The Dorsal Fin

While the above AP report essentially echoes my previous post about the CITES conference, there was one small bit of good news that came at of Doha, Qatar. According to USA Today, the porbeagle shark (Lamna nasus) was added to the CITES Appendix II, which regulates exportation of the species for international trade.

Sammy, a young whale shark (Rhincodon typus) like the one in this photo, was reportedly released from captivity last week by the Atlantis hotel in Dubai.

A report form Dubai newspaper 7Days is questioning the release of “Sammy” the whale shark from Dubai’s Atlantis hotel. The article states that 7Days had been informed by a representative from the Atlantis that the whale shark was in “good health.” However, the Atlantis has refused to comment or answer questions regarding the lack of photos or video footage of the animal’s release to the wild. In addition, 7Days reports that the Atlantis also removed all posts on its Facebook page regarding the whale shark, including a series of questions posted there by 7Days.

The whale shark was reportedly tagged with a satellite tracking tag, which is expected to begin transmitting data in 3 months.

NOTE: The video below was produced prior to the defeat of the proposal to protect hammerhead sharks. WARNING: Video contains footage of shark finning.

A proposal introduced by the U.S. and Palau to protect hammerhead sharks (including the endangered scalloped hammerhead, great hammerhead, and the threatened smooth hammerhead) was defeated yesterday in Doha, Qatar at the CITES conference, according to an AP report. U.S. Assistant Interior Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks Tom Strickland said, “The greatest threat to the hammerhead is from harvest for the international fin trade and the fin of the species is among highly valued of the trade,” and that regional fisheries bodies have done nothing to regulate the trade of this species.

Opposition to the proposal, led by Japan and supported by countries dependent on the shark fin trade, argued, “it would be difficult to differentiate the hammerheads from other species and would deprive poor fishing nations of much needed income.”

The notion that it would be difficult to differentiate any of the three species of hammerheads from other species is laughable, at best. Hammerhead sharks have a very distinct appearance, hence the name “hammerhead.” The latter half of the argument seems like a valid one from a financial standpoint, but it is also a flawed argument when it comes to establishing regulations to keep hammerhead shark populations at sustainable levels. If “poor fishing nations” rely on income from harvesting these species, it would only make sense that regulating the trade of the species would be beneficial to those nations. If these species become extinct or reach near-extinction levels due to over-harvesting, where will that leave the fishermen and those whose livelihood depends on this particular trade?

As was the case with last week’s multiple marine species protection proposal defeats, at the end of the day money talks. The wealthier markets that import these shark fins sell them at a huge mark-up, while the fishermen of the “poor fishing nations” only end up with a tiny fraction of what the shark fins are ultimately sold to the consumer for. I wonder if the countries with the major markets for shark fins would be open to the idea of paying the “poor fishing nations” a much higher percentage of the fins’ market value, since they are clearly concerned with the livelihood of these poorer nations.

Come dive with me at Isla de Guadalupe. It's safe...assuming you keep your hands off my nose and out of my mouth.

While there is an inherent level of risk associated with being in the water with large predatory animals, I think white shark diving at Guadalupe is relatively safe, provided that sensible guidelines are followed. A recent Nautilus Explorer blog post doesn’t entirely reflect the same sentiment, which seems a bit odd, considering that the Nautilus Explorer charters white shark diving trips to Guadalupe.

The post begins with the question of whether diving with white sharks at Guadalupe is safe or not and is followed by the response, “HECK NO!!!” The author goes on to say that there is “NOTHING” safe about white sharks.

In all fairness to the Nautilus Explorer, the main focus of the blog post is the safety of their cages. So, while the author states that diving with white sharks at Guadalupe is not safe, their cages are built with the safety of both sharks and divers in mind. It might just be a matter of poor wording, for all I know.

Interestingly enough, the blog post includes a photo from the series of images that hit the media earlier this month, one of which features a “shark wrangler” pushing on the nose of a white shark in close proximity of a cage, while a diver takes advantage of the photo opportunity. In another photo from the series, the “shark wrangler’s” hand appears to actually be in the mouth of the shark.

So, I guess if you have divers in the cages reaching out and pushing on the noses of white sharks, it would be fair to label that type of activity as being unsafe, regardless of the safety of the cages the divers are in.

And now, for some positive media featuring living hammerhead sharks…

YouTube user DiveDownBelow posted this video, which was filmed at Sipadan, Malaysia. It’s refreshing to see a healthy school of hammerhead sharks in their natural habitat. Kudos!