Dancing With Sharks in Fiji!

Another great picture by Marty, this time with Papa! Click for detail!

Very nice - Vinaka!

Finding Salisbury!

Source.

I really like this.

And I also like the project - FB here.

This place is as pristine and remote as it gets, and should probably be left alone - but then again, I completely ignore the back story and matters may well be a tad more nuanced, as they usually are.

Enjoy!

Pétition: à la Poubelle!

Shark diving in French Polynesia - quite safe and totally sustainable. Source.

Have you seen this?

Seriously, don't sign that shit.

It got zero foundation in fact and is nothing but the old tired anti-industry fearmongering - and no I'm not gonna repeat myself, the more since as a reader of this blog you know exactly what I'm talking about, e.g. here, with links.

Just this.

The disappointing oblique endorsement by the Shark Girl whose career has been predicated upon being depicted clowning around on dozens upon dozens of provisioned Shark dives smacks at best of naivety and at worst, of total hypocrisy.

And, gents.

This is the moment to look at the big picture, and your presence and contribution to the IPFC 10 (especially to D and H) is going to be a great chance to address and debunk this stupid controversy.

I'm sure you understand - je vous fais confiance! :)

 

Megamouth!

Source.

Just in case you missed it (I did).

Here's that Megamouth from Komodo.

Not really the most comely of Sharks if u ask me - still, check out the pretty white markings on the pecs and pelvic fins!
Anyway, what a totally amazing encounter!
 

Story here - enjoy!

Insensitive Whale Shark?

Source.

Watch this.
Yes it's nice and I'm happy the wire was removed.

But that's not the point.

The point is that contrary to what is being asserted in the article, the Shark is by no means struggling and thrashing near the surface of the water but instead, it appears totally unfazed and is nonchalantly sucking down ikan puri, possibly offered from a bagan in Cenderawasih Bay; and even when the diver pulls at the wire right inside of the wound, the Shark hardly flinches and also does not swim away but continues feeding after the intervention.

Remember this post? Sure you do! :)

Methinks this video is once again evidence that Sharks perceive pain, if at all, completely differently - just imagine the reaction of any Mammal in an analogue situation!

Anyway, just saying - and yes, nice feel-good video!

Per i nostri amici Italiani: Smile, it’s Sharky Time!

Finalmente!

If you can, check this out!

Like Paolo explains, it appears that in Italy, Fiji is mainly being marketed as a honeymoon and not a diving destination. Consequently and with the exception of several volunteers with Projects Abroad, the number of Italian tourists gracing our dive has been minimal, and our exposure in the Italian media has so far been non-existent - so this is a very welcome surprise indeed.

Grazie mille Paolo, sei proprio grade!

Non saprei per il "pastore di lupi" - ma senò devo proprio dire che la'hai azzeccata perfettamente, e che mi sono veramente divertito a leggere il tuo gentilissimo articolo!

Speriamo ad una prossima - e ti prometto che quella volta ci sarà anche il sole!

Enjoy!

Totemic Sharks?

Hah - and I cite,

In a decade or two (~1995–2010), an unusual transformation occurred in the perception of sharks.
In the society, sharks went from being feared animals to protected and even totemic animals. In the shark-enthusiast community, the combination of interest or mild obsessions with sharks, the desire to do something and protect sharks, and mysticism, resulted in sharks becoming totemic animals. Even for some in the field of ichthyology, sharks ceased to be “fishes” and became totemic animals...

Shark Biology Becomes Shark Advocacy

When sharks ceased to be “fishes” and became “totemic animals,” much of shark biology evolved into advocacy.
Although there were sufficient scientific, ecological, and economic reasons to protect sharks, a totemic relationship requires that the totem be protected and be a protector of the clan. Thus, it was necessary, in the advocates’ view, to dispel “the myths created by Jaws,” or the idea that sharks are, or could be, man-eaters.
The notion of sharks as man-eaters was not compatible with the relation-ship desired with the totemic animal. Furthermore, if sharks were man- eaters, or potential man-eaters, they would not be tolerated and could not be protected in a society where most people are not aware of the differences among domesticated, tamed, and wild animals. So, in the advocates view, totemic sharks could not be man-eaters. Thus, a change in perception was needed, and sharks had to be portrayed as harmless to humans...

Shark Television

The movie Jaws also engendered a new television genre.
In 1988, the public fascination, or obsession, with sharks caused by the movie led the “Discovery Channel” to produce “Shark Week,” a week-long series of programs based on sharks. The shows were instantly successful. In time, “Shark Week ” would become the longest-running program on cable television, having lasted 28 years as of 2016.

In the early years, the shows were loosely based on natural history or conservation of sharks and were fairly realistic. Perhaps catering to what was attractive to the audience, programs soon became centered on white sharks or bull sharks, Carcharhinus leucas , and their attacks on people...

As satellite tags were developed and became widely used, filmmakers turned to shark tagging to replace the superannuated shark attack programs.
The tagging of a large shark is always an exciting event and could produce the action footage that the networks loved. Because of the high cost of satellite tags, film producers could always find a willing researcher lacking funds or seeking publicity, although most of the time the “researchers” were usually unknown to those actually studying sharks. The “researcher” could assume heroic poses in the tagging film, which could be finished with the perennial “high fives” of such films.
The networks loved it!

And then, there's this.

Like any passionate shark lover, I once adored shark flicks. 
The brave scientist pressing into the unknown, the cool gadgets, the thrashing of a hippo-sized toothy fish from the deep that quickly returns from whence it came – this is the stuff of obsession for any nerdy 11-year-old kid.

But today, most of these movies make me want to wretch.
It’s not just the puffy-chest posing and the gravely-voiced narrators, it’s the whole vibe. Sharks on Shark Week aren’t really animals anymore, they’re props. And increasingly the stars aren’t scientists, they’re stuntmen like Dickie Chivell, who gets on surfboard-like things to see if he can tempt a white shark to bite him or Micheal Phelps, who … I honestly don’t know what the hell that guy has to do with sharks.

This isn’t David Attenborough, this is Jackass. Danger porn. 

Proponents of Shark Week claim that the program helps bring awareness to sharks and promotes conservation. But let’s get real, no one walks away from Shark Week saying, “Wow, I really want to donate to conservation efforts.”
Twenty-nine million people tune in to Shark Week with an average of 2 million per episode and yet no conservation NGO I know of sees a bump in donations. If anything, shark populations have plummeted during the 27 years Shark Week has been on the air.

Bingo.

Before watching Shark Week, you should really read this splendid tour de force about bullshit Shark science and researchers, bullshit Shark conservation and bullshit Shark movies by the venerable José Castro; and check out this little pearl by Eric Vance.
And then, by all means, feel free to go ahead and watch that shit as it is utterly irrelevant anyway.

Enjoy.

The articles and the stupid Shark shows!
 

Yannis!

Yannis is a member of Team Predator at FIU.

Great stuff.

This is one of the good guys.

And contrary to all those media whores in front and behind the camera who will be celebrating themselves on Shark Week, he actually does stuff, and this where it matters - and consequently, much of his research has a direct impact on Shark management and conservation.

Enjoy!

Beqa Lagoon?

Click for detail!
 

Nice!

BUT!

Fiji's first National Marine Park, the Shark Reef Marine Reserve where we conduct our Shark dive is located on the fringing reef of the Southern coast of Fiji's largest island, Viti Levu - not in Beqa Lagoon which is an atoll in the South of us, see the image at the top. 

Now you know!

And BTW: what about the other featured destinations?
Most are equally being serviced by members of Global Shark Diving, i.e. Tiger Beach by Jimmy and Epic Diving; Cocos by Undersea Hunter; Kleinbaai next to Gansbaai by Marine Dynamics; the Hebrides by Basking Shark Scotland; Malapascua by Divelink Cebu; Osprey by Mike Ball; Guadalupe (and Socorro!) by Nautilus; Jupiter by Jimmy; and finally, Playa by Phantom. And when you come diving with any of us, you will be given a card entitling you to discounts with everybody else.

So, what are you waiting for.
The best operators in the best destinations await you!

Orcas vs. Minke Whale - Video!

Source.

Wow.
Story here.

Gombessa IV Genesis!

Source. 

Love love love love!

Everything here is just simply epic.

This is one of my very favorite dive sites featuring one of my favorite underwater spectacles, the cinematography is out of this world, and it's even great to see that the indefatigable Sané is still living the dream in his very own piece of paradise - and nice to see you, too, Johann! :)

And remember the paper? This is it!

Totally, utterly and ridiculously amazing - enjoy!