Sharks Aren’t the Only Fear Beneath
A penguin is viciously decapitated by an aggressive seal
Great White Sharks Hunt Like Serial Killers
Great White Sharks Hunt Like Serial Killers
Great white sharks have some things in common with human serial killers, a new study says: They don’t attack at random, but stalk specific victims, lurking out of sight.
The sharks hang back and observe from a not-too-close, not-too-far base, hunt strategically, and learn from previous attempts, according to a study being published online Monday in the Journal of Zoology. Researchers used a serial killer profiling method to figure out just how the fearsome ocean predator hunts, something that’s been hard to observe beneath the surface.
“There’s some strategy going on,” said study co-author Neil Hammerschlag, a shark researcher at the University of Miami who observed 340 great white shark attacks on seals off an island in South Africa. “It’s more than sharks lurking at the water waiting to go after them.”
The sharks feeding at Seal Island could have just hovered right where the seals congregated if they were random killers-of-opportunity, Hammerschlag said. But they weren’t.
The sharks had a distinct M.O.
Read more
Interview With A Shark Expert
Aaron Cohen, of the Unlikely Words blog and resident of Somerville, MA, was kind enough to send in some of his recent shark-related work, including an interview with George Burgess of the International Shark Attack File. We’ve excerpted a bit below and linked to both parts of the interview:
George Burgess is the director of the International Shark Attack File, which tracks shark attacks all over the world. If a shark bites a person somewhere on this planet, Burgess and his crew track down all of the information and keep it safe in the File. I tracked Burgess down a couple weeks ago and he graciously agreed to answer some questions.
Is there something specific that drew you to your study of sharks and your work with sharks?
I guess, like many people I grew up with a fascination for sharks, having grown up on the coast line. I think most people are excited about sharks on some level. The difference was that I was able to take that fascination with sharks and interest in sharks and turn it into a career.
If someone is swimming and sees a shark, what’s the best thing to do?
Well, it’s pretty obvious now to get out of the water. And it seems obvious, but a lot of people don’t, especially surfers who are very much glued to their activity and more prone to take risks.
Interview With A Shark Expert, Part One
Interview With A Shark Expert, Part Two
WHITE MIKE: Great White Shark Conservation
White Mike with the US Capitol Building
The following is from the WHITE MIKE website: “You may seen have the WHITE MIKE posters around the city of Los Angeles–Malibu, PCH, Downtown L.A., Bel-Air, Hollywood, Melrose–but the real story behind the WHITE MIKE image is meant to shed light on the dwindling state of the Great White Shark population. While the WHITE MIKE posters may be splattered all over the streets of L.A., the sad state of the “White Mike” is a global matter that needs to be addressed.
The sad reality is this: The global great white population has shrunk 70 percent in the past 50 years. (ABC News)
Great White Sharks are needed to balance the eco-system. Take them out of this equation and the loss of this apex predator is chaos that will ripple not only in our oceans but elsewhere in our global community.
Komodo Dragons Terrorize Indonesian Villagers
Komodo Dragon Attacks Are On The Rise
Komodo dragons have shark-like teeth and poisonous venom that can kill a person within hours of a bite. Yet villagers who have lived for generations alongside the world’s largest lizard were not afraid — until the dragons started to attack.
The stories spread quickly across this smattering of tropical islands in southeastern Indonesia, the only place the endangered reptiles can still be found in the wild: Two people were killed since 2007 — a young boy and a fisherman — and others were badly wounded after being charged unprovoked.
… Main, a 46-year-old park ranger, was doing paperwork when a dragon slithered up the stairs of his wooden hut in Komodo National Park and went for his ankles dangling beneath the desk. When the ranger tried to pry open the beast’s powerful jaws, it locked its teeth into his hand.
Cage-Diving Tours Found Not To Increase Shark Risk
JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARBULLETIN.COM
Check out the full story for all the details:
There is no scientific evidence that Oahu North Shore cage-diving tours increase shark attack risk for recreational ocean users in near-shore waters, a two-year study of shark behavior concluded. Scientists from the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology noted a lack of proof during the latest shark tour debate, said biologist Carl Meyer.
Such shark tours pose no significant threat to near-shore ocean recreation users, and there is no reason to believe they will as long as they remain “spatially separated from recreational ocean users,” Meyer said in response to a question on whether the data might shift if there is an increase in the number of tour operators on the South Shore.
Meyer noted other studies that show a greater number of attacks were in connection with shark tours that involved an operation with underwater divers who sit on the reef and attract sharks with fish parts versus cage-diving tours.
New Smyrna Beach Resumes Shark Carnage Season
It must be that time of year – the waters are frothing with blood after two shark attacks in the infamous Shark Attack Capital of the World, New Smyrna Beach, Volusia County, Florida.
Two men were bitten by unidentified sharks within five minutes of one another – arm yourselves and prepare for the impending shark invasion!
NBC Miami reports on the attacks and makes a loosely-veiled implication that the waters may not be safe for humans: “Two shark attacks on Florida’s Space Coast yesterday have some wondering if it’s safe to go back in the water”
Is Carcharodon Megalodon Flourishing In Pacific Ocean Trenches?
A faithful Fear Beneath reader passed along what look to be an entertaining read -- a new book coming out that “is a must for any shark enthusiast!”
“Steve Alten will be releasing his fourth installment of the ‘MEG’ series on May 19, 2009. The series focuses on the possibility that carcharodon megalodon is flourishing in the deep sea trenches of the Pacific Ocean and has managed to make the transition to coastal waters. The latest installment is entitled ‘MEG: Hell’s Aquarium’. I believe the series is a MUST READ for any shark enthusiast. Alten has also created a trailer for the new horrific tale which can be viewed at the following YouTube link.”
Stand-Up Paddle Surfers: Irresistible Shark Attack Victims?
Stand-Up Paddle Surfers: Potential Shark Attack Victims?
This article, published a couple months ago (yeah, we’re lazy) over at MyLocalLineup.Com seems to issue a warning; stand-up paddle surfers represent a delicious new source of victims for the great white shark, also known as … The Fear Beneath.
‘Stand-up paddle (SUP) surfers reported above average shark sightings in January and February at San Onofre State Beach, according to the Shark Research Committee, a non-profit scientific research organization that documents shark attacks in the Pacific Coast of North America.
In these two months alone, there have been five reported incidents, where sharks subtly approached SUP surfers and then swam away without any signs of aggression. Most of the reports describe a 16-17 foot great white, located south of the power plant and about 30-50 yards offshore …
The unusual number of sightings by SUP riders could be due to either one or a combination of the following factors … the ability to reach remote areas leads them to places where white sharks are more likely to be … the larger surfboard area, together perhaps with the paddle strokes, is more attractive to great whites. Whatever the case may be, this new surf modality is receiving scrutiny even from the locals’ local, namely, great whites.’
BEWARE THE BIXBY SHARK KILL-ZONE
Another Savage Mutilation on Bixby Ranch coastline
The images depict the badly decomposing and scavenged carcass of a seal, common local sea life in Santa Barbara County and a favorite snack of sharks, due to the energy-rich fatty flesh of the pinniped.
A gaping hole in the rotting corpse appears to have been the product of a deadly assault by California’s most feared ocean predator – the Great White Shark. The bite diameter lends credence to the theory that this attack was committed by a juvenile shark, just beginning to learn how to eat large mammals, with a tremendous career of ocean terror still lying ahead of it…
Sharks Terrorize Australian Beaches
Filed under: Australia, California, Florida, News, Shark Attacks
A Hungry Great White Shark... Frightening.
Should you be afraid of the man in the grey suit? Of course you should.
There’s a distinct possibility that climate change is affecting the number of fatal shark attacks. Soon the sharks will take to the streets and hunt us in our beds as we sleep.
You have nothing to fear except for The Fear Beneath!
Massive Tiger Shark Netted Outside Teahupoo
Tahitians Catch Massive Tiger Shark in Teahupoo Nets
Imagine getting slammed on the reef and then snacked on by one of these monsters. Not fun. Shark attacks at Teahupoo certainly present less of a danger than confronting the raw power of the surf there…
