Watch.
From what I understand, this is precisely what has led to the death of Markus Groh - same species, diver way too close to the bait crate and way too passive, stirred up sand.
Need I add that this is not sustainable?
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Hello Martin, I am the owner of those images and I was very surprised to see them on the blog article you posted. I would like to ask you to immediatly remove them from the web as well as the comments that concerns them- which dont correspond to the reality in that specific situation. The person who is facing the shark had to push the shark away as it was a very intrusive personality and he touched it as little as he could and the dive was aborted immediatly. I don't want the images to be used in a provocative way when they don't reflect the reality of what happened. And I especially don't condone or encourage physical contacts with sharks, but in this specific instance, it could not be avoided by the diver- as I said, he got out of the water right away after the occurence. I am looking forward to hearing from you soon, Thank you, Jean-Marie Ghislain.
Like a high stakes game of musical chairs, (that person) is at the end of a long record that has been playing for almost a decade. When the music runs out someone will find themselves and the sharks in a completely untenable situation. There will be plenty of blame to go around.
We might talk of apex size classes rather than apex species in relation to sharks and other marine predators that grow indeterminately throughout their lives.
Using the criterion of apex size classes, the categorisation of sharks as apex predators would be restricted mainly to adults of large-bodied and wide-ranging species that influence many species within a community. Use of this definition would limit the term apex predator to large individuals (>3 m) such as older juvenile or adult white, tiger, hammerhead and dusky sharks...
(and adult Bull Sharks!)
Most shark species and size classes are in fact best described in the role of mesopredator.
The ecological role of sharks within the diverse and impacted marine environment requires careful consideration.
Our size-based view of the classification of predatory roles raises important questions about what objectives to manage, and how these objectives can be best achieved.
Protection of reef communities through marine protected areas (MPAs) or fisheries regulation (or indeed, naturally on those few locations far from human population centres) would ensure the mesopredator sharks on these reefs are sheltered from fishing pressure. However, the same may not be true for apex predators because their broad movement patterns and large home ranges (Meyer et al. 2009) would expose them to a greater diversity of fishing fleets and gears, and thus a greater overall mortality than the smaller-ranging, reef-dwelling mesopredators. Hence, the apex predators of coral reefs may be silently eliminated by offshore pelagic longline fisheries, unbeknownst to those managing reef diversity and function (Cox et al. 2002).Therefore, reef-based MPAs are not adequate to protect these species.
296 Fig. 2. Conceptual diagram outlining the loss of apex predators from reef regions and corresponding system responses where a marine protected area (MPA) is present (upper) or absent (lower). Presence of MPAs leads to different states of equilibrium on individual reefs
Avoiding and mitigating these impacts may require consideration of the ecosystem- and jurisdiction-crossing movements of apex species and size classes. Therefore, management needs to consider not only the effect of reef-based spatial closure, but the amount of time these regions provide shelter to large, mobile, apex species.
My name is Viktor Hesselberg- Thomsen.
I am 19 years old, live in Fredensborg and graduated buzzer 2013. In my gap year I came to Fiji for six weeks with the organization Projects Abroad to work on a project that aims to protect and conserve sharks primarily here in the South Pacific . We do this by collecting data to hajforskere , develop educational material about sharks , and to train local people in our neighborhood about sharks.I have always been fascinated by the sea and the animals that live in it. When I saw this project , I had to simply join me . I pushed the plans I had at the start of the new year, and wrote me up for the project.
After 35 hours of travel I arrived in this amazing country with a very friendly locals .
In the project we are 20 volunteers, and the age difference is great. There are about ten , which is between 17 and 25 years. The rest are somewhere between 26 and 63 years. Although there is huge difference in age and background between us is really good atmosphere in the group and I have made friends all around the world.
Two to three times a week we'll go diving .
Here we collect data by counting how many and which sharks we see. We also an underwater camera with a feed box . In addition, we develop training materials or game / play ( involving sharks) , these we use when we are once a week take off for a school or a local village to give sharks a positive ' image ' of the people especially the children. We also try to catch baby sharks to take DNA samples and to cause them a ' tag ' that makes it easy to follow them.
Once a month , we take a dive center out and watch them feed the sharks.
Here we have 40-45 bull sharks swimming around , you see how easy and elegant grabs tuna heads , as they are fed . This is one of the best experiences of my life , and along with the rest of the project and unity with the other volunteers have it pushed to my view of sharks and the world at large. I really think that those who get the opportunity to see sharks in the wild , must seize it !
Viktor diving with sharks in Fiji.
1) Please state your name and affiliation/title as you'd like it to appear in the article (and a link to your business website)I am Mike Neumann, a shareholder of Beqa Adventure Divers.We are a dive operator specializing in baited shark dives with several sharks, among which our flagship species bull sharks. We are also heavily invested in shark research and shark conservation, the latter both directly and through advocacy.2) In general, is shark diving good for sharks? Why or why not?In general terms, yes.Shark diving showcases some of the most charismatic marine species and has a proven track record of furthering shark conservation by enabling the public to acquire a better understanding and appreciation of these magnificent animals. Many reputable shark diving operators are also actively engaged in conservation and research, the latter often in cooperation with the research community to whom they provide access to the animals but also invaluable long-term data, etc.The above however with a big caveat.Like any other organized wildlife tours, shark diving can also be highly detrimental if conducted incorrectly. E.g. whale shark tourism had to be regulated in order to avoid issues of operator overcrowding and harassment. Baited dives with large predatory sharks carry inherent risks that need to be properly managed in order to avoid accidents that would ultimately reflect negatively on the sharks.3) Have you observed (or heard of) customers change their minds about sharks after interacting with them up close?Countless times!We service clients of all experience levels and it is always inspiring to observe the awe and exhilaration especially of the newbies once they realize that the sharks are nothing like the negative stereotypes but instead simply awesome and beautiful – and badass!4) What do you think of recent "daredevil" behavior, ie riding sharks and filming it? Are these divers in danger, even if they have experience around sharks?As you know, I hate it and have publicly criticized that practice for many years.My main grievance is this: I hope that everybody agrees that riding harmless species like turtles, manatees, nurse sharks, manta rays or whale sharks is totally disrespectful and moronic – so why would riding those predatory sharks be anything else?Being in the presence of those wonderful animals is a privilege. We need to admire and respect them – not molest them!The risk aspect plays a secondary role – but yes, these close interactions with large predators are always dangerous. Highly experienced people may possibly limit those risks through adequate behavior and safety protocols – but the increasing number of inexperienced copycats makes me fear that somebody will end up having a bad accident.5) If someone gets hurt while riding a shark, what will the consequences be for your industry? For sharks in general?As long as those remain private undertakings, common sense will likely prevail as the overwhelming majority of people will state the obvious, i.e. that the perpetrator was a fool who got what he was asking for.
What however concerns me are trends in the industry whereby some commercial operators enable ever closer direct interactions between their clients and those large predatory sharks, and this in baited conditions. I am convinced that it’s only a matter of time before this will precipitate a major accident – and if so, it will reflect very negatively on the industry in general and reinforce the already widespread reservations against our activities. This can also not be good for the sharks.Having said that, I am equally convinced that the consequences for those operators that are on record for not approving of those developments and for observing stringent safety protocols will be minimal.6) People say that they are riding sharks to help show others that sharks aren't dangerous. What do you think of this?First things first: those large predatory sharks are dangerous and asserting otherwise is both disingenuous and stupid.
It is also a stupid conservation strategy.
Nobody asserts that e.g. the big cats, bears and large and/or venomous reptiles are harmless – and yet we preserve them because we appreciate their beauty and ecological role, and because we believe in preserving biodiversity. Predators have every right to be predators and we need to respect and admire them as such. The best conservation strategy is to concentrate on awareness and education whilst advocating legislative change - not those misleading stunts.By the same token, it is at best naive to assert that Sharks are imperiled because the public does not like them.Like with all other endangered large predators, the principal risks for sharks are commercial overexploitation coupled with habitat destruction and human encroachment leading to conflicts. Shark fishermen kill sharks because they are trying to make a living, not because they hate them – and I can equally assure you that no fisherman in say, Indonesia will stop fishing because of some scantily clad peroxide piranha swimming loops around a perplexed Oceanic Whitetip!And finally allow me one last observation: upon closer inspection, the main motivation of those people appears to be personal gain - be it perceived fame, revenue from selling those images or marketing for their corporate sponsors. Far from being admirable, this is highly hypocritical.7) Have you observed changes in your industry in recent years?Yes I have.On the positive side, many operators have become more active in shark conservation because they have witnessed the decline of sharks first hand and decided that something needed to be done. Others have been driven into it by competitive pressure. It is also great to see an increase in the number of shark divers and shark conservationists.On the negative side, like I said, I observe the trend towards ever closer encounters with great apprehension.And when it comes to shark conservation, I deplore what I call the dolphinization of the shark movement whereby predatory sharks are being depicted as puppy dogs and the media are increasingly being driven by shameless self promoters, cheats and charlatans.8) Is there anything else you'd like to share about your business, the broader industry, or your thoughts on this daredevil behavior?I wish that the industry were more cohesive, and that we could all agree that we carry a collective obligation to act as stewards of the animals we showcase. That very much includes desisting from enabling those horrible productions by Discovery, Animal Planet and Nat Geo Wild.Thanks!Thank you for this opportunity!