"Sharkwater" website

Leopard shark (photo courtesy Tony Isaacson)

Check out the "Sharkwater" website at http://www.sharkwater.com/. There is a video trailer of the movie itself there. Lots of other links too. You can also pledge to save sharks at http://www.sharkwater.com/pledge_to_save_sharks.php.

Tony's 'about face'

It would seem that Tony Isaacson has done 'an about face'. Those who know Tony well would know of his position re wild animal feeding, but it would appear that he has now done an about face. Given the desperate status of sharks at the global level, Tony made a decision to have direct influence on the best shark feeding dive that he knows, at Beqa Lagoon in Fiji. That is where he will be training this year to become one of the shark wranglers. "I know that it will be an honour and privilege to work with these free-ranging survivors of the Pacific. We know that the tigers visit the Great Barrier Reef and at least one of the bull sharks has made it to Darwin. Many of them have scars or hooks to remind divers just how lucky they are to be witness to their continued return to Beqa Lagoon. This, & other of Tony's photos can be viewed at http://picasaweb.google.com.au/stevereynolds600/TonySPhotos.

Shark cage diving with Calypso Star Charters

Calypso Star Charters offer one day shark cage diving tours at Pt Lincoln for $495 pp. A new spectator fare is $395 pp, incl. lunch. Divers generally get 45 mins in the cage. Spectators get to see all of the action from the decks of the boat. Visit http://www.sharkcagediving.com.au/ for more details.

More sharks getting caught in Qld nets

Qld Fisheries Minister, Tim Mulherin, says that recent rain & warm weather in Queensland resulted in an increase in shark movement. This resulted in more sharks getting caught in nets & other equipment. As many as 46 sharks are being caught in nets off of the Qld coast per month. A total of 505 sharks had been caught up to 20th Nov in 2009, incl. a 4.1m long tiger shark. It had become snared on a drumline off of Townsville. I presume that all 505 sharks died when they became trapped.

Divers can report what sharks they've seen

David "Why sharks matter" Shiffman says that there are 2 easy ways that SCUBA divers can help sharks. They can fill out a scientific survey about what sharks they've seen at their dive locations. This information is tremendously helpful to shark scientists around the world. For more information and a link to the survey, please click here: http://southernfriedscience.com/2009/12/09/a-great-way-for-scuba-divers-to-help-sharks/ . And if you are looking for the perfect gift for a shark lover, visit the American Elasmobranch Society student store at http://southernfriedscience.com/2009/09/13/buy-cool-shark-stuff-and-help-students/. All proceeds from sales benefit student travel to scientific conferences.

Shark nets pushing sea lions to the brink of extinction

The Advertiser on 3rd December had a little piece about shark nets pushing sea lions to the brink of extinction. The short article read “Nets intended for sharks trap & kill about 300 sea lions in SA every year and the species appears headed for extinction. Just 14,000 Australian sea lions remain & 85% live in SA. On the West Coast, breeding has started at 3 colonies, but the pups face a series of threats. Fishing nets, lines & lobster pots top the list in a recent report by SARDI to the federal Government. The Wilderness Society is campaigning against nets used to trap sharks by their gills. Marine campaigner Shen Dycer said sea lion feeding grounds & areas fished by gillnets “almost completely overlap in SA”.”

GREY NURSE SHARKS STILL IN DANGER OF BECOMING EXTINCT

A study commissioned by the Federal Government shows that grey nurse sharks are still in severe danger of becoming extinct. The study found just over 1,000 of the sharks along the east coast of Australia. 5,000 are needed to sustain the population. Accidental hooking is one of the main threats to the survival of the species. Nicky Hammond, the marine program manager for the National Parks Association of NSW, says that we need to get sanctuaries in place before the shark goes extinct.