Shark Repellent: a new study indicates visual cues could be a deterrent

As a follow up to my post this past Sunday on the Australian government's attempts to control white sharks off the Western Australian coast by a variety of often fatal means, new research has come out regarding another avenue for developing a shark repellent: Eyesight.

According to RedOrbit.com, researchers from Australia have been studying the brains of cartilaginous animals, which includes sharks and rays, and their conclusions point to some species of shark as having a more developed brain than previously thought.

There isn't an implication that the sharks are "smarter" than previously thought, as that often implies intelligence of a sort that we associate with humans.  Rather, while some sharks have developed brains along an evolutionary path that is similar to vertebrates including humans, the sensory abilities of the sharks are perhaps broader in scope and therefore can have an impact on their behavior more than previously suspected.

While chemical shark repellents have focused on confusing or disrupting a shark's sense of smell, the new research poses the idea that visual cues might serve as effective repellents.

“Great white sharks have quite large parts of the brain associated with their visual input, with implications for them being much more receptive to repellents targeting visual markers,” said Kara Yopak, a shark researcher at the University of Western Australia.

And what visual image would a shark possibly find threatening or repelling?

“A shark may recognize a poisonous sea-snake’s markings and swim away, for example, and we can use this information to cue a response.   It’s about understanding how their neurobiology affects their behavior,” Yopak said.  “This information may direct researchers’ efforts towards targeting the visual system when developing repellents for sharks.”

Imagine that the ultimate shark repellent turns out to be a black and white striped banner with the words "This is a giant sea snake.  Go away," emblazoned across the front.  Or perhaps we scuba divers will all start wearing wetsuits with markings that look similar to orcas - a known shark predator.   Anything is worth a try when the alternative is hooking and killing any shark that happens to cruise within the vicinity of a popular beach.

Source: RedOrbit.com

Sharks At Risk In Australia: tagged sharks may be victims of Western Australia hysteria

Researchers in Australia are trying their best to foster calm and rational thinking in the wake of five fatalities in Western Australia due to great white sharks in the past 12 months.  As the number of human-shark interactions increased, so did the demand for some kind of action to be taken by the Australian government.

It's really a classic and unfortunate case of public concerns for safety mixed with businesses concerned over loss of potential business that has fueled, ala Jaws, demands for action ranging from protecting beaches with shark nets and drum lines to actively pursuing sharks that are spotted close to shore to culling sharks in the hopes of reducing the potential for deadly encounters.

The media is subtly fueling the hysteria with reports (see below) of sharks "lurking" off local beaches.  Yes, lurking.  Not swimming  as they have for hundreds of thousands of years in oceans that were always meant for their existence, but lurking.

According to a report in Australia's Herald Sun, in September the Western Australia government authorized $4 million to use drum lines and track any sharks that come close to beach swimmers.  This decision came, in contradiction, on the heels of a government-funded report by Queensland's Bond University that found that drum lines provided no discernible measure of safety from sharks and, in fact, would succeed in catching many other unintended species.  Drums lines are floating drums anchored to the bottom with baited lines attached.  The idea behind them is that, unlike shark nets which are designed to prevent sharks from entering an area or that inadvertently ensnare them, drum lines are specifically designed to hook and kill a shark.

The random killing of white sharks threatens the efforts of researchers who tag and track sharks using various telemetry devices that can provide information on the shark's location.  In fact, the Western Australia government has even voiced an interest in killing tagged sharks when their studied movements bring them close to populated beaches.  But with ongoing tracking information of Western and Southern Australia's white sharks (a population reported to be only around 1,000), scientists can learn more about their movements - seasonal patterns, migration routes, and more - and in so doing can best advise as to methods that would provide for public safety while also protecting the sharks as they roam within the environment nature intended.

"Killing tagged sharks is the worst thing we could do right now,'' said Tim Nichol, marine coordinator for the Conservation Council of Western Australia. "We need to learn more about white sharks and these are the sharks giving us information about their movements.  It is very expensive and difficult to tag white sharks and only a small proportion of the population is currently tagged.''

I can hear the voice of Amity mayor Larry Vaughn, "Now you do what you have to to make these beaches safe, but these beaches will be open for business." 

Source: Herald Sun

A Busy (and Bad) Year For White Sharks: shark attack survivor makes a case for calm & conservation

This year has been an unusual one for white shark activity as far as their appearance in coastal ocean areas visited by humans.  There have been reports of white sharks with greater frequency along the California coast and the northeast, off Massachusetts.  And then there are the five fatalities that have occurred this year in Western Australia.

It is too soon to make the assumption that white shark populations have grown significantly since conservation measures have been put in place for both the United States and Australia.  That would take several years of reporting to establish a definitive trend.  Are there changes in the white shark's primary food source that might bring them into greater contact with humans?  Are there more people entering the water, thereby increasing the odds of an encounter?  Or is it all just a statistical anomaly and next year we will all be wondering whatever became of the great white shark?

It's just all too early to tell, but in an event like this, emotions can begin to run high and the demand for some kind of demonstrative, curative action mounts.  The Western Australia Fishing Minister, Norman Moore, is feeling pressure from some segments of the public and is looking into whether he would be justified in declaring, at least temporarily, a suspension of Australia's regulations against catching white sharks.  The thought is that a culling of sharks in local waters will solve the problem.  Typically, when such actions have been initiated, they produce a much greater loss of shark species than is in any way reasonable.  Often, all sharks, whether dangerous or directly implicated, become targets.

In today's online CNN Opinion section, there is a calm, well-reasoned commentary as to why Western Australia should not resort to a knee-jerk reaction in response to the unfortunate events that have occurred this year.  It is a particularly noteworthy opinion as it comes from Mike Coots, a surfer who lost a leg to an encounter with a tiger shark in Hawaii.

I prefer not to editorialize Mike's rational argument in this post, so take a moment and read what he has to say from his very unique perspective.  Click here.

Thanks, Mike.  I hope the good people of Western Australia can see things in the same light as you do.

Source: CNN Opinion

Rare Australian sea turtle under siege

As many of you know, sea turtles of all species are threatened worldwide - due to hunting, poaching, and encroachment on their egg-laying habitats. According to the Sea Turtle Restoration Project (and its affiliate organization, PRETOMA, in Costa Rica), the rare Australian flatback turtle's nesting areas located on the Northwest coast of Western Australia are under siege from potential exploration and drilling for liquid natural gas (LNG) (Read article from Australia's Wilderness Society).

Given the rising demand for energy resources, this is a tough call. Western Australia is a fairly remote and rustic area, not heavily populated. Hopefully, the Australian people won't think the area or its inhabitants are expendable because of its remoteness. The Sea Turtle Restoration Project and the Wilderness Society are calling upon people worldwide to let the Australian government know that their efforts will not go unnoticed (click here). Let's hope that a solution can be found that might be workable for all parties, including the flatback turtle.