Shark Rescue - Video!

Silio: when he doesn't rescue Sharks or retrieve stolen cameras, he models for My Fiji Shark!

 

Behold!

 

 

So, was that Shark asking for help?

Who knows - but it sure looks that way, especially considering that she tried twice! And she definitely chose to come to the right person as Silio was personally trained by none other than our unforgotten Rusi, speaks Shark and knew exactly what to do!

 

Be it as it may, it was a really remarkable interaction.

This is a completely wild, large alpha predator choosing freely to peacefully interact with a human - which has incidentally also spared her weeks of pain, as the weighted line would have cut deeply into her mouth and left her permanently disfigured like Crook or Granma!

Seriously - how cool is that! 

And before you ask - yes that's a known individual.

Judging from her distinctive crooked smile, she appears to be a habitual raider of fishing lines, and we've accordingly named her Double Crook aka DC - because of the smile but also because of the petty thievery. 

Bold and friendly, she's prime adoption material, and I would not at all be astonished if Tashi Blue decided to add her to the lineup sooner rather than later - so keep watching this space!

Anyway, this is what we do!

Stay safe everybody - right now it's pretty grim, but we're all getting vaccinated and will definitely see you next year!

 

Grenzenlos - Video!

Toothy Bull by Ozzie Sam-  click for detail!

 

Behold!

 

This was filmed just before the pandemic hit.

I happened to be away, and it never made it to the blog - so there, as a memento of much happier times.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

Shark Reef - Video!

BRAT, way back then when life was easy.

 

Behold!

 

The virus is on the loose.

Government is doing a truly fabulous job in containment and contact tracing - but as we all must play our part, we've all decided to home isolate, meaning that I've had plenty of extra time on my hands. 

 

So there.

Filmed in 4K and down-sampled to ProRes 1080 due to my measly upload speed of 242 kbps  - and it still took me nearly five full days to post!

 

Oh and.

There's a reason why ours has been called The Best Shark Dive in the World - and this is why. 

The dive keeps on changing, and we keep on learning and adapting, too - but after literally thousands of dives I for one continue to find it as mesmerizing as on day one!

Watch in 1080 - enjoy!

The Sharks of Shark Reef!

Our forever unforgotten Rusi with probably Bum or possibly Crook.

 

Behold!

 

 

Obviously the quality is what it is.

But that was in 2007 when most of us were still filming in DV, and when the editing suites didn't quite have all of today's bells and whistles. Plus this is from a DVD we used to sell that had chapters and sub-chapters one could click on, hence the video's disruptive architecture.

 

And before you comment.

The generic Grey Reefie images are obviously not from here but from Tetamanu, much like the generic Blacktip Reefie footage. But then, you can witness Rusi's very first hand feed of a Blacktip, this after 4 years (!) of daily attempts - and once the first one took the bait, all others followed suit and have been hand feeding ever since!

Incidentally, Tootsie who back then was a total asshole continues to visit (!!!) but is now very much a polite elder statesman! 

Same-same for Whitenose who's the first-ever Shark I named back then in 2003 and who still pops by to say hello - much more politely and last time last week! And of the featured Bulls, we still see Long John, Stumpy, Bum, Crush, Crook and Granma, too - and there's even early footage of Valerie and Hook!

 

Or for you in the know.

Check out how much Whitetail has bulked up, and how even back then, she already mysteriously managed to always attract and surround herself with ever new cohorts of juvenile Golden Trevallies - something the other Lemons don't do, the more as having them constantly swim in front of your face must be a total pain! 

And yet, Whitetail continues to do it - maybe because she alone continues to visit some unknown aggregation of juvenile Golden Trevallies, maybe when she goes to give birth, maybe always in her own birthplace like her Atlantic cousins?

So many questions!

 

Or check out Adi who now is a giant but back then was merely a baby!

Anyway, enjoy.

We really cherish and are also really proud of what we've achieved over these many years - and now that the vaccine is looming and there's finally light at the end of the tunnel, we can't wait to see what the future will bring - and yes we got big plans! :)

So Sota tale - hopefully soon!

Playing with Sharks!

Source - and here - and here - click for detail!

 

Hah - watch this.

And here she is on Shark Reef in all her glorious pinkness, a couple of days later - watch in 1080 and full screen.

Of course she did stand out like a sore thumb. 

And of course she did catch the attention of our big, bold and very dominant Shark Icon Tip. Talk about being given a haircut - and then watch how her nephew Jono barely avoided smacking her with his heavy video housing on top of it! 

But of course Valerie would have it no other way!

Anyway, it has been loads of fun.

Valerie, and Ron have been our best friends literally forever, and every visit is always a great joy and an honor, too - and having been chosen to be featured in her movie, doubly so.

And now the whole big shebang has been completed - and apparently it is great, to the point that is has been selected to screen at the prestigious Sundance Festival. Considering the mess in the USA, I expect the event to be largely virtual, and that one will be able to watch the movie online, possibly even outside of the US - so there.

And if not, make sure you don't miss it.

Valerie is one of the true diving Legends, and then some - and what makes this movie so unique is that much of her adventurous, passionate and fascinating life has actually happened on camera. And now the public will be able to actually witness it, which could not have come soon enough - especially when compared to the exploits of today's forgettable self promoting Shark charlatans and media whores!

So thank you to Producer Bettina and Director Sally - this is really very much appreciated.

But I'm digressing as always.

Enjoy Valerie's movie!

Running of the Bulls!

Happier times.. - click for detail. Source. 

Behold!
 

This is just great

Last November and after a much too long hiatus, we had the great pleasure of hosting our deep diving, dear friends from Hawaii.
Year end is when the Bulls are terminally pregnant, and you can discern several such individuals like Gape and Tip. And there is also Hillary who still carried a tag from 2018 and will undoubtedly deliver a simply epic data set!
Everybody was toting a camera, and Brian has put together a masterful edit of their footage.
 

In loving memory of Josh Copus.

GTs vs Sharksuckers - Paper!

 

Remember this post?

 

That was not the only observation by far.

This never before described novel hunting technique probably started as an attempt by a single innovative Giant Trevally, only to be quickly adopted by the the whole gang of miscreants. At its apex in late 2011, the 15m Take-out had become a veritable gauntlet, with dozens of GTs targeting the Sharksuckers whenever a Bull would come in for a feed. The Trevallies would wait in front of the feeder and then follow the Shark throughout the feeding area, only to then return to the starting point in order to intercept the next approaching Bull.

Of interest, not all caught Sharksuckers would perish as some would manage to latch on to the attacker,  only to then jump back onto a passing Bull Shark - click on the the pic at the top.

 

It however all ended at year end.

When the Bulls get ready for pupping and mating and are less interested in our bait, we relocate the feed to 25m where the topography is completely different and the trajectory of the feeding Bulls is much less predictable. And then most of the Bulls leave for 4-5 weeks, and the few who remain feed way less, thus further greatly reducing the predation opportunities of the GTs.

Whether it was the above and the Trevallies lost interest, or whether the individual Sharksucker-hunting GTs moved away or were fished: the fact is that we've never witnessed that behavior again.

But we had plenty of footage.

Here's a quick-&-dirty little iMovie edit of some memorable moments. Yeah I know the slo-mo kinda sucks - but you get the gist and I promise that I'll post something better later on.

And now Juerg has also written the paper - finally!

On top of the above story, it also describes other really interesting observations of Sharksuckers at Shark Reef and other Shark provisioning sites in Fiji.

Press release here, additional clips here.

Enjoy Juerg's paper!  

Tashi Blue about Diving with Sharks!

Tashi and her babies - click for detail!

 

Great stuff!

 

This has happened today.

Our friends at Saving our Sharks are hosting a series of video talks with Shark diving operators, and BAD has somehow managed to be the first of the lineup. I am obviously biased, but I believe that Tashi Blue has done a fabulous job in representing us but above all, her epic My Fiji Shark project.

But you be the judge of that.

Without any further ado - enjoy!

And the gorditas?

They sure are cute and cuddly, but... :)

Fiji - The Road to Happiness!

Behold!

We are featured at 41:15ff.

I must say that despite of my initial skepticism, Augusto has ended up delivering. Yes purists will notice some cultural slips, and his depiction of the Fiji Shark Dive is a bit over the top - but he certainly means well and ultimately, that's all that really counts.

And we can officially attest that he's no chicken, either! :)

So there - enjoy!

 

Fiji Airways Trailer!

Hunter and Predator at he SRMR - click for amazing detail!

Watch.

Yup that would be our boats.

More details to follow as this hopefully develops into a finished product.
 

Or not - as always, we shall see!

Anyway, enjoy!

Per i nostri Amici Italiani!

Ciao!

C'è Sergio ed è proprio bravissimo!
Complimenti!
 

Fiji Shark Dive with B.A.D!

Amazing weather - click for detail!

Well well.

No we are definitely not on Beqa (?) nor in the Lagoon.

But this is typical for what our clients can experience - and this very much inclusive of the friendliness and outright exuberance of our unequaled staff!

Enjoy!

Haitourismus und Wissenschaft!

Für undere deutschsprachigen Freunde!

Danke Tom!

Dieses ist mal wieder saubere Arbeit: interessant, informativ, schön bebildert und vor allem wissenschaflich korrekt! 

Viel Spass beim lesen!

 

15 Years of BAD Videos - Coming of Age!

And here we are!

Needless to say that we're mighty proud - and after much trial-and error, it also looks like we might be finally doing something right! :)

Anyway, notable more recent clips include:

Howard and Michele!



Fiji's first National Marine Park!

Happy, and very funny clients - and the FOOTAGE IS 100% REAL! :)

Philippe!



Jason!



Juerg and Kerstin!





16:55ff: Tashi Blue and My Fiji Shark!

Lemme tell'ya, it has been quite the adventure!

And although the job is by no means done, we're certainly getting there, baby step by baby step, with BIG NEWS looming in the not-too-distant future!

To be continued!

And THAT's a promise!

15 Years of BAD Videos - Getting There!

Happy days.

And the saga continues.

Among many, many short and long film productions:

Behold the Fiji Shark Sanctuary that wasn't.

And lest anyone forgets: thank you Julie Andersen and her disastrous Operation Requiem for sabotaging years of hard work!

 

Shark Free Marinas in Fiji!



My favorite trailer for David's Of Shark and Man, filmed in 2011.




Hello Projects Abroad!



Jero and Ana of Pelagic Life in Fiji!



Shark Reef video!



Goodbye my friend and hero, Ron Taylor.



RIP my friend and buddy, Rusi.



To be continued!

15 Years of BAD Videos - Growing up!

Our Viking BAD girl Lill dove with us for most of 2009 and provided us with a steady stream of great pictures - this is Chopper.

Welcome back! :)

So here are some videos from our middle years.

I had just come back from a rather traumatic multi-year hiatus in Tonga, things were challenging with first a coup d'état and then a constitutional crisis in Fiji, and a recession globally; and then to top it off our land lord went bust and we were temporarily shut down - and thank you Frank for personally saving our ass with a strategically placed phone call!

And yet we did progress in leaps and bounds, did really crank up the scientific work and also greatly refined our protocols.

And then there was the International Year of the Shark!

We coordinated the only nation-wide roll-out of this initiative and produced Fiji's first Shark PSA, to wit.

This is a nice little program we did with local Mai TV.









The following two productions are incidentally both by Basque visitors.





And finally, more goodies by Mai TV, this time about our early work in the river nurseries.





To be continued!

15 Years of BAD Videos - the Beginning!

Oh my - how time flies!

Behold a small selection of videos from the very early days.

These are from approx 2003-2007 when we did a lot of experimenting and frankly also crazy shit, to wit the selection of bloopers and close calls in the "Naughty File".

 

Featuring Rusi and "Papa" Manasa but also David and Mini!

And this is our very first, very cheesy marketing video! :)

And talking about crazy shit.

How about Rusi a) removing a hook from, and then at the end b) mouth-feeeding Scarface!

And here's the famous BBC clip from 2006!



To be continued! :)

Sharkbait Ooh Ha Ha!

Source - click for detail!

To wit,



That said, enjoy Hannah Logan's Shark diving report!

15 Years of BAD - Pictures!

Rusi the man with the yellow hood and Whitenose, the first Shark we've ever named - click for detail!

So yes we're celebrating!

I really got nothing to add to what I said here and here.

Only, that there obviously has been more progress, foremost of which the designation of the SRMR as Fiji's first National Marine Park; quite a few more research papers, with several more already in the pipeline; and last but not least, our newest conservation initiative, My Fiji Shark.

So in lieu of yet another boring self-congratulatory tribute.

Behold 15 years of BADness - and should this or that picture intrigue you, you can click on it for detail, and also click on the dates for the relevant blog posts!

Enjoy!

The unforgotten Scarface - this pic is from 2003!

Two icons: Rusi and Scarface, 2005

October, 2006

Rusi and Doris, June10,2007
 

June 17, 2008

June 27, 2008

September 15, 2008

March 7, 2009

 

August 22, 2009

August 28, 2009
 

December 22, 2009

April 21, 2010

June 25, 2011
 

August 14, 2012

August 28, 2012

March 21, 2012

May 21, 2012

May 29, 2013 

July 26, 2013 

 August 13, 2013
 

February 14, 2014
 

April 4, 2014 

January 29, 2015
 

March 28, 2015 

September 9, 2015

February 28, 2016 

September 27, 2016

March 25, 2017

May 3, 2018 

May 15, 2018

January 1, 2019

February 2, 2019 

And finally, here we are!

To be continued - and that's a promise!