As a kid I read a lot, hopping from topic to topic. One of my favorite topics was sharks, which interest me to this day. One of my favorite times of year from a TV perspective is Shark Week, the Discovery Channel’s annual homage to the the shark. Although it tends to focus too much on shark attacks since people are so interested in them, it also includes programs about the scientific side: diet, behavior, differences among different regions and species, and conservation efforts. I have watched a LOT of shark shows this week and hope to catch or record many more. It’s like Christmas in August!
Although many people find them terrifying, I find them fascinating. Sure, my heart speeds up a bit if I see one while snorkeling, but for me it’s more of a healthy respect than terror. I think people have mostly accepted that man sits comfortably atop the worldwide food chain, especially with today’s technology. But swimming with sharks unprotected knocks us down a level. The great steward and “master” of God’s creation suddenly becomes potential prey, and many of us don’t like that idea. The movie and book Jaws (which was based on a true story, by the way) and tons of hype by the media have grossly overemphasized the danger that sharks actually pose to humans. This demonization of such an amazing creature both angers and frustrates me. It also gives people an excuse to tolerate overfishing of sharks even if they object to whaling or the accidental killing of dolphins or sea turtles in fishing nets. Here are a few interesting facts I’ve gathered so far:
- Each year, humans kill 100 million sharks. Some are killed just for their fins, some for meat or skin, some for sport.
- Each year, sharks bite about 100 humans worldwide. Yep, 100. That’s less than one every three days, somewhere in the world. Of those 100, maybe five are fatal. In other words, we kill 1 million sharks for every one that even attacks us and 20 million for every one that kills a human.
- In terms of recorded shark attacks, Florida is the most common location, followed by southern Australia and then South Africa.
- Experts believe that many shark attacks are preventable. Victims are often involved in high-risk activities such as spearfishing, swimming alone, or swimming at night, dawn, or dusk.
Before I die, I want to dive in a cage with great whites. You probably think that’s either awesome or crazy. Either way, I won’t be going any time soon because the trips are expensive. But how thrilled and honored I would be to see one of the most powerful and capable predators in all God’s creation in person. There are three main areas to dive with them: southern Australia, Isla Guadalupe in Mexico, and South Africa. Here are links to three dive operators that serve these areas, in case you’re interested (hint, hint):
Rodney Fox (Southern Australia)
Cage Diver (Isla Guadalupe, Mexico)
Dive South Africa – In one area of South Africa, great whites are spotted jumping out of the water like a whale during attacks on seals.
Not into great whites? You can also dive with enormous but harmless whale sharks, which eat plankton and can grow over 50 feet. Belize, where we spent our honeymoon, is a good location: