Guadalupe Island -Topside

Very few people have had a chance to view Isla Guadalupe from the air. It is a breathtaking sight.

Now, thanks to one mans efforts, everyone can share in the experience. These images are the perfect compliment to undersea encounters with great white sharks at this wild and remote island.

Thanks Eddie, this is really great footage.

The changing impact of whale shark tourist expenditure

An updated paper on the shifting financial impact of whale shark tourism in Australia's Ningaloo region is a must read for those within the shark diving industry.

Abstract

In this paper, we examine the expenditure of whale shark tour participants at Ningaloo Marine Park, Western Australia; the location of the world's first whale shark tourism industry, established in 1989. We demonstrate that in 2006, participants' expenditure in the region was $894 per trip, total expenditure was $6.0 million (all figures are in Australian dollars), and between $2.4 and $4.6 million would have been lost to the region if whale shark tourism did not exist. Our measure of participants' expenditure is substantially lower than the calculation of $2370 per participant from a previous study of whale shark tourists using data collected in 1995. We argue that this is consistent with a change in the types of wildlife tourists that participate in an activity as the industry reaches the point of consolidation. Our results also suggest that using old data to forecast wildlife tourists' expenditure needs to take into account the industry's stage of development. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Paper Here.

Taiwan civic groups protest chain stores selling shark-fin soup

Smart direct action protests begin with indigenous populations. The issue of sharks fin soup has been a tricky one with the perception of Westerns trying to influence a primarily Asian cultural issue.

Asians, for good reason, are resistant to heavy handed direct action eco push by outsiders. A fact many within the Western shark conservation community have discovered first hand over the years.

So, how do you change destructive indigenous cultural practices?

The IUCN has an idea, protesting and messaging with local populations:

"Lured by high profits, fishermen kill sharks only for their fins. They cut off shark's fins and dump the sharks into the sea and let them bleed to death," said Wang Yu-min, director of the Environment & Animal Society of Taiwan. "Each year, some 4,000 to 7,000 sharks are killed for their fins. The International Union for Conservation of Nature warned that 111 species of shark are being threatened, of which 20 species are seriously threatened and 25 species face
extinction," she said.


Complete Story.

Fuchsia Dunlop BBC - Refusing Sharks Fin

The BBC has a first rate story today on the culture of shark fin soup and one woman's determination to end it's acceptance at the dinner table.

It is a classic tale of east vs west mentalities with a surprising twist at the end. The shark conservation movement may just end the practice of eating sharks fin soup "one table sized international incident" at a time:

"There was an awkward silence. My dinner companions had not heard this kind of stuff before and certainly not from me, who they know as the Englishwoman who eats everything."

Complete Story.

Hammers in Love?

Swim at Your Own Risk blog got the scoop from Perth yesterday featuring a video shot from the air of Hammerheads schooling off the coast.

Local experts think this is high seas shark love in action.

We'll let you decide.

Video Here.

Cape Cod to Florida - Pretty Neat Trick

You have to love the marine sciences for one reason only - data, lovely, undisputed data.

So when we hear tell of a tagged white shark arriving in Florida's waters that's just a cause for celebration, and then some.

For the folks in Jacksonville it may be the cause for some concern, but fear not:

“We were very pleased to hear that this one had surfaced,” said Catherine Williams, spokeswoman for the Division of Marine Fisheries, which led the tagging project. “We’re expecting that the other four will surface any time between now and the spring, but, of course, there are no guarantees.”

Complete Story.

Save the Sharks - Tampa Bay Editorial

Today's in house editorial from the Tampa Bay Newspapers is a perfect example of well researched pro shark discussions.

We need more just like this:

Vilified, maligned and abused, some species of sharks are vulnerable to extinction.

Fortunately wildlife agencies and conservationists, recognizing that sharks are invaluable to the survival of marine ecosystems, are taking steps to ensure that threats to these fascinating creatures aren’t left unchecked.

Complete Story.

The 200,000 Hook Gauntlet - Amazing

What happens when you hold a festival in South Korea featuring mountain trout?

You get a 200,000 plus fishing event that takes your breath away. The images from this event are hard to comprehend.

"Hundreds of thousands of people have descended on a frozen river to drill through the ice to hook mountain trout - or even fish for them with their bare hands. Visitors to Hwacheon in South Korea have arrived for the annual Ice Festival, which saw 200,000 people visit over the weekend, and which organisers anticipate will see more than a million taking part by the end of the three-week event."

Complete Story.

Chip Scarlett and Sharks - Visually Stunning

We are big fans of pro shark PSA's, especially ones that deliver strong and cohesive personal narratives.

Underwater photographer Chip Scarlett knows this art form well and has delivered one of the most engaging shark PSA's we have seen in a while. All that is needed now is a gentle push into the Internet and about 100,000 more viewers.

Kudos:

Shark Conservation Australia - Solutions?

Shark fishermen in Australia face potential $11,000 fines for harvesting newly banned shark species like the longfin mako.

Naturally fishermen are unhappy with the arrangement asking the question - are we really saving sharks by just banning shark takes?

We're not so sure there's an easy answer to that without a follow up outreach programs in "safe shark handling" for fishermen.

Featuring heavier tackle, circle hooks, and limited handling protocols shark mortality rates could be effectively curbed with a well coordinated two step conservation approach.

In Florida this approach will be launched in the summer of 2010.

Complete Story.

The Million Dollar Vote - Shark Conservation Win

Georgienne Bradley from The Imaging Foundation is the smartest woman in the shark conservation room right now.

With her small team she has managed to create a tsunami of interest in the Chase Charitable Giving Event and with your help her team can capture the ultimate prize of One Million Dollars for shark conservation efforts.

Why are we supporting this effort?

Bandwidth. Bradley's team have managed to capture a lot of it all over the Internet and beyond and that is the cornerstone of today's conservation world.

Bandwidth.

Please support this effort today with your valuable vote. Yes we know Haiti is also an important issue right now so do two things in the next 24hrs.

1. Donate 5-50 for Haiti relief efforts.

2. Vote for The Imaging Foundation.

Haiti thanks you and the sharks thank you. A double win in 2010.

NY Times Featuring Industry Member

If there's one thing we like to see it's well balanced and pro industry reporting in the major media.

Too often the industry receives a black eye when operators fail to heed basic media commandments.

As in "Thou shalt not do extreme shark diving media, ever".

It is once again gratifying to see Beqa Adventure Divers in 2010 leading the charge with a well balanced article by Greg Winters.

All the commercial elements are open for review in this article, featuring the pros and cons of the commercial shark diving industry. Coming on the heels of last weeks anti-shark diving media orgy in South Africa - this is fair and balanced reporting.

It could not have come at a better time.

Kudos.

2010 Florida Shark Fishing Regulations

Here are the new shark fishing regulations for the State of Florida.

As a barometer for the sport fishing industry the State of Florida is making improvements to shark fisheries.

■ New additions to the prohibited species list are sandbar, silky and Caribbean sharpnose sharks.

■ Sharks must be landed whole. This means filleting and removing heads, fins, and tails of sharks at sea is not allowed. Gutting and bleeding of sharks at sea is allowed to preserve the meat.

■ There is no minimum size limit for Atlantic sharpnose sharks, blacknose sharks, blacktip sharks, bonnethead sharks, finetooth sharks, and smooth dogfish, all other sharks must be at least 54 inches long (fork length) to harvest or possess.

■ Sharks may be harvested with hook and line gear only. Additionally, snatching and use of multiple (e.g. treble) hooks with natural baits is not allowed.

■ There is a bag limit of one shark per person per day and a maximum of 2 sharks per vessel per day.

■ Smooth dogfish and the Florida smoothhound are now included in the shark regulations. For a complete list of regulated sharks please visit MyFWC.com. Many sharks are difficult to identify and it is up to anglers to learn how to properly identify the sharks they harvest.

Please visit MyFWC.com to view shark identification information and other management information.

Haiti - "The world is coming to an end"

Take a minute today to consider the following video. Under the dust in this clip was Haiti's most populous city Port au Prince - 1,750,00. The young woman who shot the video just went through a magnitude 7.0 earthquake.

Haiti could use some help. The people of Haiti, already considered some of the poorest in the western hemisphere could also use your help. We donated this morning to a few of the charities listed. They have long track records and large humanitarian crews in Haiti with the best ability to get needed supplies and assistance to the country now.

You can help by adding your 5,10,20 to the cause.

We're shark conservationists, but we're also human too. Take some time out of your day to help those who really need it. We can get back to sharks next week.

Habitat for Humanity

Red Cross International

World Vision International

Shark Attack - Save Our Seas Response

As a general rule we do not get involved in hyped media surrounding shark attacks, unless they are industry driven.

Today a well researched and thoughtful response to the recent shark attack media hype in South Africa caught our attention.

Save our Sea Foundation have taken an ongoing leadership role in many issues surrounding sharks and conservation.

Today's Op Ed was one more example of industry leadership with a nice blend of pro shark pro conservation messaging. Kudos.

"Hollywood catapulted the great white shark into the world’s consciousness in 1975 when Steven Spielberg’s JAWS hit the big screen. Previously confined to an obscure world below the ocean’s waves, the box-office hit created a monster with a lust for wanton killing in the terrified minds of its audiences. As shark-attack hysteria gripped the world a great white shark killing frenzy ensued. Population numbers plummeted and an apex predator with a history 200 million years older than the first dinosaur started swimming towards the land of the dodo."

Complete Post

Shark Research in Action - Bahamas

Kristine Stump, the current Principal Investigator at the Bimini Biological Field Station, describes the research she is conducting as a part of her PhD studies.

Kristine's doctorate thesis investigates the effects of habitat loss on the juvenile lemon sharks that use Bimini as their primary nursery.

Bimini's mangrove lagoons function as critical habitat for a wealth of wildlife, from seahorses and snappers to stingrays and sharks. Kristine's study aims to quantify the impact that removing these mangrove nurseries will have on Bimini's lemon shark population, and the wider ecosystem as a whole.

One Vessel To The Power of 10,000

This mornings conservation image is of a single vessels shark take in Japan.

The image comes from the Blue Voice Blog, normally focused on whale and dolphin issues, this one time take of blue sharks is, none the less, a heart wrenching scene.

Kudos.

BlueVoice.org

Hardy Jones is a former journalist with CBS News and UPI. He has been making television documentaries about the oceans and marine mammals in particular for more than 20 years. "The experience of forcing Japanese fishermen to release hundreds of dolphins simply by pointing a camera at them led to the original concept of BlueVoice.org," says Jones. "The advent of the internet has given us a tool of unprecedented power to end some of the brutalities committed against marine mammals and the oceans."

Our film "If Dolphins Could Talk," hosted by actor Michael Douglas, complimented the work of many environmental organizations when we broadcast video footage of dolphins dying in tuna nets. Soon afterwards Heinz announced it would no longer accept tuna caught by surrounding dolphins with nets.

BlueVoice.org draws on the hundreds of hours of film produced by Hardy Jones/Julia Whitty Productions, a leading production company specializing in films on the marine environment.

Shark Nets: Thomas Peschak Reports

The newly redesigned RTSea Blog has great coverage of premier underwater photog Thomas Peschak and South African anti shark nets.

As a team member with the Save Our Seas Foundation Thomas has been featured in several informative PSA's demonstrating marine conservation leadership with this ongoing and deadly issue.

About SOS

The Save Our Seas Foundation sponsors marine conservation projects around the world from White Sharks in South Africa to Giant Manta Rays in Mexico. We are committed to educating people about the importance of conserving our beautiful oceans.

Find out more at saveourseas.com.

Sea Shepherd - Mastering Reality Disasters?

We would like to congratulate Sea Shepherd and Animal Planet on a fantastic staged event for television - perhaps one of the best staged disaster moments of 2010.

As production people ourselves we know the hazards and very real dangers of staging live disasters for television. It's a highly technical world only professionals can effectively operate in.

Multi-million dollar staged disasters are often canceled at the last minute due to OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) non-compliance or studio fears of death and dismemberment. Sea Shepherd on the other hand have found a way to circumvent all of the requirements for staged disaster television by only allowing volunteer crews and staging the events against non-paid, non-union, Japanese whalers.

By-passing all clean environmental requirements for television productions by producing this man made disaster in the Antarctic ocean was another master stroke. The clean up of several thousand gallons of bio diesel spilled by the Ady Gil and retrieval of the vessel from the sea floor would have cost Sea Shepherd and Whale Wars Productions millions if this disaster had been filmed in the USA.

Brilliant!

Managing to move Sea Shepherds $2 million dollar vessel Ady Gil into the path of Japanese whalers was a quirk of nautical timing by a seasoned captain who knew his vessel and the direction wind, waves, and engines were carrying it. Catching the whole thing on video from the Bob Barker at just the right angle was pure reality television.

We were doubly impressed with the witty and show branding quote from SSCS Paul Watson immediately after the stunt, "Now we're in a Real Whale War!" reminding the global audience that this is, after all, Must See TV!

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have clearly evolved from earlier staged productions such as Paul Watsons being shot by Japanese whalers. In terms of production quality and emotional leverage that earlier staged event was not one of the top three of the 2007 reality television season.

Kudos to Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, Paul Watson, and Animal Planet for once again bravely leading the way into a new decade of reality television firsts. The televised disaster staging they have created together keeps getting better and better, and their complete and ongoing circumvention of all production norms and safety regulations allows their organization to literally shoot-for-the-moon.

We're looking forward to more man made disasters in the coming months!

More on Sea Shepherd Conservation Society here.

Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme - Report

The DC Rainmaker Blog has an in depth first person report of whale shark research in the Maldives this week.

We had the pleasure of meeting the DC Rainmaker folks at Isla Guadalupe during the filming of Shark Diver: The Movie in 2009.

"The Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme (with an ‘e’ at the end, British style…) was founded in 2006 by a group of marine biologists looking to setup a permanent facility in the Maldives to study whale sharks. Unlike many other areas of the world, it appears a bunch of the whale sharks actually stick around the Maldives year round, providing an excellent opportunity for long term research. Though they don’t quite yet have the financial resources to stay year round, the goal is to be able to rotate teams and individuals to the island for sustained continuous research."

Full report, great read and Kudos guys!

Global Conservation Messaging

How do you effect conservation change with media?

For our money this is one of the better efforts out there.

Sharks - Elegance in Back and White

RTSea Productions takes the planet on a journey this month. The end result is visually stunning emotionally guiding the viewer into the magnificent world of sharks.

Shot in the Bahamas at Tiger Beach, this is pro shark pro industry film making.

Kudos.

Google Oceans - RTSea Productions

RTSea Productions spent 2009 deep inside Google producing a series of pro shark tourism and pro conservation media pieces. Richard Theiss is well known in the industry as a competent story teller and filmmaker who seeks to portray sharks in a natural setting, without the added media hype often associated with these magnificent animals.

He was the driving force behind film Island of the Great White Sharks a film that remains the only serious investigation into shark tourism and ongoing research at Isla Guadalupe, Mexico. He was also the primary shooter on an award winning television series featuring Isla Guadalupe in Mexico in 2009.

His latest video shows that there's much more to Isla Guadalupe's shark ecotourism than just an exciting adventure. Sharks are critical to maintaining a balanced marine ecosystem, and responsible ecotourism enlightens people to the threats sharks are facing today and the need to protect them.

To learn more, visit Google Earth's new ocean layer or visit RTSea Productions.

Vote for Imaging Foundation in Chase Competition

There are a few dedicated groups out there who could use funding to do amazing PSA's and conservation work for the oceans.

This is why we support Imaging Foundations drive to win the Chase Bank competition for conservation funding.

Join them this month and create your own Wave Rave to celebrate the oceans and VOTE for their funding by Chase.

Your vote will make a world of difference to the oceans.

"Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus"

One of the highlights of 2009 was the introduction of the Dorsal Fin Blog to the world of sharks, conservation and media.

It would seem that 2010 will be as informative and amusing under their "seasoned media eye."

Kudos for this weeks media find, Mega Shark Vs Giant Octopus. A film that has plenty of cheese for everyone:

Senior Associate, Global Shark Conservation - Job Opening

Senior Associate, Global Shark Conservation

The Organization The Pew Charitable Trusts is driven by the power of knowledge to solve today’s most challenging problems. Pew applies a rigorous, analytical approach to improving public policy, informing the public and stimulating civic life. Based in Philadelphia, with offices in Washington, D.C., and Brussels, Pew produces fact-based research and develops practical solutions to challenging issues. We are an independent nonprofit organization--the sole beneficiary of seven individual charitable funds, with assets of $5.2 billion at the end of June 2008, established between 1948 and 1979 by two sons and two daughters of Sun Oil Company founder Joseph N. Pew and his wife, Mary Anderson Pew. Pew provides an exciting learning environment and the opportunity to work with highly talented individuals. It is a dynamic organization that values creativity and innovative thinking and fosters strong teamwork with mutual respect. The Pew Environment Group The mission of the Pew Environment Group is to promote policies and practices that protect the global atmosphere, preserve large intact wilderness ecosystems and conserve living marine resources. For the past two decades, the Environment group has been a major force in driving conservation policy in the United States, and increasingly internationally. The group’s work is focused on reducing the scope and severity of three major global environmental problems: Dramatic changes to the Earth’s climate brought about by the increasing concentration of greenhouse gases in the planet’s atmosphere; The erosion of large wilderness ecosystems that contain a great part of the world’s remaining biodiversity; and, The destruction of the world’s ocean environment, with a particular emphasis on marine fisheries. Global Shark Conservation Sharks roamed the seas for nearly 200 million years before dinosaurs were on the planet. However, due to the onset of industrialized fisheries in the last fifty years, many populations of large sharks have declined globally by approximately 90 percent. The world's increasing demand for shark fins, used for the Asian delicacy shark fin soup as well as other products, is killing up to 73 million sharks a year—a rate that is highly unsustainable. Sharks are highly vulnerable to overfishing, as they are generally slow-growing and reproduce late in life with few offspring. As a result, entire shark populations may disappear within our lifetime. The Global Shark Conservation is designed to reverse this decline of shark populations through public education, advocacy and research. With overlapping jurisdictions over shark fisheries, the campaign will work within both international governance bodies (such as regional fisheries management organizations and the United Nations) and treaty organizations such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species to secure precautionary, science-based protections for sharks. Domestically, the campaign will work to secure stronger shark management within the U.S. as well as in other coastal nations that still have large populations of sharks left in their territorial waters. Position Overview The campaign senior associate will work with the director of the Global Shark Conservation to provide the information and assistance necessary to design and carry out the campaign strategy. The Global Shark Conservation is designed as a two-year effort which begins April 1, 2009 and will run through March 31, 2011. The position may be renewed, pending its progress and the availability of continued financial support. This position will report to the project director and is based in Washington, D.C.

Responsibilities:

Assist the project director and other campaign staff in developing and implementing campaign strategy. Work with the Manager of the shark campaign to develop and execute outreach events with coalition members internationally and domestically to educate and influence policy makers. Manage special outreach projects for the campaign that raise public, media and policymaker awareness of the need for shark conservation. These projects could include managing video projects, working with film and television producers to secure “calls to action” in nature programming, or arranging speaking engagements for the campaign with target audiences. Work with PCT and PEG communications to develop and implement a strategy for new media outreach. Assist in developing public, policymaker, and media outreach strategies for the campaign in target regions of the world, such as in Asia, Latin America, or the Pacific. Create compelling materials for the campaign, including website content, fact sheets, coalition letters, etc. Research and write campaign materials, such as reports, booklets, fact sheets and web content. Represent the campaign at meetings and on conference calls within Pew, with partner groups, federal agencies, and Congress. Maintain knowledge of shark management activities worldwide.

Requirements:

Four to 8 years of experience in environmental and public policy required. An advanced degree or equivalent experience is required. Expertise in marine issues are strongly preferred. Able to set short- and long-term planning goals in line with program strategy. A task-oriented style, with focus on achieving clear and ambitious goals. Demonstrated ability to meet multiple deadlines by maintaining a high level of organization. Able to develop and move projects forward with a high degree of independence and autonomy. Excellent written and oral communications skills, including an ease in communicating complex concepts in a clear effective manner for a general audience. A detail and results-oriented style with a focus on process and achievement. Recognized ability to meet multiple deadlines by maintaining a high level of organization. Demonstrated strong analytical skills, including an ability to synthesize large amounts of information and to focus quickly on the essence of an issue. A strong commitment to producing measurable results. Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to develop and manage productive relationships with consultants, partners, grantees and others who contribute to the effectiveness of the project. Able to establish credibility quickly and to develop and maintain effective working relationships with internal and external parties, including grantees. Experience with media and other communications strategies to deliver policy recommendations and/or scientific findings to policy makers and the public desired. Fluency in other languages a plus. Knowledge of shark conservation issues a plus. Some travel for this position may be required, including attending international meetings impacting shark conservation, as needed, and/or visiting campaign consultants working around the world on domestic shark conservation measures. Application for job here.

2009 - CNN INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF THE SHARK ENDS

As this decade closes CNN has a nice wrap up story on shark conservation and some of the highlights of the 2009 "International Year of the Shark."

We could not have summed up a year in shark conservation any better.

Kudos to all who participated with unique shark conservation efforts that effected real and lasting conservation changes.

Your passion, dedication, and conservation successes are what keep sharks from extinction.

Farewell to the "Decade of shark awareness" and hello to the "Decade of shark action."

CNN shark conservation wrap here.

A Solution to Shark Nets - Dorsal Fin Blog

A viable solution to shark nets and drumlines is being tested in Australia this year by the West Australian Department of Fisheries.

The good folks over at the Dorsal Fin Blog have the complete story.

Suffice to say what is being tested in Perth might just save 10,000 breeding aged sharks off coasts from Australia to South Africa in the coming years.

Here's a link to the program with full spec shark geek info. Naturally, we read the whole thing.

Saying farewell to a decade of "shark awareness" and hello to a new decade of "shark action."

Let the conservation science begin!

Australia's Tiger Shark Disaster

Tony Ham is happy about it. Vik Hislop is happy about it, and even Queensland Tourism is happy about it.

For Australia when 11 Tigers are killed by nets and drumlines along the Sunshine Coast the media calls it a good thing.

We have long pointed out that nets and drum lines are a 1950's answer to a modern issue of shark conservation.

4 meter Tigers represent breeding populations and their deaths are no cause for celebration.

The only thing in the way of lasting conservation change with drum lines and nets is the will power of local and regional users to demand it.

We know sharks are being taken by these man made, indiscriminate killers, but what is being done about it?

We'll be the first to support any program that offers regional metrics for success and not just the usual rounds of blog posts and Facebook petitions. As far as shark conservation goes there's little time for "awareness" we have now moved into the "decade of action."

Surely there has to be someone on the Sunshine Coast that would like to see an end to the glorification of regional and unnecessary shark slaughters?

Happy Holidays from SharkDiver.com!

It's kind of a tradition here at Shark Diver posting this image.

It features a shark we named in 2004, "Shredder," with the image shot by Christy Fisher.

This image serves as a reminder of all the shark diving folks, research folks, and media folks we have come to call friends over the years.

Good people who have made the business of shark diving and shark conservation a very exciting place for us.

We are honored to know these unique and special people and look forward to the new decade of shark diving adventures, discovery, and conservation with you all.

Farewell 2009 and very Happy Holidays!

Goblin girl on... Happy Holidays!

I would like to take the opportunity to wish everyone A Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!

The photo is taken in the big Siam aquarium in Bangkok, which I visited in October. I don't know how many sand tiger sharks they have there, but in this photo there are four (and one goblin shark). Maybe eight in total? Very nice indeed. I hope these sharks are good ambassadors for all sharks so people will see their beauty and continue their efforts to save sharks throughout the world.

I'm very happy that the European Union have decided on a complete ban on porbeagle next year and a 10% bycatch quota on spiny dogfish. However, this is only regulating the commercial fishery. I was very troubled to learn that a Danish sport fishery for porbeagle in the North Sea have developed during the end of summer. This has to be regulated by national laws. This and other questions will surely keep me occupied during the coming year.

It's soon season for goblin sharks... I will keep my eyes open. Let me know if you see anyone!

Oceanic Whitetip Sharks - Hawaii

If you have not yet discovered iDive Sharks consider this an "insiders tip." This week Mark Oronzio shared his Oceanic Whitetip footage from Hawaii.

Increasingly rare due to fishing pressure and sought after for their overlarge fins these remarkable critters make better close encounter video.

Kudos:

Dive Site "Oceania" - Unveiled 1.1. 2010

The most anticipated white shark discovery in the past decade will be unveiled to the public on January.1.2010

Code named "Oceania" this unique and remote dive site, featuring very large white sharks, resides in the southern hemisphere during a 3-6 month shark diving season.

Stay tuned and expect a very Happy New Year.

Video courtesy of Richard Theiss RTSea Productions.

No Caught Shark Allowed - Matava leading the Shark Free Marina Initiative in Fiji

Matava and Bite Me Gamefishing Charters in Fiji are taking a leading role in the international shark conservation efforts, organizing Fiji to become the first country to fully participate in the Shark-Free Marina Initiative (SFMI).

The SFMI works with marinas, boaters and fishermen to develop policy designed to protect sharks as a vital component of the oceans health. The SFMI has a singular purpose, to reduce worldwide shark mortality. Working with marinas, fishermen and like minded non-profit groups, the Initiative forms community conscious policy and increase awareness of the need to encourage shark conservation.

Shark Free Marinas work with, not against, the recreational and commercial fishing community, in order to raise awareness of the importance of a healthy shark population for our oceans, and to contribute to their ongoing survival.

Matava, together with partners in Fiji, has helped many marinas and charter fishing boats become SFMI certified, and Fiji now has more certified Shark-Free Marinas than any other country in the world. Stuart Gow, Director of Matava, said that his team has been actively promoting the SFMI, and distributing information about the Initiative, with the long-term goal of making Fiji “the first country to be proud to announce itself as a ‘Shark-Free Marinas’ Country”.

See the map of current Shark-Free Marinas

The majority of shark species caught by recreational and sport anglers are currently listed by the IUCN as “Threatened” (or worse) and each year, half a million of these sharks are killed in the US alone. It is estimated that 70-100 million sharks are killed yearly worldwide.

See IUCN Red List of Threatened Shark Species

About Matava

Matava is an eco adventure getaway in Fiji, offering a unique blend of cultural experiences and adventure activities in the pristine and remote island of Kadavu, Fiji. Matava is a PADI Dive Resort as well as a Project AWARE GoEco Operator, a title awarded to demonstrate a commitment to conservation and provide customers with experiences that enhance visitor awareness, appreciation and understanding of the environment. Matava is also one of the supporters of the Fiji Shark Conservation and Awareness Project, which aims to raise global awareness of their imminent extinction of sharks and the crises facing our oceans.

With more than 12 years experience in the Fiji Islands, Matava is recognized as a leading educational dive center. Matava is participating in TIES ecoDestinations project (currently featuring “beaches, marine and coastal ecotourism experience”) as one of the Summer Special 2009 sponsors.

Underwater Thrills:Swimming With Sharks: “No Caught Shark Allowed”: Matava leading the Shark Free Marina Initiative in Fiji

GSI - A New Tool For Shark Conservation?

As we say farewell to 2009 and hello to 2010, new tools are becoming available for shark conservation. Soon the issue of shark fins will be changed from a "cultural issue" to an "endangered species trafficking issue."

It's all in the DNA:

Millions of shark fins are sold at market each year to satisfy the demand for shark fin soup, a Chinese delicacy, but it has been impossible to pinpoint which sharks from which regions are most threatened by this trade.

Now, groundbreaking new DNA research has, for the first time, traced scalloped hammerhead shark fins from the burgeoning Hong Kong market all the way back to the sharks geographic origin. In some cases the fins were found to come from endangered populations thousands of miles away. These breakthrough findings provide strong evidence for enacting international trade protection for hammerhead sharks at the March 2010 CITES meeting in Qatar.

Maldives Whale Shark Research - In Depth

The Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme (MWSRP), as its name suggests, study whale sharks in the Republic of Maldives, however, that aspect of their work is merely the tip of the ice berg.

The programme was created in 2006 when four young, British university graduates set off to the 1192 island archipelago on a pilot study in search of the whale shark, after a tip off from the dive industry (already well established in the Maldives) that there were a substantial number of whale sharks throughout the country and that not one person was studying them or their behaviour. After a huge amount of research, reality struck – there was nothing known about this magnificent species anywhere in the world – anything these guys could learn would help to further protection efforts for an already ‘vulnerable species’.At that time, the guys did not know exactly what they were about to stumble across. But it would soon become apparent that the rich ecosystem of the Maldives played host to a year-round aggregation of the largest fish in the Ocean, a fact very few places in the world can claim – the majority of whale shark aggregation sites around the world, such as Ningaloo Reef, Australia, are only seasonal ‘hot spots’.

Why the sharks choose to inhabit Maldivian waters throughout the year is still not known, although the MWSRP does have its plausible hypothesis. What is known is that the Maldives is a globally significant whale shark aggregation site, possibly the best place in the world to see and study these animals.

In 2007, the guys again returned to the picture-perfect chain of islands to continue logging whale shark encounters. This time they secured sponsorship from Conrad Rangali Island - a resort with a great passion for protecting the environment. Conrad would and, to this day, continue to prove their commitment to the cause by providing logistical support to make the in-filed research possible.

The team also initiated a collaborative genetic analysis study with Dr Jennifer Schmidt in an attempt to determine how related the whale sharks in the Maldives are to others in the Indian Ocean. The team encountered over sixty whale sharks in the two-month expedition and managed to collect sixteen skin samples from different individuals.

They would also begin to realise the very real threats that the sharks and the ecosystem faced, especially in South Ari Atoll.

With that in mind the guys vowed to return the following year.2008 became a real turning point for the MWSRP. The data collected over the previous two years enabled the MWSRP to bring the issues to the government’s attention and together with the tour and dive industries they developed ‘Whale Shark Encounter Guidelines’ in an attempt to make the explosion of whale shark tourism sustainable. The Maldivian government also pledged their support for the programme and invited the MWSRP to develop a Marine Protected Area proposal for South Ari’s whale shark ‘hotspot’.

The guys had also been busy working with the community and it was beginning to have tangible results - they were realising the ecological importance of the whale shark. Until quite recently, Maldivians used to hunt the whale shark for their liver oil. The older generation can vividly remember when a whale shark was caught, “It was a real community event. The whole island would come to the beach to help drag the shark over the reef and onto the beach where it would be cut open”.

The MWSRP guys realised that they needed to re-establish a connection between Maldivians and the whale shark to be able to achieve their goals. They also began to understand the issues the local people faced – a lack of employment and educational opportunities, no real way of providing power to their islands sustainably, no waste management systems and no direct benefits from the tourism exploiting their natural resources. One particular conversation, with a fifteen year old student, was the programme’s educational focus. When asked which career path he would take his reply was, “I want to be a doctor but I cannot because there are very few higher education opportunities in Maldives. I will end up working in a resort”.

A second collaboration was also instigated in 2008, this time with Dr Brent Stewart (Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, CA) to begin the first whale shark tagging project in the Maldives, a project that would be instrumental in the development of South Ari Atoll’s Marine Protected Area (MPA). Dr Stewart would also become a trusted friend and integral part of the MWSRP team and advisory committee.

The tag tracks showed that the sharks were highly mobile but the tagged animals always returned to the South Ari Atoll, highlighting the Maldives as a preferential habitat for the whale shark. This data, combined with the MWSRP’s three years of photo identification work, collectively heightened the MWSRP’s excitement that the sharks utilising Maldivian waters may be a resident population.

Even with all of the programme’s success, the year proved to be a one of transition. It was clear that to make a real difference the MWSRP would need to commit one hundred percent, but with no resources and a lack of funding it would be a real gamble.

The draw of doing “what you love doing for a great cause” was too much for two MWSRP members - Richard Rees and Adam Harman. So they decided to give up their careers, sell their possessions and pool their resources enabling the programme to exist for another year, when hopefully some long term funding would already be secured.

Richard and Adam returned to the archipelago for December 2008. The goal for the trip: recover the remaining archival tags, attempt to secure some long term funding and to develop the MPA. They also piloted a volunteer scheme which enables the MWSRP to utilise a wide range of expertise while providing each volunteer with research experience or that once in a lifetime opportunity.

The partnership proved to be a great success. Over one hundred whale shark encounters were recorded and the groundwork for the MPA was laid.2009 has been the MWSRP’s biggest year with the successful development of South Ari Atoll’s Marine Protected Area (MPA). The MPA dream: to be the first collaboratively managed, regulated, revenue generating MPA in the Maldives, ensuring the local community benefits from their natural resources whilst making tourism sustainable. Resorts are already committing to sponsoring the initiative following consultations with the MWSRP.

The year also brought the MWSRP recognition from the scientific world, the completion of a follow-up whale shark tag and release project and a vast amount of media attention – ultimately helping to raise awareness of the plight of the shark.

The guys have been present in the Maldives for six months and recorded nearly three hundred whale shark encounters this year alone. The team has grown to four, with two voluntary part time staff (Ben Fothergill and Rachel Bott) and a host of dedicated specialist volunteers and companies providing pro bono support (including Hogan and Hartson, an International Law Firm).2010 promises to be very busy - The whole team hopes to be able to build on the MWSRP’s achievements in the coming year. 2010 goals: The development of a one hundred percent self sufficient eco-facility, to enable a year-round presence for visiting researchers, scientists, students, teachers and volunteers is being planned in partnership with Sheppard Robson (leaders in sustainable design) and the Maldives’ Ministry of Tourism, two foreign student exchange schemes are in motion (one in the UK, the other in Qatar), the MPA development will continue with baseline coral reef and species specific studies and a MPA management specific NGO is being initiated. An American based ‘Friends Of’ organisation is also in the process of registration and the whale shark research will continue to provide the scientific basis behind the programme’s broader conservation goals.

The only missing aspect – funding.

To become involved with the MWSRP or for more information please visit www.mwsrp.org

Divers Save Shark - Rescue

Divers acted quickly when a grey nurse shark swam by with a metal collar attached to it. The grey nurse is endangered in Australian waters with a tenuous population hovering around 2000 individual sharks.

Sport fishing and habitat destruction has left these animals with few chances for survival.

Last year another shark was discovered with a gaff jammed in its throat and was successfully caught, saved and released.

Kudos to divers helping sharks.

Full story.

David Diley - Smart Industry Call

In the world of commercial shark diving there are those who lead by example. There are also those who lead by producing solid industry thought and analysis (click image to read).

David Diley is one of those people.

A man who has looked at the global shark diving industry and who has distilled it's biggest issue down to a well thought Op Ed.

We would like to congratulate him on his ideas this month and fearless interpretation of our industries future and direction.

This blog along with a few others have been advocating for deep changes within our industry. One year later it would seem that we're having an effect.

As we close out 2009 and a decade that has seen shark diving grow from a few pioneers and into a global 300 million dollar tourism juggernaut it is time to streamline and manage this industry.

The scuba industry did it and most other high profile tourism industries have done the same.

Make no bones about it, commercial shark diving is not scuba diving and it never was, therefore it is up to our industry to guide and direct it's own future.

With 2010 right around the corner the fusion of a commercial shark diving guiding body along with shark conservation would be a powerful force to content with, and would go a long way to growing this industry into 2020 and beyond.

Solid vision for the future and thinkers like David Diley will get us there.

Thanks to Da Shark for the original post.

Guadalupe Island Television Documentary Wins Journalism Award

In the summer of 2009 Shark Diver was asked to enable a three part television documentary with conservation NGO WildCoast.

The end result was seen by millions of viewers across Mexico. Today two reporters from Mexico's Televisa, who covered Wildcoast in this multi part series shot at Isla Guadalupe, have been awarded for journalistic excellence in environmental and science reporrting.

The award was in part for positively featuring the resident white sharks, shark tourism, and Mexican lead shark research at this Bio Sphere reserve.

The three part series was shown first in Mexico City to several million viewers and across Mexico in the fall of 2009. The industry got some great quotes from Captain and owner Greg Grivetto of Horizon Charters with on site shark footage shot by Richard Theiss from RTSea Productions.

Kudos to the entire team from Wildcoast who worked so hard to bring positive conservation messaging to Mexico and to all the people featured in this informative series.

DIVA Resort in Maldives Part of the Eco Solution

Luxury resort Diva Maldives has become a flagship supporter of the recently designated FenMaaDhiguRan, the Maldives first fully regulated, and largest, Marine Protected Area (MPA) – home to a globally significant population of whale sharks, not to mention some of the world’s finest dive sites.

The first resort located within the MPA to commit to backing the pioneering conservation project with fundraising initiatives, Diva Maldives has introduced a voluntary gratuity charge scheme enabling guests to actively contribute to the conservation of the whale sharks and their habitat.

A tropical paradise on one of the archipelago’s largest and most beautiful natural islands, with four kilometres of pristine white sand and lush tropical greenery flanked by a crystal clear lagoon, Diva Maldives enhances the picture postcard Maldivian idyll with the elusive luxury of space, and the liberty of choice. The introduction of the voluntary gratuity charge scheme underlines Diva’s commitment to protecting the whale sharks and their habitats, while helping the new MPA to generate improved business, education and employment opportunities for the local community.

Established following successful lobbying by the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme conservation charity, the MPA was officially designated by the Republic of Maldives government in July 2009. The MPA is 42km in length and, through proper regulation and educational community initiatives, will protect important habitats and species in this area from threats including overfishing, unregulated tourism and pollution, and help the local community to protect their natural resources for future generations.

Founded in 1990 and based in Mauritius, Naïade is a renowned hotel group with an undisputed reputation in the Indian Ocean. The group currently consists of nine hotels and one private island: Beau Rivage (five star deluxe), Legends (five star), Les Pavillons (five star), Tamassa (four star), Merville Beach (three star plus), Le Tropical (three star), and the private island of Ile des Deux Cocos, all in Mauritius; Hotel du Recif (three star) and Grand Hotel du Lagon (four star) in Reunion Island; and Diva (five star deluxe) in the Maldives. Each hotel has its own individual charm yet all the resorts in the portfolio share high levels of service and warm hospitality setting them apart from their competitors. www.naiade.com

Tiger Shark Eats Video Camera

From You Tube December 17th, 2009:

"Tiger Shark eats diver's video camera while it is still rolling. Get a first hand view of what it looks like to be chewed up by a giant shark. Filmed By Stuart Cove and his team from Stuart Cove's Dive Bahamas and documented with still photography by world renowned underwater still photographer Stephen Frink."

White Sharks off Florida? Yes!

First posted on Da Sharks blog this is one of those rare shark encounters at sea caught off the coast of Florida last week. While not unknown in the region this video is still very cool to watch.

For those of you who are white shark geeks like us, here's an in depth paper on whites in Florida waters - a good read.

Reminds us of the white shark that was beached in the Bahamas back in June 2008.

What's nice to see in this video is the respect the folks shooting this clip have for the white shark. Kudos:

Sharks - Changing Perceptions?

When the shark conservation movement drills down to this level, we will have saved the species.

Until that day there is much work to be done. Please support your regional shark conservation programs. Together, we can "de-demonize" the shark.

Caution: This video contains live fining of a shark.

Undersea Voyager Project - Website

The Undersea Voyager Project has a new updated website.

What is the Undersea Voyager Project?

Smart discoveries, intelligent investigations, and undersea adventure as few have seen before. Project leader Scott Cassel is no stranger to the wild world of the deep and is changing the perception of some of the oceans strangest critters one dive at a time.

Welcome to the Undersea Voyager Project.

The Dark Side of Farmed Tuna 2009

Like moths to candle light, white sharks are attracted to tuna pens worldwide in alarming numbers.

This week another in a series of images from 2009 featuring dead and dying white sharks being taken from commercial tuna pens in October.

While farmed tuna is being hailed as a viable alternative to wild caught tuna in many regions the accidental by catch of great whites that seek these pens out as an easy food source is an issue that needs to be addressed.

Most of the images we have seen are of breeding aged adults, which begs the question, are there no industry wide anti-shark protocols that are in place to save these animals?

We think there are. The lack of interest in this issue and the threat of boycott of farmed tuna products are twin barriers to real and lasting eco change.

Hopefully 2010 will see fewer images like these.

More on shark conservation - One Shark.

Miami Green Oceans Forum 2009

Looking back on 2009, one of the highlights for Shark Diver and Shark Divers in a year that was filled with conservation excitement was attending the Green Oceans Forum as a guest speaker in Miami.

Attended by a who's who in ocean conservation from Sylvia Earl to National Geographic and Monterey Bay, I met and dined with some of the brightest minds in ocean conservation over three days. Our presentation was about sharks, reefs, and monetized eco solutions that are "out of the box."

By "out of the box" I mean ready to go today. Real and lasting solutions that radically change regional shark conservation efforts and are born from 20 years experience in global eco tourism.

The Green Ocean Forum also included several outstanding media PSA's that caught the entire conference attention with simple yet powerful and compelling statistics:

"At the Americas Business Council, we believe that bringing brilliant minds and change-makers together plays a vital role in disseminating messages to audiences worldwide. Yet, we do not stop there. Our Forums serve as the first step in bringing about change. At ABC, we believe that solutions created during forums must be implemented in the short- and long-term; and every year we innovate our strategies in order to make sure that our Forums translate into sustainable solutions and results."

Amazing Gift Ideas - Your Very Own “Shark Week”

Dec 16, 2009 – This upcoming holiday season put some excitement under the tree.

Americans will be gifting novelty ties and slippers again this year in unprecedented numbers, more often than not these traditional gift items end up in the closet.

Instead, consider giving a gift that will be remembered forever, your own “Shark Week” dive adventure. Since 2002 Shark Diver has been thrilling shark fans from all over the planet with “Safe and Sane” shark encounters with the world’s top shark species.

Divers and non divers seeking out the grand daddy of shark diving, the Great White, can join the Shark Diver crew in San Diego, California from August through October aboard some of the top shark diving vessels in the industry.

“It’s all about providing a once in a lifetime personal experience for our clients”, says Martin Graf, on board dive operations manager. “About 20% of our divers are booked as the ultimate gift by spouses and family members, these family members end up having the time of their lives.”

Gifting adventure travel has increased dramatically since 2003. According to The Adventure Travel Report “one-half of U.S. adults, or 98 million people, have taken an adventure trip in the past five years. This includes 31 million adults who engaged in hard adventure activities like whitewater rafting, scuba diving and mountain biking.”

For more information:

Shark Diver: 415.235.9410
staff@sharkdiver.com
www.sharkdiver.com

Image Credit: Juanmi Almay

CITES Appendix II - Shark Update

Rome, 14 December 2009 - An advisory panel of independent experts has issued recommendations regarding six proposals to limit international trade in a number of commercially exploited aquatic animals under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The CITES Convention was established to protect wild species whose status is being directly affected by international trade. It is not designed to protect species that are endangered for other reasons. Once a species is listed by CITES, its international trade is subject to varying degrees of control depending on its status, ranging from controlled trading (if listed on CITES Appendix II) to outright bans (Appendix I).

The proposals, submitted by various CITES parties, request the Convention to control international trade in certain shark and coral species and to ban international trade in Atlantic bluefin tuna. They will be considered for listing at the 15^th Conference of CITES parties (Doha, Qatar, 13-25 March 2010).

The advisory panel consisted of 22 international fishery experts from 15 different countries. It was convened to evaluate the proposals according to criteria established by CITES and to give independent and impartial recommendations based on the experts' knowledge and on the scientific evidence presented in each proposal. This follows a formal process through which FAO channels advice from external fishery scientists to CITES. The CITES Conference of Parties will take the final decision regarding listing of proposed species.

Panel Outcomes

Following a thorough six-day review and using the CITES criteria, the panel determined that sufficient evidence exists to warrant placing the following species on CITES Appendix II: Oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus), Porbeagle (Lamna nasus), and Scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini). In addition, the proposed listing of "look-alike" shark species to help enforcement for Scalloped hammerhead shark was found to be justified in two of the four cases, Great hammerhead shark (Sphyrna mokarran) and Smooth hammerhead shark (Sphyrna zygaena).

The panel did not reach consensus regarding the proposed listing under CITES Appendix I of Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus), however a majority of the panel agreed that the available evidence supports the proposal. There was consensus that the evidence available supports the inclusion of Atlantic bluefin tuna on Appendix II.

For the remaining species under consideration, Spiny dogfish (Squalus acanthias) and all species of the coral family Coralliidae, the panel assessed that they did not meet the criteria required by CITES for listing on Appendix II. However, the panel did note that inadequate management in many areas of distribution of these species represents a cause for "serious concern". It urged that these shortcomings be remedied by relevant fishing nations and regional organizations in order to prevent rates of exploitation for these animals from exceeding acceptable levels.