The Dorsal Fin

Well-known underwater photographer and WetPixel owner Eric Cheng has shared a video on his YouTube channel that features a 5-year-old boy swimming along side a whale shark (Rhincodon typus) off of Mexico’s Isla Mujeres. The area has become a hot-spot for snorkeling during the summer months when large numbers of whale shark aggregate in a relatively small area.

An article in The Daily Mail suggests that a diver was nearly swallowed by a whale shark.

The UK’s Daily Mail posted an article today with the title “Open wide: The diver who nearly got swallowed by a whale shark.” While the headline itself seems a bit ridiculous in nature, the article does feature some nice shots of whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) off of Isla Mujeres, which were taken by Mauricio Handler.

In the photo that is captioned with “Jaws: This diver almost got sucked into the mouth of a massive whale shark as it fed on plankton” uses perspective that might give the impression that the diver is about to be sucked up by the whale shark at first glance. However, as one of the Daily Mail readers already pointed out in the article’s comments section, the whale shark in the photo is actually closer to the camera than the diver, which exaggerates its size in relation to the diver. The diver appears to be behind (in relation to the camera) the whale shark and not in any harm’s way. The article also notes that if a whale shark were to swallow a human, it would have just spat him out.

The Toronto Star recently reported that Nicole Moore, the Canadian woman who, in January, was involved in a bull shark attack in Cancun, is sharing the story of her recovery via her new blog mooretolife.ca.

In addition to chronicling Moore’s recovery process, the blog also has a page that gives Moore’s first-hand account of her shark encounter. Various accounts of Moore’s attack appeared in the news media, which Moore describes on her blog as having “made a debacle of the entire incident.”

Best wishes to Mrs. Moore as she continues her journey down the road to recovery.

According to a National Post article, a Canadian woman who was the victim of an apparent shark attack in Cancun, Mexico is recovering from her injuries and has “all her limbs intact.” This news is in contrast to earlier reports that the woman had lost an arm as a result of the shark attack.

The victim’s father, Alberto Baldassari, told the National Post that his daughter was “doing relatively well,” after undergoing surgery to repair “severe wounds” to her arm and leg. He went on to say that some of the reports regarding his daughter’s attack were “grossly exaggerated.” The victim plans to return to Canada via “an air ambulance” as soon as her condition allows travel, according to her father.

In what seems to be a bizarre related bit of news, an iNews 880 is reporting that “media reports” are claiming that the victim was attacked by a female bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas) who was giving birth prior to the attack taking place. The iNews 880 report goes on to quote a “spokesman for Mexico’s National Commission of Natural Protected Areas” as saying that the incident was an act of “self defense” on the shark’s behalf and not a “shark attack.”

The details surrounding the iNews 880 story seem sparse, so it should probably be taken with a grain of salt.

The Vancouver Sun is reporting that a 38-year-old Canadian tourist suffered injuries to her left leg and arm yesterday as the result of shark attack. According to Dr. Italo Sampablo Lauro, the medical director of a private Cancun hospital where the victim is being treated, the injuries were “not life-threatening,” and she expected to “recover.” However, an AFP release reports that the victim lost an arm and was left in “grave” condition. The AFP cited a Yucatan newspaper article.