The Dorsal Fin

According to Alabama’s Press-Register three out of the seven sharks that were brought into the scales at the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo were disqualified, because they were a federally protected species. The three disqualified shark were sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus), which are federally protected due to having been over-fished, according to University of South Alabama fisheries scientist Dr. Marcus Dryman.

Sandbar sharks are known for their relatively tall dorsal fins. Dryman also noted that the species is easily distinguished by a distinct dorsal ridge that runs between the first and second dorsal fins.

According to a statement from Paul Barrington, the shark involved in the Wrighstville Beach incident was erroneously identified as a sand tiger shark.

Contrary to statements made in a WECT.com feature on the recent shark attack at Wrightsville Beach, Paul Barrington of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher was quoted today in a Lumina News article as saying…

"A lot of the media has so far erroneously identified it as a sand tiger shark. It takes a tremendous amount of forensics to determine specifically what type of shark it is."

The WECT.com feature stated that Barrington believed that "a sand-tiger shark could have been the suspect" in the Wrightsville Beach incident. However, Barrington’s recent quotes seem to dispute that notion.

George Burgess stated in the Lumina News article that the species of shark involved will likely remain a mystery. Burgess and Barrington confirmed the shark was approximately 4′ in length. Barrington’s list of suspected species include the small sharpnose shark (the species with presently the largest population in coastal NC), the dusky, the sandbar, the lemon, the black tip or the spinner shark, according to the Lumina News article.

FastCompany magazine has posted a well-written article on shark conservation and protection efforts (to be addressed at the 2010 CITES conference) for the following species:

• oceanic whitetip sharks
• scalloped hammerhead sharks
• smooth hammerhead sharks
• giant hammerhead sharks
• sandbar sharks
• porbeagle sharks
• spiny dogfish

While the article doesn’t really feature anything new or groundbreaking as far as shark conservation news goes, it is fairly well-written (aside from a lame Jaws theme reference) and does a good job of detailing some of the commercial practices that threaten shark populations, which the general public and regular readers of FastCompany might not have been aware of. More articles like this in mainstream (and other non-shark focused) media can only help to promote awareness about the need for responsible shark conservation efforts. Kudos to FastCompany and author Lydia Dishman.

The North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores will be featuring Shark Week from July 26 through August 1. According to their website, Shark Week will “offer a close-up look at these mysterious and often misunderstood predators,” and will offer family-oriented activities including:

• touching a bamboo shark
• competing for prizes in Shark Jeopardy
• classroom activities for children involving shark-related crafts and games
• a chance to have your picture taken in the replicated jaws of a huge, prehistoric megalodon
• viewing shark-feeding programs
• talking to Aquarium divers as they swim with sharks in the Live Dive programs

Sand Tiger Shark at NC Aquarium - Pine Knoll Shores (Living Shipwreck exhibit)

A report on shark diving tours operating in Oahu, Hawaii suggests that the tours do not result in an increase of risk of shark attacks on humans according to an AP article that appeared at MiamiHerald.com. The report is based on a “snap-shot” study over the course of 4 years, which relied primarily on the logbooks of tour operators and reports from boat operators, which I would expect would draw some criticism from those opposed to shark diving (and likely anybody with some knowledge of research design). The article also mentions that federal fisheries are investigating shark tours in Hawaii on the grounds that they are illegally feeding sharks. Based on the results of the study Galapagos sharks and sandbar sharks were the most prevalent sharks encountered by the shark tours involved in the study. The study also concluded that shark tours “do not increase the potential of shark attacks near the shoreline because the boats operate three miles from the coastline and because the chumming they do to attract sharks to cages mimics the decades-old operations of crab fishing vessels in the same area that discard bait from their traps.”
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