Fischer Reality Check - Comments by Dr. Michael Domeier!

In-water SPOT-tagging of an enormous GWS - source.

Sorry for the protracted silence.

We've been extremely busy.

Plus, I've found myself embroiled in a rather unexpected and increasingly pointless debate with Chris Fischer of Ocearch.

Chris should have followed the advice of Domeier's publicist, see below.
Now the exchange has piqued the interest of the man himself who has sent me a vigorous rebuttal of Fischer's assertions, initially however with the request not to publicize it as he wanted to keep to the high road and instead let Karma take its course.

Well, I don't believe much in Karma.

It is unpredictable and takes much, much too long to eventuate.

So upon much cajoling by yours truly, here are Michael Domeier's comments - and from what I recall and have been able to observe from the sidelines, I for one have no doubt that they are a truthful representation of the facts - tho still way too karmically polite!

Unabridged - although the formatting is mine.

Enjoy!

Any PR expert will tell you to never get dragged into a public, negative pissing match… excellent advice that I try to follow. 
But once every few years I’m forced to slide down the slippery slope to correct serious misinformation that affects me, or my organization… misinformation that only I am capable of correcting. 

Some people are so comfortable stretching the truth that they actually begin to believe the lie themselves. 

Remind you of anyone/anything?? A popup tag removed from a shark at Guadalupe Island? A tag presumably recovered from another shark off El Choyudo? Pictures of Junior circulated with wounds falsely attributed to my tagging of the same shark a year earlier? For each of these things I finally made a concise statement that set the record(s) straight. Here we go again, but perhaps not as concise due to the complex situation. 

Chris Fischer, at every opportunity, proclaims 1) that he spent $5 million to fund my research; 2) that he enabled me to become a great researcher; 3) that I greedily hoard the data and don’t share with the public; and 4) that he developed the equipment and methods to capture and tag large adult white sharks. 

1) There is no way Chris Fischer ever spent $5 million of his (or anyone else’s) money on my research. 

We joined forces to conduct 2 expeditions before he got a TV deal. My last Guadalupe Island expedition (Fall 2012) cost about $40K… and that was with the boat making a profit. So do the math. Also, there was never going to be a second expedition (2008). Chris had a big sponsorship from Red Lobster and was departing for a ‘round the world expedition. I even flew to Ft. Lauderdale to attend his big send-off party at the IGFA Hall of Fame. I flew on my own dime, wished him well and said goodbye. When Red Lobster dropped him, ending the voyage before it even began, we got together to do another expedition in 2008. He did not put his life on hold, bet his savings, etc., to provide me two boat rides to Guadalupe Island. I was the one who spent months and months in preparation for each trip… he just showed up at the dock. 

Yes, he paid for 2 trips to Guadalupe, but then struck a TV deal that allowed him to recoup those costs as he was getting $400K/episode. 

We were able to make multiple episodes from a single trip. Furthermore, I tapped two other private foundations to help pay for the tags and research; financial support that he never acknowledges. Fischer was fairly paid for all of the work we did together… this was not a huge philanthropic venture. On the contrary, he made it clear: “no cameras no trips.” The huge $$ figure he throws around must be for the entire operating cost of his ship and production company for each year he was making these television shows. But that’s not a fair way to account for the actual cost of the research (a fraction of the yearly operating budgets were due to the handful of research trips)… and he never discusses the INCOME. Any real accountant would tally just the costs of the specific trips… or think like this: what would it cost to charter a vessel for each research trip, and then subtract the income! Perhaps he took a loss, I don’t know; my organization took a financial loss… but no way did either of us wrack up losses in the millions. 

2) None of my recent white shark papers would have been possible without the 10 years I put in the field before I met Fischer. 

Fischer just happened to be in the picture as I began to really put all the pieces together. I knew SPOT tags were the only way to push the science forward. I also knew the sharks would be easy to catch, but I wanted to lift them from the water to safely remove the hook and do extra sampling (sperm, blood etc). I was developing a stand-alone pneumatic lift to accomplish the task. When Fischer showed me a picture of his new boat at a Billfish Foundation Board Meeting, I instantly recognized that the lift designed to pick up a yacht could shortcut my lift building plan. I asked if I could use the boat. The answer was “yes,” but only if I allowed cameras. I had never cooperated with a film maker in all my years at Guadalupe (well… Guy Harvey is an exception… but he’s an exceptional guy), and I had requests on a monthly basis, but this seemed like a good trade. 

When it comes to enabling, I think one needs to look at who really benefited from this collaboration. 

I brought Fischer into my world… he took my idea and crafted an entirely new career/image for himself. He even used the experience to gain his coveted Explorer Club status. Brett’s a good guy, but even he will tell you he (Brett) had no interest in catching sharks… even as we were heading to Guadalupe for the first time. If it wasn’t for my bringing Fischer into the marine science world, and consequently primetime television… he would be sitting in his home in Park City without a big boat waiting at the dock. Yes, he was about to lose the boat. If I had stayed true to my original course I would have accomplished the same work, it just would have taken me longer 

3) I do not hoard data. 

Like any professional researcher, I gather data until there is enough to analyze, allowing me to write an excellent publication. Then I publish and share with the world, just like every other working researcher that I know. In fact, I was careful to publish our latest findings in an open access journal, so the entire world could read the paper for free. 

I also disseminate results on our Facebook page. And yes, I have an app that costs a whopping $3.99… that helps me fund the research (actually… it brought in enough to do a nice upgrade (soon)… but not much more). I don’t have huge tv deals and corporate sponsors. So what’s the problem? Fischer slammed my app (and me personally) when it debuted and encouraged people not to purchase it. No, I don’t give the data to Fischer… why should I… it’s my data? He got all the TV shows and celebrity status he wanted… I got data. Furthermore, releasing research results prior to publishing can be problematic when the time comes to publish. Ask any researcher about that. I’ve been sharing more data lately simply to try to keep my organization afloat. But the last person I want running around the world, interpreting my unpublished data, is Chris Fischer. But that hasn’t stopped him from doing so. His brand building (photo shoots and interviews with big hooks draped around his neck, the hyped fishing template for the show) really hurt my reputation as a legitimate researcher. 

4) For our initial expedition I told Fischer he didn’t need to bring anything, just bait…I would do the rest.

I did the rest… and he forgot the bait (thus the infamous bait arguments on TV program). I conceived of the idea to use his yacht-lift to tag sharks, I designed the cradle, I designed the hook, the buoys, the line… everything. When the cradle didn’t work the way I had hoped, I was the one that tore it all down and fenced in the entire platform… Chris wanted to use the crane to pull the sharks onto the platform (yikes). Yes, my home-made hooks were prone to bending and breaking, but there was no place to buy such big circle hooks and we caught a few sharks that first year. And yes, the crew helped refine my concept for safely catching and handling the sharks. 

The SPOT tags used by all now, were built specifically to my design specs. 

I tried the off-the-shelf version and it failed. My version worked, and continues for me and for those who have followed. Lately I’ve made significant changes to the attachment of those tags… but that’s another story. 

Every single place we went with the ship was under my specific direction. 

I was in the wheelhouse each time we dropped anchor, putting the ship on my numbers… and we caught and tagged sharks every place we went. Our success was not due to the exceptional fishing prowess of Fischer; it was due to years and years of observation, study and note taking.

I  hate this sort of thing, and hopefully it will be years before I have to put myself out there like this again. 

But sometimes it’s a necessary evil. There are moments of clarity when you have to act, today was one such moment. Let me share a similar moment from years ago: while doing a big promotional push before the debut of our first TV episode, Fischer and I were both doing nonstop interviews in NYC. During a short break, my wife and I watched one of Fischer’s interviews, on FOX News, from the lobby of the hotel. We sat in stunned silence as he proclaimed that the entire research program was his idea and that he had pulled together the boat, crew and research. Just weeks prior he had proclaimed that I was nothing more than “a passenger with permits.” Suddenly it was clear this was not a good situation for me. The science message was being lost by the growing ego. In the end, I could not bear to watch the series that was based upon my own hard work. I tried to watch an episode during the season when Peter Klimley took my place… I was sickened at how Peter was made to look so foolish… turned it off again. 

There have been a huge number of people on-and-off the Fischer bandwagon, many of whom can confirm my statements if you care to track them down. Brett was a good friend… he knows the truth… unfortunately our friendship could not endure the awkwardness to keep in touch. 

I will be the first to say that I’ve noted a different tack from the Fischer camp lately… less fishing hype and more attention to the fish being studied. 

Perhaps lessons have been learned. But in my heart I know Fischer’s ride is about recognition… not about sharks. He didn’t know a clasper from a cloaca before I met him. I hope he does great things for the world… I hope he becomes more self-aware and learns to let his actions speak rather than his words. This whole thing started because he could not stand the fact he was not getting all the credit for a paper Nicole and I invested nearly 15 years to produce. 

Dr. Michael Domeier

PS: simply brilliant post by Patric here - kudos!

“I once thought (call it an evolution) that science and tv could be married together to deliver the best and brightest to waiting audiences. Then the major cable players started cutting doco budgets, slashing and burning them in an almost Visigothic manner until a 60 minute show was left with a budget of $150,000 and that included post production.

What do you get for $150,000 or less? You get Gurney Productions and sharks. There will always be someone who is willing to drop their pants and chain wrap a Tiger shark, and film it, (yes ABC that's you buddy) for a few film credits and the chance to film the next piece of shit that comes down the chute.”

PS2: Megalobomb unleashes!

The most challenging experience one will face during a career in white shark research is being suckered into working with someone that is a dick. Like a one-night stand, they/their projects may look attractive and say all the right things, but then you wake up and realize that you’re some wrinkly married man’s mid-life crisis.

Fischer - the next Cousteau or a Corporate-sponsored Hype Machine?

Well done Abe Streep!

But first.

Read this piece of self promoting crap and compare it to what Michael posted back then.

• Did the Sharks choose him - or did Michael have to convince him to even consider Sharks? 
• Is he the first person to ever tag and track fully grown Great White sharks - of have others tagged them with PAT and spaghetti tags decades before? 
• Do hundreds of millions of Sharks get killed every year? 
• Do Great Whites need a plan of action for their conservation - or are they already very well protected, with many populations rebounding = meaning that at this stage, the real urgent challenge is finding ways of coexisting peacefully with those increasing populations?
• Did Fischer sell his house, put his belongings in storage, buy a boat, put together a team and set out to capture and tag sharks - or did he already have a boat, was a Billfish angler and was on the verge of losing his boat? 
• If anything is possible when you do not care who gets the credit - why is it that he continues to take credit for everything, with none going to the researchers?
• this after a cursory read -  I'm quite sure that if you bother to search, you'll find plenty more breathy BS!

See why I just can't get myself to respect the dude?

It's exactly like Michael said.

Perhaps lessons have been learned. 
But in my heart I know Fischer’s ride is about recognition…not about sharks. He didn’t know a clasper from a cloaca before I met him. I hope he does great things for the world…I hope he becomes more self-aware and learns to let his actions speak rather than his words.

And now, read this piece by Abe.

This is true journalism, not the usual crap posted by writers that owe the man a favor or that parrot his bullshit without ever engaging in even the slightest bit of due diligence. It paints a remarkably balanced picture of the man and his org, of his achievements and of the controversy surrounding what he does.  I'm of course with RickMac - yes there is science, but all that relentless showbiz is drowning it in an ocean of self-promoting BS. Meaningful real Shark conservation, not so much. And no, the science is not groundbreaking, the system is definitely not broken and Fischer is not the last great hope for Sharks!

Anyway, well worth reading!

What however does dismay me are many in the research community.

I'm seeing a lot of rather pathetic public fawning and praise of Fischer as long as he is, or could in the future be footing the bill and give away gratis tags and boat time - but I see none of that once the expeditions are over. On the contrary, all I get to hear are underhanded whispers of him being a self-important jerk!

So what is that: zero principles = total hypocrisy, as in pecunia non olet?

Me, I continue to try and be open about this.

I'm certainly never gonna side with the wailing anti-OCEARCH hyenas - but at the same time, whilst acknowledging that he is facilitating sometimes important research, I continue to dislike the person, question the antiquated unnecessary hauling out of the Sharks and profoundly dislike his MO where he continues to want to barge in on other peoples' territory, and on that of fellow Shark diving operators.

Case in point, Australia's GWS.

Once again, the WA government has told him to fuck off - and yet he continues to use the media to publicly apply pressure citing public safety concerns. But a pal in the know assures me that it aint gonna happen - thankfully!

And I cite.

The big question the public has is why the hell would the gov't say "no" to such an incredible research opportunity? 
But here's your answer: white shark research transcends science and bleeds into politics and public policy. In other words, white sharks are a hot, sensitive issue.

The involvement of OCEARCH comes with a loss of control of not only the data, but also the message.
Fischer has a very poor track record when it comes to publicly discussing/speculating the results of the work he has sponsored, and this very much to the embarrassment of the researchers. How many times have we heard him say that Shark X is going into the med to pup, or mate...or get its teeth cleaned??
There is no way that government will relinquish control over the narrative to an outsider - and at the same time, there's no way Fischer will ever keep his big mouth shut.

The white shark researchers in Australia are actually well funded right now and they already have the capacity to tag even the largest white sharks...without lifting them from the water. 
So it's a no brainer: they need to keep doing what they know how to do and keep control of the data and message!

Indeed - very astute!

And on the flip side, like I already said, there is a real risk that those idiots may abuse those publicly available tracks to go and kill the very Sharks they should be protecting! 

Same-same for New Zealand BTW.

Like in Australia, the nurseries are well known, and the researchers have SPOT tagged those GWS for years now - but there, too, conflict is rife and adding Fischer's mouth to that explosive mix could have devastating consequences.

Long story short?

No he ain't a Cousteau and never will be! 

Yes to the hype machine - but maybe, just maybe he'll finally learn that it is up to others to judge, and maybe praise him; to stop embarrassing the researchers he works with by refraining from talking about the science; and generally, to shine through his deeds and not through his unremitting self promoting loquacity.

And if so, he's really got a chance to earn the recognition he is so obviously craving for.

We shall see shall we not!

Fischer - Australia next?

Best pals, all smiles in Cape Cod - for now! Source.

Bingo.

And I cite.

You also have a history of secretly obtaining research permits without proper public consultation and awareness, and of then barging in on commercial GWS diving sites whilst disregarding the concerns of the local shark diving operators - and from what I hear, you are attempting to do the same right now in Australia. 

As a fellow Shark diving operator I cannot but disapprove of that MO. 
If you're so convinced of the validity of what you do, you should at least be willing to engage with all stakeholders, defend your POV and adapt your procedures in order to address any valid concerns.

And now - watch this.

Crafty crafty Mr. Fischer.

Playing to the fears of Shark attacks by claiming that he's there to make the beaches safer, and trying to use that to put pressure on the Ozzie federal and state governments by using the Australian media to harness public support. And playing the teary Shark savior card (oh how he suffers for the Sharks!) by suggesting that those GWS are about to go extinct, a fact that is not at all supported by the data - not in California, very likely not in Australia and especially not in Cape Cod!

Will the ploy work?

For now, neither the governments nor any reputable local researchers let alone the local Shark diving operators that ply their trade in the Neptunes want anything to do with him - and rightly so. By today's standards, the protocols are too invasive meaning that if so wanted, the same data can now be collected equally successfully but with far less stress on the animals and less damage to their fins - and without having to suffer through all that media circus and the bombastic self promotion, let alone the inevitable shit storm by the frothy anti-OCEARCH brigades!

But this is certainly not he last we will hear of it.

Fischer is an accomplished manipulator and not likely to give up anytime soon, the more as he disposes of some impressive assets and always manages to find some researcher to lend him credibility and support, at least temporarily - and then, they start believing the whole marketing spiel, get enamored with the media exposure and one's perceived importance and get badly burned in the process. Once the ego gets stoked, brain cells appear to wither, and now that Skomal is the new darling of Discovery, the path towards self destruction by implosion is all but guaranteed.

Seen it before many a time.

We now know the truth about Domeier, but it would be really interesting to hear what Fischer's other various past scientific collaborators from the back-stabbing Klimley to Johnson and Kock have to say now that the media circus has moved on!

Still happy and proud about the association? 

Is Fischer continuing to fund years of Shark research in SA as promised?

And where are those dozens upon dozens of announced seminal papers?

Questions questions!

To be continued no doubt!

Fischer in Australia!

Tagging Tigers in WA - good idea? Source.

Oh yes he's there.

And of course he's already giving the usual breathy interviews.

This is officially being sold as Tiger Shark research - first on the East Coast then in Northern WA. But of course, before even having touched the first Shark, Fischer is already, once again, mentioning beach safety, and making oblique references to GWS.

Because.

Some conservationists and advocacy groups blame the lack of progress on global collaboration. "Northern California, Australia, New Zealand - you have a couple of kingpins reigning over their kingdoms and they don't want anyone to come in because they might not be the king or queen anymore," said Chris Fischer of Ocearch. "They're not really into collaboration, they're not really into ocean or shark first. They're into being the man, or being the woman. So we have to disrupt this...the ocean needs our help now."

As he bloviates in this stupidity.

Right.

It's same old same old.

Fischer the next -and of course bigger and better- Cousteau, the great conservationist, tagging pioneer and protector of public safety - and of course, pinnacle of self effacing modesty, who merely does everything he does for the Sharks!

Barf.

Which of course begs the question,

Which safeguards are there in place so that the stupid government of WA will not be using the data from those newly tagged WA Tigers (and god forbid, GWS!) to go and kill them once they start lurking (yes apparently, that's what Sharks do!) off some beach?

And he's also set his eyes on New Zealand, apparently for this November - undoubtedly much to the benefit of stirring up defusing the delicate situation in Steward Island, see here, here and here!

And yes I'm being sarcastic!

To be continued!

South Africa - Great White Research and other Stuff!

No this time I'm not going to rant.
But I could!

I could rant about some disgruntled GW cage operators.
I could state that they didn't quite have the guts to openly take on Mr. Fischer & Mr. Boyd and that they have instead enlisted the help of some local Kraut who has quickly morphed into a monster, true to the meaning that Fanaticism consists in redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim. I could also speculate that apart from having the usual inflated opinion of self, the guy may suffer from a medical condition called, obviously only in German, Querulantenwahn.

Be it as it may, several open letters and public warnings later, the genie is now out of the bag.
Prompted by the dire warnings of the Querulant and by a totally unrelated Shark strike, the surfers and water recreationists have latched on to the issue of chumming (debunked here) and I wish the cage operators the best of luck. Were I so inclined, I could state that they they will now reap what they have sown, that justifying baited Shark dives smack in front of a major town was always a stretch and that the delicate balance has now been irrevocably upset. Talk about having shot themselves in the foot!
But fear not, I shall not do that!

I could also rant about the couch farting fireman.
I could tell you he has been described to me as somebody who has done a Shark dive and now thinks he knows something about something, that his two brain dead petitions have achieved precisely zero as anticipated, and that he has gone as far as to accuse Fischer of having caused the death of several Sharks 1,500 miles away. Wow!
And I could mention the proud rolling out of his ludicrous Hartzell tag, to be placed with a pole into the center of the dorsal fin that will be inevitably shredded as soon as the gizmo will start collecting flotsam like any other trolling lure.
And it got a GPS antenna no less - I mean, seriously!
But I shall not - tho I'm still holding my sides!

And what about that Facebook group.
I could tell you how several of us blue bloggers were initially intrigued, only to be quickly dismayed by the rubbish posted there, and have stopped bothering. I could also elaborate why I believe that it represents the very worst of social media and that I consider it to be nothing more than the appalling circular echo chamber of, to cite a friend, a bunch of dipshits with an opinion and a keyboard, among which even a barlafüs da Milan who vocally demonstrates his utter scientific ignorance and lack of decorum by publicly rubbishing his peers. Soci, ma indova ta l'é truvad al tó dottor: alla Pavesi?
Notable exception: Michelle Wcisel who has taken it onto herself to gleefully, and charmingly deconstruct the deluge of stupidities posted there. Were I so inclined, I would tell her not to waste her time by engaging with morons and instead devote her energy to further researching and protecting Sharks, that Einstein was correct and that stupidity cannot be cured. PS: it sure looks like she has come to the same conclusions - kudos! :)
But as I said, I shall not do that.

Fischer?
I really got nothing to add there - maybe apart from the fact that I could wonder about the exact relationship between the non-for-profit OCEARCH and the for-profit Fischer Productions, and about possible US tax implications of that synergy. And I could state that I don't believe for a minute that OCEARCH will fund the next five years of GW research in SA.
But again, I shall not - and we shall see!

Leaves the local research community, and the authorities.
I could talk about the utter fiasco in terms of outreach, this by the authorities but especially, by Alison Kock and Shark Spotters. They had obviously known about the project for months and were ideally suited for engaging and informing the public about the unequivocal advantages of researching the philopatry of the South African GWs, for conservation but especially in terms of improving public safety. I could add that enlightened opinion pieces are great - but that it is more important to walk one's talk!

But I shall do none of that.
All I shall do is to invite you to read this interview with the concerned researchers. Without in any way wanting to approve of the way this has been handled, it addresses and convincingly rebuts many of the raised arguments and it finally sheds a light on the research aims.

Still, for my liking, this remains too vague.
Scientific research does not consist in slapping on some tags in order to then "see what happens". Especially in this specific case where the protocols, albeit substantially improved, are still highly invasive, it behooves the researchers to be much more specific and to explain which previously formulated hypotheses are being tested, and why the chosen invasive methods are best for achieving those specific aims.

Concerning the posting of the tracks.
There is clearly a downside to publicizing that information without simultaneously enacting supporting conservation measures. This is part of a larger ethical debate I shall be posting about soon. *Doch doch Dirk, auch ein blindes Huhn... :)

And here endeth the non-rant!

Comments policy.
This is not a chatroom.
But everybody is welcome to post a comment - this once and within the length limits dictated by Blogger, after which I shall feel free to delete whatever I wish.

* PS: post about philopatry, tracks etc here.

Ocearch - important Discovery?

Source.

Well well.

Read this.

Yes Fischer is at it again - and the rabid anti-Ocearch gang is frothing.

Obviously, all that noise by Fischer is nothing more than his usual breathy BS. If you remember this post, the nurseries have been known for years and in fact, that link [24] leads straight to this paper from 1985!

In brief, this is the most important significant discovery my ass!

This is either totally egregious or at best, totally ignorant - the sad part being that by now, I'm not even anymore surprised!

And then there are those tags, see at top.

This is important research, meaning that I can certainly live with inconveniencing a few juvenile GWS in order to learn more about their movements within the nursery and when they later disperse; but nowadays, modern fin-mounted SPOT tags for small Sharks feature single bolts, meaning that those 4-bolt tags are hopelessly outdated and will likely lead to the same injuries as recorded here, especially in those fast-growing juveniles. From countless observations, it is equally most likely that the Sharks will survive and the fins will heal - but it's unnecessarily invasive and really not good.

Oh well, so much for that.

Several of my researcher pals tell me that Fischer has evolved and become more palatable - but as long as he continues to sabotage himself, his sponsors and the science of the associated researchers, I remain highly unimpressed.

And Alisa “Harley” Newton?

I learn that she's WCS' Senior Veterinary Pathologist for WCS Zoological Health Program, or the like, and that she is joining Ocearch with a whole gaggle of other WCS folks.

Interesting.

So far, WCS' involvement in Shark research and Shark conservation has been patchy at best - but now that they've jumped on the bandwagon and managed to secure their share of muchos shekels by a group of very wealthy donors, they are busy hiring (and you'd be surprised at who is applying!) and obviously eager to be seen doing something. Not a good start as they're now associated with this utter PR fiasco = due diligence anybody?

Anyway.

Be it as it may, this remains an important undertaking, and I very much look forward to reading about the findings.

To be continued no doubt!

Chris Fischer - flat learning Curve?

Same old same old... antiquated, unnecessarily invasive technology and procedures. Source.

Maaan... talk about being a sucker for punishment!

Read this.

Martin had posted a totally innocuous report about the Sharks of Guadalupe - and here comes Fischer whining about being ignored! Exactly like years ago when I posted about Domeier's epic paper, and when Fischer found it fit to try and embroil me in an idiotic debate that did ultimately lead to his public crucifixion by Domeier himself (read it!).
PS - and here is of course the inevitable second public crucifixion!

Here's the deal.

Nobody really gives a flying fuck about boat owners, captains and anglers. They're a means to an end, a dime a dozen, nothing but tools much like, say, the satellite tags. They drive boats and catch Fishes upon instructions from the researchers - and in some exceptional cases, when they obey orders and function as planned, they may be thanked and maybe even praised for their skills at the end of some scientific paper together with the donors and possibly other people worth mentioning.

Case in point under Acknowledgements at the end.

The stars are the animals and the researchers.

And the quality of those research papers is dependent on the rigor of the science, and on whether it provides new insights, or additional evidence for some hypothesis, etc. - not on whether the animals were caught from an aircraft carrier or a kayak, not on how long it took whom to catch them how. And certainly not on some gimmick like that tracker which is brilliant technology and great public entertainment but adds nothing to the scientific insights. Once again, in order to have any value, those data need to be interpreted - and this by a trained scientist, not some self promoting wannabee Shark celebrity!

Anyway.

A pity, really.

Some pals were telling me that the man had calmed down, was a pleasure to work with and had finally learned to put the animals ahead of his ego.

Well, so much for that.

Oh - and talking about self important jerks.

Behold Klimley in this truly remarkable document.

Yikes!

More GWS on the East Coast!

This is becoming ever more frequent.

And here is the paper - read it!

GWS sightings on the US East coast are on the increase, prompting  the researchers to speculate that after nearly 20 years of protection, the NW Atlantic population may finally be rebounding, much like what appears to be the case wherever they have been protected elsewhere.

Great synopsis by NOAA here, stories here and here.

And did you notice?

Remember Fischer's continuous reference to the unknown location of the nurseries, all the way to publicly speculating that Lydia may be on the way to giving birth in Turkey? Of course she did not and is back more or less exactly where she was tagged (= philopatry rules), the more as the Mediterranean population is believed to be completely distinct.

Surprise surprise - the nurseries are already known! 

No (obviously!) nothing to do with Fischer, and I cite

YOY and juvenile white sharks, which were more prevalent in the New York Bight region during summer, would have access to a wide variety of demersal and pelagic teleosts and elasmobranchs for prey [24]. The waters less than 50 m deep on the broad continental shelf in the New York Bight area may represent primary nursery habitat for YOY white sharks [24]. The seasonal peak in the presence of neonate-sized sharks suggests that parturition may occur near this area between May and August.

W.C. Fields anybody?
Which begs the question, how does all that unremitting bullshit reflect on the standing of the likes of Skomal and Hueter?

Anyway.

Read the paper - great stuff and a cause for hope!

Chris Fischer in South Africa!

One of Klimley's Tiger Sharks?
Remember? Klimley says he demanded the production crew build a sling to hoist the sharks and a live well on the ship, in which to place them. Right.

I certainly don't like Fischer.

Larger than life persona?
Indeed, a loud-mouthed self promoter who has barged into the North American GW scene, severely tarnished Michael Domeier's reputation and to top it of, is now brazenly claiming all of Domeier's research achievements as his own.

Now, it appears, he has set his eyes on South Africa.
I fully expect yet another epic fiasco, the more as he's found yet another naive bunch of helpers in Ryan Johnson and Enrico Gennari of Oceans Research.
Johnson is of course none other than Nat Geo Wild's token Scientific Expert of Shark Experiment LIVE infamy and as such, probably not a great loss, not for academia nor otherwise. Like every single researcher before him that has pursued delusions of grandeur by serving as anchor of those pathetic shows, he will slide into academic irrelevance and be quickly forgotten.

But we shall see, shall we not!

Scavenging on Whales - new GWS Paper!

Source.

Nice!

I've been so busy with the Fischer fiasco and according complete vindication of Domeier that I've been remiss in not posting about this paper.

Check this out.

So there you have it.

Of course, ever since the Blue Water White Death team bought a Whale carcass off Durban in their search for GWS, we knew that they scavenge on Whales - but it's nice to see such an in-depth analysis of the phenomenon. Great also to see Neil concede the first authorship to Fallows - tho why such a staunch crusader against Fischer's SPOT tagging would align himself with a prolific SPOT tagger like Neil leaves me somewhat perplexed.

Obviously, with N=4, much remains conjecture.

Although the insight about selective feeding is not completely new (but now further confirmed), the other hypotheses are certainly plausible and warrant further investigation.. Personally, I was intrigued by two observations in particular

• The initial predilection of the calorically poor fluke and caudal peduncle.
  This reminds me of Gary's account (and video!) of how he got jumped by a GWS when outside of the cage many years ago in SA. The Shark went for his fins, prompting the speculation that they may be first targeting the locomotion, much like Makos are reported to do when attacking Billfishes.
  Maybe this is yet another clue verifying that hypothesis.

• The lack of intra-specific aggression, and the pecking order.
  I've always described our baited dives as an artificially induced communal scavenging event, and I can confirm that our observations fully match that pattern. Somewhere, I've read that Sharks are not known to bite conspecidfics when competing for food whereas they will certainly exclude and when necessary, even attack other species. I see that daily on our dive but have also heard the same from other foraging events on Whale carcasses, namely from a well documented event in New Caledonia where dozens of Tiger Sharks retreated from a Whale carcass upon the advent of two GWS.
  If my intuition is correct, those chummed and baited GWS dives may thus offer a great opportunity to further record such inter- and intra-specific interactions.
  From what we can discern here, when it comes to rank, size certainly plays a very high role - but in addition to it, there are definite individual character traits, foremost of which assertiveness/boldness that break the general pattern whereby particularly assertive Sharks (usually males) will barge in ahead of the rather placid large females. And one other factor may even be desperation, whereby some possibly particularly hungry and thus desperate subadults will try and dash in and steal a Tuna head, only to then abscond precipitously followed by a whole gaggle of competitors!

Anyway, just a hint.

All-in-all, a very charming little paper that will hopefully once lead to more and stronger insights.about GWS life history and their functions within their ecological niche.

Oh - and I've learned a new word!

Post-prandial torpor = food coma! Didn't know Sharks had that, too!

Nice!

Australian GWS - extremely well documented!

The shenanigans continue - as expected!

No WA did not miss out on anything!

If you read past the pro-OCEARCH propaganda and Fischer's pathetic demagoguery, you will discover that the Ozzie GWS researchers have been extremely active - and I may add that this has been going on for years (read it!) and not only since the strikes in WA. As a result, the coastal phase (including the nurseries and early life stages) of the life history of those Sharks is extremely well documented - and considering that that is precisely where their trajectories intersect with those of the aquatic recreationists,  Fischer's assertions sound particularly hollow. 

More details here, and I know of trials to link those arrays to the other early warning systems and thus e.g. complement the helicopter patrols.

Think the WA authorities are really as moronic as depicted? Check this out and think again!

The oceanic phase however warrants more investigation.

Ever since Bonfil documented Nicole's epic trip, we know that there is connectivity between WA and South Africa. As far as I know, the purpose of those voyages remains unknown - but that cannot be addressed by telemetry alone and will require additional evidence collection, very much like what has been pioneered by Domeier in the NE Pacific.

Think the Ozzie scientists are too stupid to do that if they wanted to?

Long story short?

Fischer on CNN!

I still don't like the guy.

But the science is brilliant.

With plenty of caveats mind you!

And the picture above, i.e. a deformed and possibly shredded tip of the fin that does not impinge on the animal's chances of survival? Fodder for the usual frothy Sharktivist rants - but from a conservation POV, it is really pretty much irrelevant!

OCEARCH - Clarification!

Source.

There appears to be a misunderstanding here.

The last two posts about Fischer have literally exploded.

They are being read by the concerned parties and by many Shark enthusiasts, which is great.

Alas they are also being read by those other folks.

So there.

We are in no way a party to, nor do we in the slightest endorse the current anti-OCEARCH campaign. 

It is being driven by the usual cabal of self indulgent Californian and South African bloviators, cheats, charlatans and screechy fanatics, and it is based on nothing more than a collection of factoids, innuendos, half truths and defamatory lies that are being cunningly woven together into yet another perfidious and equally demented anti-science conspiracy theory for which I have nothing but contempt.

Needless to say that we don't endorse OCEARCH, either.

Remember Loose Change? 

Same MO - fodder for retards and pure poison.

So beware and do not engage!

Enough said.

And no, I will not let you post breathy comments and links.

You know who you are.

2013: the Bad and the Ugly!

Have you seen this shit?

Yes that would be the very same moronic website, and this is Brush.

Where to begin indeed!
This is the caliber of some of the self-appointed representatives of the global Shark conservation movement!
Compare that to this open letter by Kempster and those Shark researchers where FINALLY, somebody is starting to acknowledge that there is a real problem demanding real solutions that are more than the usual tired pro-Shark clap trap - and you may intuit why I despise that frothy solipsistic fringe of the movement nearly as much as that abomination that is the WA Shark cull!

So have you read those posts?

If not, do - they are here, here, here and here!

And more importantly - has anything really changed?

Not really - right?

And this is ultimately why!

And with that in mind, I'm not really gonna bother.

I've already said what I wanted to say ad nauseam, and will continue to do so whenever I discern a particularly egregious occurrence - but I've come to the conclusion that those yearly rants are pretty much useless.

Here's another excerpt I love.
I'm obviously 100% with Kyle!

And globally it's likely as bad - or even worse!

That's the audience those people play to, and whom they target with their various cons - and not only is there zero improvement in sight but things are continuing to get worse! Case in point: the Dolphinization of the Shark Conservation Movement has already spawned what a pal has dubbed the Unicornization, to wit.

Barf... Source. # mermaidwarriors huh...

Sigh...

So here's how we're gonna play this.
This time, you do the heavy lifting.
Everything, and then some, is already in the blog - so go and read it!

The blog offers two search functions - so if e.g., you wish to inform (!) yourselves about the world's foremost Sharkitarian visionary, or whatever, you can type his name into the search box in the top left-hand corner and then sort by relevance or by date; or, you may sometimes get a slightly different result by searching by label.

Same-same for e.g

• the Jersey girl's fake research institute with its remarkable prez and its complement of charlatans and pompous Sesselfurzers!


• Or Fischer vs the frothy anti-OCEARCH extremists inclusive of the fiery SvS, the bloviating fireman and all the various other dipshits with an opinion and a keyboard!


• Or Andersen with her pathetic retinue of sycophants and media whores - or talking of which, ABC4, Gurney and Shark porn!


• Or the various out-of-cage shenanigans in Lupe, from Amos to the perception-changing (read!)  Shark riding bimbettes all the way to the f@$%ing mermaid. Good that others are noticing, too!


• Or here are some industry thoughts - rants and otherwise!


• Shark-repelling wetsuits anybody?

And-so-on and-so-forth!
Notice the overlaps - and I cite, again.

It stopped actually being "about sharks" a long time ago.
It's about the individual and what the sharks as a vehicle to notoriety can do for them.

And for the masochists among you - I'm slowly WTF-ing my rants!

Surprisingly, they don't amount to more than a paltry 10% of this interminable opus - but they sure generate the overwhelming majority of the page views!
So here they are for your perusal and I discover, delectation - or for rekindling the various grudges!

Enjoy!

Spatial Behavior in Elasmobranchs - Papers!

OCEARCH tracks in SA - so far, highly ambiguous!

Interesting!

I've been remiss in not posting about several new papers.

This one by, among others, (the proudly left-brained, and obstinate) Michelle Wcisel, describes the movements of GWS in the Dyer Island and Geyser Rock system near Gansbaai and observes that they differ substantially from the GWS movements in Mossel Bay. As a possible explanation, it observes that the former Sharks are largely sub-adult to adult (= seasonal hunters of Mammals ) whereas the Mossel Bay Sharks are predominantly juveniles that feed predominantly on bony Fishes and Cephalopods.

Offical synopsis and great infographic here.

This one examines the abundance and sexual composition of GWS in Gansbaai in relation to the season and ENSO, and comes to the conclusion that females appear to favor warmer water whereas males do the opposite, possibly owing to competitive exclusion by the larger female conspecifics.

And this one by, among others, Tiger Shark supremo Yannis Papastamatiou describes the movement patterns of Reef Mantas at Palmyra Atoll with its two immediately adjacent lagoons. Whereas most Mantas in one lagoon alternate between lagoonal and offshore habitats, those in the other lagoon appear to be much more resident, possibly owing to the different hydrology and/or capacity of the lagoons to provide for adequate nourishment.

And the take-away message of it all?

What once again strikes me in all those papers, is how behavior is being mediated by the environment (= climate, geography, habitat but also occurrence and/or migration of prey etc) but also by factors like gender, age and of course, individuality - and this all within one and the same species!

And if Michelle and Yannis can show significant variance across the smallest of geographical areas, and this within one single population - isn't it only logical to expect even bigger differences between distinct populations that are completely separated both genetically and geographically?

Definitely a big yes for Tiger Sharks - and the GWS?

Even discounting the Fischer factor, it seems to me that all those many comments about those tagged GWS are tacitly assuming that all GWS must necessarily follow a life cycle that is analogous, if not identical to what has been documented by Domeier for the Guadalupe population.

But with the above in mind, is that even plausible?

Take the Atlantic.

Its hydrology (think: Gulf Stream), climate and fauna are very different from that of the Eastern Pacific. Other large Sharks like Great Hammers and Tigers have been shown to migrate smack into the middle of the Atlantic, quite possibly following prey - so why not some of those GWS. Other, possibly younger GWS could be following the Bluefin into the Gulf. Consequently, the overall picture is much more ambiguous - incidentally, much like in South Africa with its ENSO-mediated interplay between the Benguela and the Agulhas!

Australia?

There are two genetically distinct GWS populations that both migrate to the Neptunes where they intermingle as they prey on Pinnipeds - meaning that barring the discovery of some highly sophisticated reproductive isolation mechanism, one would have to assume that they mate completely elsewhere. And if so, this would be very different from what is being postulated for Lupe where the Pinniped colony appears to act as a focal point for mating!

Or the Mediterannean GWS.
Much more restricted habitat and quasi absence of Pinnipeds owing to the extirpation of the Monk Seal - surely this must have big effects on both their diet and migration!

Long story short?

We should really refrain from resorting to those very broad generalizations when describing the behavior of those different Sharks. Instead, let's stick to the evidence that keeps reminding us that things are complicated!

Agree?

Fischer - going for broke!

The savior of Australia - or is he? Source.

Bingo - again!

Yup the dude is certainly crafty.

Whereas he was only hinting before, he's now said it: he's the only one that can make the beaches in Western Australia safe - and fuck the Aussie researchers that obviously don't know what they're doing, and the stupid Aussie governments that refuse to acknowledge him as their only pathway to salvation.

Breathy interview here.

Of course it's all bollocks.

That research was pioneering 1-2 years ago. 

But now, there are better alternatives: less invasive protocols, and excellent local and international researchers that have worked with those Sharks for years and can certainly do the very same job without having to contend with all that self promoting noise, that inflated ego, those omnipresent cameras and the incessant media circus.

There's no middle ground here.

Tell him to get lost - and warn your friends in New Zealand!