magor from Dubai Salvage and Tow came right to the point, "We discovered an entire underwater city, complete with working tram lines (click image) that had inadvertently cut these cables when they ran over them". "This city is brand new, with hundreds buildings...even a Starbucks!".
The US State Department put out the following press release this afternoon, " Yes, dammit, we did build an entire city for 800,000 underwater. Everything we built above water in Iraq was being blown up, so we thought this was a good use of the Taxpayers money".
You gotta hand it to the kayak guy in this next video. Not sure if we would have the right "metal state" to wave to the crowd after getting smashed and rolled by 4 tons of frisky whale. Then again this could just be a Korean commercial with great CGI:
Score one for for the science guys this week. A video surfaced of one of our all time favorite underwater "denzines of the deep" the Six Gill Shark.
What makes this critter interesting is it's ability to flourish in water temps hovering in the 40's and less, and at a depth of over 5000'. This one was filmed at 3300' and with his 18 foot profile we were not surprised to hear the normally laid back deep water guys saying "Holy Crap!".
The fine, but concerned, beach-goers of Norfolk have discovered another dead Cetation (whale) off their shores this week.
Prompting calls from the media of a Great White shark off their beaches-locals are in a disagreement of exactly what left this rather sizeable chunk missing from this animals head.
From this image it's hard to tell what actually made this bite. Here's three things it was not:
The crew here at Shark Diver have seen a few attacks over the years and Great Whites tend to either decapitate, or sever the ability of their prey to move with a huge strike to the tail section.
This does look like the work of a Killer Whale, which not surprisingly is found more commonly in the waters off of Norfolk this time of year...of course you're entitled to disagree.
Over the years we have had many memorable moments at our Isla Guadalupe dive site.
When you are fortunate enough to have had as many years of Great White shark encounters as we have had-things just have a way of happening.
Take Sterling Wilson and crew here. They joined us from Texas (the cool part) and like so many divers were hoping to just "see a great white shark".
By day two of their dive adventure our crew had personally introduced them to well over 20 different animals and they were beginning to run out of film. That's when they said they wanted to get a group picture.
All four intrepid divers decided to siton top of the shark cages with Cuban Cigars to get this memorable shot. It was the last dive of the day, and the sharks had disappeared for an hour-"Let's go!".
It's moments like these that make a shark diving adventure. Good friends, great sharkin', and a Cubano. Does it get any better?
Nicole Teutschel is with the TOPP's team at Ano Nuevo Island just a few short miles down the coast from the Bay Area in Northern California.
The site of an abundant Elephant Seal colony, she and her team have been tagging these simply huge pinnipeds with long range sat tags in the hopes of learning more about these amazing critters.
Oh, and Ano Nuevo is also home to more Great White sharks per square inch than almost any other site on the planet as well.
If you have some time to rip through some cool tracking data today have a look at the latest in Hard Science.
We're pretty sure these 2000lb seals just don't roll over to get sat tags placed on them:
What can we say about Marine biologist Tierney Thys?
One of the leading researchers of her time and one of the most engaging presenters of the 2003 Monterey Bay TED gathering.
Thys and her team are tagging and tracking Mola-Mola worldwide to learn about how they live, and how climate change may be affecting all ocean life. She's also director of research at the Sea Studios Foundation, producing targeted eco videos that influence policymakers and businesspeople. Sea Studios was also instrumental in helping eBay stop the trading of invasive species:
We love John West Tuna commercials. O.k, so the actual tuna is pretty basic, comes in a can, and tastes like...tuna.
But their commercials continue to set the bar for shark cool. First we had the guy inside the Mako, then the crazy Alaskan Bear. Here's the latest installment with a focus on what else? South Africa's-Flying Sharks.
In case you were wondering, there's really no tuna in the world that will make Great Whites sit up and act like this. If there was-the crew here at Shark Diver would have bought into this company a looong time ago!
Shark-Based Emollients Being Removed from Skincare Products- That's the great news coming from one of the worlds top skin care companies this week.
Turns out for the past 30 years or so many of these companies have been quietly harvesting millions of shark livers for the raw productSqualene.
This gooey shark moisturizer penetrates the skin quickly, making perfect for womens skin care products. Unfortunately, once the women of the world found out they were rubbing dead sharks on their bodies a mini riot broke out. L’Oreal announced this week that it is moving towards getting this ingredient from plants in an effort to help save the ecosystem and save some deep sea sharks whose existence is threatened. Squalene can be found in olives and wheat germ.
Score one for the good guys, the corporate world just saved 10 million sharks from the chopping block.
Now, if we could only get Alibaba.com to understand this.
You know, we spend a fair amount of time here reviewing our dive industry and roaming through the various websites out there.
Most often we come across dive companies that are at the forefront of web tech. Their stunning underwater imagery compels you to click through page after page-while their online content weaves fantastic and "vivid" tales of dazzling dive sites and excitement that you just have to experience...and then tell your friends about.
Baja California, January, 2008 – Isla Guadalupe, Mexico has become the internationally recognized destination for divers seeking unprecedented encounters with Great White sharks (Carcharodon carcharias.) The 90 square mile island located in the Pacific is also home to many rare endemic species of animals and plants.
In 2005 Mexico declared the island a Bio-Sphere Reserve under the watchful eye of CONANP the Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas.
As is the case with many watch dog and eco enforcement organizations world wide, long term funding for actual on site protections of this resource and the Great Whites that seasonally inhabit these pristine waters do not exist at this time.
Globally, shark aggregation sites like Isla Guadalupe have been decimated in the past few years by poaching, over fishing, and an uncontrolled trade in shark fins that takes an estimated 70 million sharks a year.Recently a concerned group of shark diving operators, vessel owners and researchers stepped in to create and launch the Guadalupe Fund 501(c)3.
Its stated goal is to move much needed cash and donated equipment into the Bio-Sphere for park staff and continued funding for long term white shark science/monitoring.
Nicole Nasby Lucas from the Marine Conservation Science Institute has been involved in ongoing white shark tagging and photo identification research at this site for the past six years. "Our tagging and photo-ID research have shown that the Guadalupe Island white sharks aggregate here in large numbers during the fall and winter, leave the island and travel as far as Hawaii and then come back to the same spot. This makes Guadalupe Island a critical habitat for the white shark in this region and demonstrates the importance of protecting the island and its sharks”.
The Guadalupe Fund is being managed by Marinebio.org with assistance from shark diving operator SharkDiver.Com and hopes to generate a minimum of $100,000 a year from concerned divers and shark lover’s world wide. All donations to this fund are tax deductible and gifts ranging from free trips to the island and the opportunity to name a Great White shark after donors exist for interested parties:
China Daily, Shengzuo--As The Peoples Republic of China prepares to host the 2008 Olympics,China's Demonstration Sports Committee invited the International press corps to preview it's latest team sport-"Competitive Speed Whale Shark".
With it's early roots in logging this latest demonstration sport will be included in this years 2008 Olympic Games to promote the local sport and to gauge interest and support.
Speed, accuracy and safety are hallmarks of these three day medal events that include the complete disassembly of 60 foot Whale Sharks by sweaty teams of "Sawyers".
"It is our hope the world will adopt this sport for future Olympic Games before we run out of sharks" said Liu bo Xiang, Team Captain Alibaba.com, recent medalist, and three time "Sawyer Champion".
The following Underwater Onion was brought to you by Shark Diver.
Seriously, the Olympics would be a great place to highlight the fact that 80% of the worlds 100 million shark fins go to China.
Update: Since this blog post the publisher of Fathoms Magazine "took over" the magazine and killed it leaving behind many unfulfilled subscribers.
Cancel your Nat Geo membership...lock your kids and your wife in the car, and get ready to have your entire underwater world rocked.
This is Fathoms Magazine and they are on a mission to change the way you look at underwater images and dive adventures...forever.
We just got our latest installment this week. This underwater mag's hallmarks are big juicy images paired with great writing. Under the guidance of Ethan Gordon (editor) Fathoms has blossomed into the leading underwater magazine of our time.
Oh, and he's one of the industries nicest guys as well. Enjoy!
In a world filled with "broken promises" it's nice to know you can absolutely rely on some things.
Case in point Shark Diver shark cages. Used on more private yachts worldwide than any other shark cages, in fact, we're pretty sure we're the only company on the planet who furnishes shark cages on an industrial scale.
To date none of the shark cages provided by Shark Diver have failed the test of weather, water, or sharks.
Ever.
After all, our cages are designed to tackle 16 foot-2300 pound Great Whites in every condition imaginable. Keeping divers safe, while providing them with comfort, and thrills, since 2002.
If you were curious about "other" shark cages, let us introduce you to the competition at Isla Guadalupe, Mexico.
They maintain the following claim on their website:
"Our cages have set the industry standard for excellence. Our design and application is the envy of all other operators ".
Here's the video from their operation in 2007 to prove that claim:
Mexican shark researcher Mauricio Hoyos is in the eco news-this time with the internationally recognized Adopt a Shark Program.
Adopt a Shark is a unique way for the public to support shark andray conservation primarily in Mexico, but they are branching out worldwide.
You literally Adopt a Shark that get's tagged and tracked. Your donation pays for the tracking tags-and for guys like Mauricio to stay in the field for months on end.
Research dollars for shark conservation are at all time lows in Mexico. We would know. Without serious researchers like Mauricio with the backing of CICIMAR and U.C Davis the future of shark conservation in Mexico is pretty bleak. To enact any rules and regulations protecting wild animals-all governments demand solid research data.
Here's the recorded shark catchjust in the Sea of Cortez:
1994-10,000 sharks 2004-300,000 sharks (Asian Fin Market)
Adopt a Shark today, it really is a race against time:
As you know we have been following the 2008 Southern Sea whale hunt this year with keen interest.
First there was the Sea Shepherd vs Greenpeacewar of words. The "who was more green" eco-ocean smackdown.
Then, three weeks ago, we covered the ongoing Sea Shepherdstink bomb throwing hippie hostage standoff with the Nisshin Maru.
We also covered Yokozuna Asashoryu, Tokyo's top Sumo wrestler's open wrestling challenge to Sea Shepherds captain-Paul Watson. Man, what a season!
And now, after two full months of chasing the bad guys and world attention, sadly, Greenpeace is withdrawing their vessel from the hunt due to lack of fuel.
This leaves the anti-whaling eco ball squarely in the "Jesters Court" with Sea Shepherd and their somewhat crazed crew of die hards. If we were betting folks (and we are) this is how we think the 2008 Southern Seas whale hunt is going to end:
1. Japan will start killing whales again 2. Watson's Vessel "Steve Irwin" will ram and sink the Nisshin Maru 3. Huge media frenzy
As we gear up for another month in the Bahamas to go play with Tigers this year-we just can't help pointing out other dive sites for your review.
A lot of shark divers think that you have to "go with the pro's" and that's just not the case. For example, this video was sent in to us today by Jillian and Tom. Apparently, this is Kuramathi Island in the Maldives- and from the looks of things we'll be diving here soon.
Not all sharks will allow divers to just jump in with them, but if this was us, at this site, we would be in there with those critters faster than Jimmie Johnson at NASCAR.
Grab a tank, snorkle, mask, and get in the water. The shark diving is fine:
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:
Oct. 1-5 2007: Great White Shark Diving with Shark Diver.com
Let me start off by saying that this is the third trip I have taken with Shark Diver.com to Isla Guadalupe. My first trip in Oct. of 2005 was so amazing that I immediately started counting down the days until I could return again and signed up for the following year. My Oct. 2006 trip was even better and, once again, I signed up for another tour at Guadalupe. I thought I knew what to expect this third time around and was even worried that I might not have as good of a time going back again. I was WRONG!!!
The first difference on this trip was plan for departure. Due to the new passports requirements, instead of boarding the boat in San Diego, we took a bus down to Ensenada and boarded the boat there. The bus ride went by pretty quickly as I took the time to get to know some of the people I would be sharing small spaces with for the next week. We also had a little sight-seeing along the way including a great view of one of the largest's tuna fisheries around.
Once all the gear was loaded and we were assigned our cabins, the boat headed out for the long ride across the Pacific. I had my first inclination that this trip might be a little special when we had the pleasure of cruising with a huge pod of pilot whales. I had only seen one in the wild before and there must have been 50 in this pod. They actually swam with us for a while and seemed to be playing with the wake of the boat.
After a nice day of getting to know my shipmates and watching the pilot whales, we sat down to our first dinner on board. The meal was the equivalent of anything served at some of the finer restaurants in the Bay area – a far cry from the greasy burgers one might expect to eat on a typical fishing vessel. With a fantastic meal and some red wine performing an elegant dance in my belly, I descended down into my bunk to let the boat gently rock me into my oceanic slumber.
The next morning, we arrived at the island, anchored and the crews immediately began to prepare for three days of diving. The first shark showed up before the cages were even completely setup - yet another sign that we could be in for an unbelievable week!
There are two cages that comfortably hold four divers each so there are hourly rotations with eight divers. With only 16 divers max, that means you are in the cage for an hour and topside for the next hour all day - plenty of dive time for everyone! I ended up in the second rotation which gave me time to get my camera gear setup and let my breakfast settle a bit. That was the start of three solid days of non-stop action and excitement!
There were sharks on every single rotation and when I say sharks plural, I mean it! There were multiple sharks each time and several times, I counted five different sharks circling the cage during one rotation. Sometimes they took turns coming up for a close look at us in the cages. Other times they ambushed us in pairs. The "slow" times were when sharks just circled the cages below - still in sight, but not close enough to see the pupils of their eyes!
As if multiple Great Whites on the cage at a time wasn't enough, the next thing that happened caused my jaw to drop to the bottom of the cage. I was watching one large female (named Chica) slowly cruising around with an entourage of three smaller males following her around. They were swimming faster, circling each other, facing off, darting up to the cages and then back down to follow her again. That is when the unexpected happened. One of the young males abruptly turned his head up, got completely vertical and then put on the speed - straight up and OUT - he just DISAPPEARED! We had just witnessed a Great White breach and we had a front row, underwater seat to that amazing spectacle! I couldn't believe my eyes!!
And that was STILL not all that was going to make this the most amazing trip I have been on to date! Not only did we witness more breaches, but my cabin-mate actually caught the first one on camera!! She was supposed to be in the cage with me and would have seen it from underneath, but she had been feeling ill that morning and was sitting on the top deck trying to get some fresh air. She had her camera in her lap, heard the splash, looked up and raised the camera just in time to snap the shot! I have to admit that I was a little (ok, maybe a LOT) jealous that she was able to get the shot, but I was more excited than "green" .
You think I'm done, right?? Well, not quite yet!! On the third day of diving, I dropped in the cage for another rotation and still hoping to get "the shot". About 10 mins. into the rotation, there was a strange "vibe" in the water and I saw tons of bubbles from the panga boat circling above. I wasn't sure what was going on, but I knew it was BIG. Then the cage was pulled over to the boat and the divemaster was knocking rapidly on the cage. I looked over and my cagemates were starting to exit. All kinds of reasons started going through my head about why we had to be pulled out of the cage so rapidly. However, NONE of them were correct!!
It was a predation!!! The topside group had actually witnessed a Great White kill a seal and they were pulling us all out of the cages so we could join in and watch the feeding. I had never seen so much bright red blood in the water. I was mesmerized by the scene that was unfolding in front of us. The video was posted on YouTube, but if you haven't seen it yet - you should definitely check it out!! Here is the video:
Talk about ending the trip with an exclamation point!!! WOW! It just can't get better than that...or CAN it? Well, for me, there was one more event that was the icing on the cake. It was the final rotation of the final day and I was still snapping off pictures of the sharks who had been visiting all week long. There were only about 15 or 20 minutes left before we would have to return to our normal lives when my favorite shark of all time decided to pay us a visit - the infamous SHREDDER!!! I was so excited, that I actually screamed out his name through my regulator and tried telling all my cagemates that THIS was the shark I had been talking about all week. He came at the bait on my side of the cage and opened wide so I could get the shot I had been waiting for - mouth open wide with gill slits showing!
If you are looking for a trip to take or are one of those people who have always wanted to see a Great White, but just haven't made it happen, I would highly suggest you put this trip on the list. It is truly an amazing adventure!!
One of our blog fans sent us this link and video from a company in South Africa called Blue Wilderness . We told you about these guys last week. Here's the quote from their travel blog:
