Shark Eco Tourism in South Africa - Action Alert!

Please read this.

Wilfred is one of the real good ones.

His venerable Marine Dynamics stand at the forefront of South Africa's Shark Conservation, Tourism and Research and as such has been nominated to be the only GSD member from that region.

With that in mind, please sign this petition.

Contrary to many others, this one is very much linked to action on the ground whereby your signature will most certainly assist the local Shark diving operators in making their point when they will meet with the local authorities.
More here.

This is urgent.

Please, do sign, and re-post on your social media.

Thank You.

 

Please help the Sharks of Playa!

Source - and yes that looks like a subadult Bull, a small endangered Hammer and possibly a good-sized Mako.!

We never do petitions, for obvious reasons.

But this is different, so there.

We will make an exception when there's a worthwhile cause, with good people working on the ground, and when that team ask for signatures because it will help them sway their interlocutor, normally some politician or the like. One example was the push to get Florida's Lemon Sharks protected that was spearheaded by the likes of Doc, Walt Stearns and DaMary, etc, and where somebody within the FWC suggested that it would be good to show public support. That endeavor was ultimately successful and I hear that those signatures did in fact help sway the legislators.

And now we have a similar situation in Playa.

The picture at the top documents the latest, and perfectly legal haul by the only licensed Shark fisherman on that coastline. I must also add that that fisherman is the same person who used to target and kill those big Bull Sharks - but a lot has happened since that post, and he has now agreed not to fish for them during the tourist season when they migrate to the region, possibly in order to pup. So there has definitely been progress - but still, those dead Sharks are disturbing, and not anymore commensurate with the many marine conservation and ecotourism projects that are popping up all throughout Quintana Roo.

Hence this petition.

Launched by the outstanding people of Saving our Sharks and as always, very much enabled by my friend Chino of GSD member Phantom Divers, it aims at establishing a no-take zone for Sharks around the local barrier reef system. This follows years of dialogue, cooperation and lobbying with the local authorities, meaning that it has a real chance of succeeding.

This is an excellent undertaking.

Please lend a helping hand by signing the petition.

Thank you.

South Africa: one Submission, two Petitions - and plenty of Hypochrisy & frothy Activism!

SA Great White by Dirk Schmidt

Well well.
Fisher's South African caper is attracting plenty of interesting chatter and activism.

First, we got ourselves not one but two petitions! Yay!
Both have been created, or whatever, by one Chris Hartzell, another one of the token Californian Sesselfurzer that found it fit to publicly fart some rubbish during the Junior controversy. His expertise: occasional cage diving in Lupe to heroically document animals slamming into cages - and I will certainly leave it at that, the more as like his expert pronouncements, those petitions are nothing more than hot perfumed air and will achieve zero as usual!

But there is also a submission.
Yes I've posted the link because I find it rather good, albeit in places unnecessarily argumentative - and no I won't go into detail as overall, it's a valiant effort that needs to be commended, the more as it appears to have elicited some interest by Dr. Alan Boyd.
From what I understand, Boyd is the person who ultimately controls all permits including those of the researchers and commercial operators and thus the big honcho man nobody in his right mind wants to start messing with.
Frothy petitioning or no frothy petitioning, the final decision in this matter will be taken by him - so it's good that he is at least considering.

My prediction: the circus will go ahead.
Fisher is certainly crafty and appears to have it pretty much tied down by having obtained the active support of the SA Government's Department of Marine and Coastal Management for which Dr. Boyd works, and by having successfully roped in a whole gaggle of local researchers for whom the double temptation of perceived global fame and money has obviously proven to be irresistible.
It's a big, well coordinated effort, it has already been set into motion, plenty of Sharks have been tagged and plenty of tracks are already being published, and I just cannot imagine that Boyd will pull the plug now that things are so well under way - but who knows.

On a side note.
Among the researchers, I hear, Ryan Johnson, Enrico Gennari, Alison Towner etc.

Ring a bell?

Yes those three are among the authors of this paper about the damage caused by SPOT tags. To be fair, the paper examines sub-adult GWs where rapid growth may compound the problem, meaning that the effects on the adult Sharks which are apparently being targeted now may be less drastic. But I also read this
the effects of removing large (>450 cm) white sharks from the water in order to deploy SPOT tags are still unknown and should also be considered.
Hmmm..

My personal call, so be it.
After what has happened in Lupe and California, I must say that I've come to equally despise Fisher's bombastic clamoring but also, the anal frothiness of the various SPOT tagging opponents.

Where I'm personally coming from is that I continue to hate the current technology.
For very personal and highly irrational reasons (= I love our Sharks) and very much despite of the following, I shall not enable any such research until the gizmos have been finally fixed.

But I must confess that I equally love the tracks and the insights that have been garnered from the tagging - and if they were perfectly honest, so do many of the detractors!
Having tried my best to educate myself and having had literally countless conversations (and heated debates!) with Shark researchers, I have been convinced that every one of them is acutely aware of the current misgivings and is honestly trying to develop better technical solutions.
But at the same time, the dire situation of global Shark stocks mandates that we find out as much as we can about their life history as fast as we can, and satellite telemetry is one of the most effective tools for obtaining many of those vital data. Depending on situation and species, this may well mandate the deployment of SPOT tags - and trying to decipher the multi-year migration patterns of GWs may just be such a case.

Fisher and his wandering freak show will move on.
But if Government and the researchers are smart (which is not a given!) and have read the fine print before signing away their life to crafty Chris, they will at least own the data that will hopefully result in new insights - and yes, hopefully in better protection as well!
Conservation of highly migratory species is obviously difficult - but as e.g. the GW research from the Eastern Pacific is revealing, there exist well defined migration highways and well defined activity hotspots and time frames, meaning that at least in theory, we can now concentrate on specific locations and enact seasonal fishing bans which is certainly much easier to achieve than blanket protection (Playa: hint hint...!).
The practical implementation will always remain the practical implementation with all of its many hurdles: but at least we are beginning to find out what will be most effective.

And in the specific case of SA?
I have no doubt that patterns will turn out to be similar - and who knows, now that Dr.Boyd is so much involved, may he even be developing a new appreciation of the resource he is tasked to manage? May he even become more accessible to the arguments of those who are fighting for the removal of the KZN Shark nets that are equally subject to the regulating power of the MCM?
Yeah I know I know... I'm now clearly faffing myself!

Anyway.
Kudos to Dirk Schmidt and against all odds, best of luck!

As always, we shall see shall we not!

PS exhaustive statement by Johnson/Fisher/Boyd here - and I must grudgingly admit, rather compelling as well!

Oceana?

They got every reason to smile - well done Alibaba!

And I cite.

The incident has shown why communication is so important.
I hope that Oceana sends its apologies to Mr. Jack Ma personally after deliberately connecting him with the manta ray profiteering. Jack Ma and people like him, who consistently make the moral choice, should be acknowledged and thanked, particularly in such a sensitive context as the Asian market and shark finning. Alibaba has become a beacon of hope to us who have had faith all along that if the Chinese people only learned the truth about shark finning, they would change the recipe for their special soup.

Bravo Ila, spot on - it's high time for some accountability here!
It really looks like Oceana has committed a major gaffe by launching a petition without ever bothering to first do their due diligence, let alone get in contact with the petitionee.

Wolfgang has then resolved the whole issue with one single e-mail message.
I must say that I concur with his assessment: at least prima vista, this very much looks like an exercise in self serving hot air that has now sorely backfired. Having checked, Oceana is not a partner in the iconic Manta Ray of Hope project and having missed that train, there may have been pressure to be seen as doing something - very much like in the case of Shark conservation which is the current big thing and where everybody and his dog, and the dog of his dog are jumping on the bandwagon. Having noticed the last minute vociferating by Oceana in Florida, this after others had done all the ground work, I would not be surprised at all - and to think that like Mark, I used to be a fan! :(
But I don't know the facts and will defer my final judgment until I see what happens next. For now, the petition is still online which may be an indication of the fact that somebody there is either deaf, stubborn or stupid, or all of the above.

Talking of which, it may be even simpler.
I had to laugh out loud when I saw the name Elisabeth Griffin.
Remember her, the blissfully unrepentant Ms sippy champagny of African Elephant and US geography fame? May this be nothing more than yet another one of her blunders?

But I'm clearly speculating.
As always we shall see won't we!

PS Oceana have decided to spin this & are screaming Victory!
And now, thanks to your efforts...?
Where have I seen that MO before... and like there, I am very much not impressed!

PS2 Ila's take right here!

We the People - NOAA Response!

Well the Administration has finally replied.

The response is here.
It's Angelo's petition so I'll leave it to him to formulate the first comments.

Just this: welcome to the real world! :)
Thoughts?

We the People - done!

Great news!
The petition has attained the all-important threshold!

Now, let's watch the Administration squirm! :)

Shark Defenders Petition - Urgent!

I was obviously overly confident.
The Shark Defenders petition has not yet reached the required 5,000 signatures and there are only four days left to reach that aim. From what I can see, this is really a one-off as it very much appears that the Administration has since increased the threshold to 25,000 (bottom of page).

Yes I understand, signing may be marginally cumbersome.
One has to open an account and it appears that there may be technical problems - still, it should be possible to rustle up a paltry 750 signatures from the Shark Defenders fan base of 72,350? Isn't that what social media are all about, to have one's voice heard?

Anyway, here is the petition.
Sign sign sign!

Action Alert - Shark Defenders Petition!

This is gonna be interesting!
Shark Defenders have caught on to We the People, a new initiative by the Obama Administration and launched a petition against the sale, trade, and possession of shark and shark products. If the petition attracts 5,000 signatures within 30 days, the White House will respond.



I've looked at the Terms of Reference and have not found whether only Americans can participate. Logic would dictate that to be the case - but then again, since when has logic ever dictated anything coming out of Washington, DC!

Anyway, great idea by Shark Defenders to give it a try!
The petition is here and I invite our American readers to go and sign. I have no doubt that the threshold will be reached in no time at all - and I'm very much looking forward to seeing how the White House staff will respond to it!

Will it trigger new legislation?
Not a chance - but, it will trigger a response and put the issue on the table, at least for a little while. And, it's always good to challenge one's government, as in little strokes fell big oaks.

The 30-day deadline expires on October 22, 2011.

Oceanic Whitetips in Focus!

Great pic by Neal!

Good news for OWTs.
This is one of the most depleted Sharks and in dire need of protection - and it very much looks like that is happening as we speak!

First, there was the ICCAT decision at their Paris meeting.
Now, NOAA is following up with rules for the implementation of that decision in the Atlantic and probably not coincidentally, the good Shark folks at the Pew are obviously trying to capture that momentum by launching this petition aimed at extending that protection to all US waters including those of the US territories.

At the same time, I notice more activity on the research front.
Underwater Thrills alerts me to OWT tagging in the Bahamas (more info here) and I also found this video.



It depicts this effort in the Caymans under the auspices of the SOSF.
Is it me, or does that old model SPOT tag look kinda big?

Anyway, all are very good developments that need to be applauded.
Well done everybody!

Crunchtime!

Walt Stearns is a good guy (and brilliant photographer) and Doc is obviously a Shark God.

Both have put their weight behind trying to save the endangered Florida Lemon Sharks and for once, it looks like their lobbying and that of the good people over at the Shark Safe Network, and of many many others, are really having a positive effect.
So far so good.

But now, it's crunch time.
The Sun Sentinel has published this excellent overview of the current situation and if you're intrigued by the Lemon Shark aggregations it mentions, you can watch a short video of this amazing phenomenon right here, along with explanations by the Lemon Shark God himself here.

It is unique and also, highly vulnerable and needs to be preserved, as these may well be the breeding stocks of the entire Atlantic coast. They have also become a valuable resource for tourism, meaning that the Sharks are so much more valuable alive (as in 150,000 bucks per Shark over its lifetime) than dead.
Whichever way you choose to slice it, it is really imperative to see this through - and we are so close!

This is what's at stake.

The wildlife commission will decide whether to approve a draft ban (please read it, it amply explains why this needs to happen) on lemon shark catches at its Dec. 10 meeting in Clewiston.
The commission's ban would apply only to state waters, which extend three miles off the east coast and nine miles off the west coast. But the federal government, which regulates fishing up to 200 miles off the coast — except where that zone would run into the Bahamas — may follow Florida's lead if the state requests it. Karyl Brewster-Geisz, fishery management specialist for the National Marine Fisheries Service, said states normally request comparable regulations in federal waters for consistency.

Being my usual pessimistic self, I fully expect the fishermen to make a last stand in an effort to ditch, or delay the legislation. The way I see it, this is not a done deal quite yet.
For them, it's obviously about their livelihood and their families and for some, it's probably also about their penis size, at least for sociopaths like that sharkman, or whatever, I've just blogged about (and yes I'm being polite!).
In brief, expect backlash.

Please please please take the time to attend that hearing and to lobby for the conservation of Lemon Sharks in Florida.
This is not about being anti-fishing, it is about being pro-Shark and everybody is invited to remain polite (yes, like me!) and fact based. The Shark Safe Network has done and continues to do an excellent job in coordinating the effort and you should contact them and refer to their judgment when it comes to formulating common arguments and pursuing a common strategy.

Also, if you haven't already done so, sign the petition as the decision makers do certainly care about the public's opinion.

Thank you.

Florida - update on Lemon Sharks

Looks like the public workshop about the Lemon Sharks went well.
As does the petition!

That's what I gather from the messages I get and from the recaps on Oceanic Dreams and the Shark Safe Network blog. What I particularly approve of is that dialogue is being sought with the fishermen and that everybody is trying to find solutions that incorporate the needs of the fishing industry. No, I don't like it as it means that some Sharks will die - but, alas, it's the only way forward.

It's however not yet a done deal and surprises can always happen.
There will be another meeting and the all-important vote on December 10 in Clewiston and it is imperative that the pro-Shark advocates be once again represented in good numbers.

For now, congratulations to everybody involved!

Just another Petition?

A school of Silkies - great pic of an increasingly rare, and very lucky encounter by Ken Howard.

I hate petitions.

Very often, all they manage to achieve is to embolden the opposition and to anger those that are being petitioned - but this one, I believe, is different.

Florida's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has proposed rules that would expand the list of protected Sharks to include the highly endangered Sandbars, Silkies (pictured above) and Caribbean Sharpnoses.
Whilst this is certainly laudable, it will apparently increase the fishing pressure on other big Sharks like Bulls, Tigers, Hammerheads and Lemons. The latter are especially vulnerable as they conveniently and predictable aggregate in a small area off Palm Beach, where they are the subject of research and a popular attraction for Shark lovers.

Thanks to incessant lobbying by "Mr. Lemon" Doc Gruber and a coalition of scientists, divers and conservation orgs, the FWC seems to be more than willing to add the Lemons, and maybe even other Sharks to the protected list. It really looks like they are good people willing to do the right thing.

The present petition is meant to lead up to the public workshops at the end of October where the protection of the Lemon Sharks will be discussed and hopefully, sanctioned as well. It will add credibility to the arguments of the pro-Shark advocates, as will a robust turnout by Florida's Shark lovers and marine conservationists.

Please take one minute and sign the petition.
Thank you.

Obscene

Stories here and here.








Hat tip to The Chum Slick for having spotted the rope on this one!

Please sign the petition.
Thank you.

Horror and Terror

From Creativity Online.

Discovery Channel seeks to bring the fear back into Shark Week in a promotional game created by Campfire, along with N.Y. and Stockholm-based interactive shop Your Majesty...
Campfire Co-Founder/ECD Mike Monello says he and team returned to their horror roots in conceiving this game. "Discovery Channel had a great brief," he explains. "Shark Week is 22 years old, and a lot of people think of it as a known quantity. They wanted to tap into people's fear of Sharks and bring back the fear of Shark Week.

Just great isn't it.
I found the above link on The Dorsal Fin, an interesting "Shark conservation-minded blog that will deal with Shark news and promotion of Shark conservation".

Here's what they have to say about Discovery's idiotic Frenzied Waters.

Now, why would I give a free-pass to Campfire for creating a horror-based entertainment vehicle, but then turn-around and call out Discovery Channel over it?

It’s simple, I expect more/better from Discovery Channel, because it is the worldwide leader in non-fiction programming.
Discovery Channel is marketed as a learning/educational themed channel, while Campfire’s philosophy is quite a bit different. According to Discovery’s corporate site, “John Hendricks launched Discovery Channel in 1985 with a mission to satisfy curiosity and make a difference in people’s lives by providing the highest-quality, nonfiction content, services and products that entertain, engage and enlighten.”

Is creating an unnecessary sense of fear towards Sharks really “enlightening” the audience?
People who watch programs on Discovery Channel do so under the assumption that they are watching an educational work of non-fiction. Focusing a marketing campaign around Sharks attacking humans for programming that is expected to be educational is just plain irresponsible and seems to go against their Corporate Social Responsibility statement, in my opinion.

While I won’t be see ignorant as to not understand the fascination of people with the predatory aspect of Sharks, I still do not understand why Discovery Channel feels the need to perpetuate fear rather than respect of this aspect of Sharks.

At the end of the day, I guess the marketing experts at the Discovery Channel concluded that tapping into fear could earn them more advertising dollars than educating viewers would. At the rate that worldwide shark populations are decreasing, I would think that Discovery Channel would see that their “cash cow” is at risk of running dry.

Perhaps, it might be a good idea to focus on conservation rather than fear.
Apparently, that wasn’t in the marketing plan for Shark Week this year.

Whoever you are, well said!

Who's more anti-Shark?

Fox News or Discovery Channel?

Easy question!
The answer? You be the judge!
Here's Fox News: Final Fin? and Predators in Danger.
And here are Discovery's remarkable newest release, Frenzied Waters and its equally remarkable PR kit.

Still unconvinced?
Maybe you should take the time to read this post on Deep-Sea News.
Then, please sign the petition!

Hat tip: The Dorsal Fin and Underwater Thrills.

Weasel weasel....

Remember our question to Discovery Channel?

A shame that WhySharksMatter did not find it worthy of being asked but digressed into Whale wars instead. But no worries mate: no harm done. Thanks for the effort.

It's pretty obvious that Gasek never meant to truly engage with the Shark community anyway.
Like any good politician, he managed to deftly dodge the issues and obfuscate, befuddle and bedazzle whilst promoting the Corporation he works for.
That's what he's paid to do and he did a good job at it.

But whatever the exercise in smoke&mirrors, Discovery remains profoundly anti-Shark.
Their own description of this year's Shark Week Program is a case study in sensationalism, scaremongering and evil demonizing of a group of animals. Just like Animal Planet.

"We pride ourselves on telling compelling and accurate stories. Shark Week is no different. Two of our shows this year are based on actual historical events" - right, Sharkbite Summer and Blood in the Water are all about historical education!

Paul: yeah, whatever...

Keep signing the petition please.
Yes after what I've just read, Discovery won't likely give a rat's behind - but still, it demonstrates that we have a voice. And somebody please tell Sonja Fordham to stop lending her authority to this travesty - especially not via an obviouly fake blog where the last entry dates back nearly one year. That's called greenwashing and is unbecoming of the Ocean Conservancy.
Yes I'm repeating myself!

Enough said

Bravo Sasha!

Not only for this great pic of Scarface!

But above all, for having mobilized many signatures from Russia, by posting the Discovery petition on his blog. asnas then re-posted it, together with this link (embedding disabled) to one of Les Stroud-Gurney's most infamous "experiments".

Yes, it's the turkeys and hams!
And listen to the idiotic comments by the great survivor man whilst he's heroically wrangling the Sharks from the safety of the boat!

Just in case you may have forgotten why this is important!

Talking of which: big disappointment here!

In Norwegian!

Did you notice?

Suddenly, there's plenty of Norwegian signatures on the petition!

The reason:
Årets programmer i Shark Week inneholder derimot titler som "Deadly Waters" og "Sharkbite Summer", som blant annet dramatiserer og "normaliserer" blodige angrep på mennesker. Programmene i Shark Week bidrar dermed til fortsatt å skape frykt, slik som Haisommer-filmene begynte med, og skremte vettet av en hel generasjon - for 34 år siden. Forskjellen er bare at mens Haisommer-filmene ble markedsført som en fiksjon/skrekkfilm, presenterer Discovery sitt "skrekkshow" som vitenskapelig sannhet.

Well, I don't understand it, either - but I love the unusual letters!
Anyway, this is from a piece about Discovery's Shark Porn that Lill has published in Dykking (which I believe means "Diving"), Norway's dive magazine.

Thank you, Lill (again!) - you may keep your place in the pit!

Discovery's Shame

Sorry, once again this will have to be short.

The reason is that having moved to Fiji, I'm currently swamped by trying to establish a new home, kicking off some new research and Shark conservation initiatives, attending conservation workshops and all sorts of menial stuff you really don't want to know about.

Plus, as promised, I'm doing the post mortem on the Discovery fiasco - and lemme tell you, with astonishing results! As Tafa said in one comment, the more one tries to hide things under the mat, the more people will go digging, especially in Fiji!
Keep watching this space!

In the meantime, I invite you to explore Ila's blog Discovery's Shame.
Talk about a lady with a passion!

The petition has just broken 1,000 which is great - but still, we must do better!
Where are all those guys?

Deadly Waters For Whom?

How was your opinion of sharks formed?

All my life I have struggled to overcome negative exposure to sharks. I think I have won, but it has been a long haul.

My earliest memory of sharks is from 1975. I was spending the night at a friend’s house. Across the street from his building was the base movie theater. All that Friday night we were scared witless by the constant screams we heard coming out of that theater during the three showings. We had seen the posters on the movie theater billboard and our imaginations filled in all the rest, which is not too hard for imaginative 7–year–olds. It would be years later before I actually saw the movie, which only reinforced my abject fear of sharks...

Full post here - bravo Eric!