The Dorsal Fin

And the winner (or is it loser?) is…ContactMusic." Why is Contact Music reporting a story about sharks in the first place?" you might ask. Well, it’s Steven Spielberg related news, of course. He directed that shark movie back in ’75. What was it called again? Oh yes, “Jaws.” That’s the one. Hence, any story regarding great white sharks should automatically be associated with Spielberg (in the eyes of some media outlets, at least).

Real-life great white sharks, like this one and the ones recently spotted near Chatham, are often times confused with the large, fake, mechanical shark featured in the movie, Jaws, by some media outlets.

ContactMusic’s article, “Jaws sightings close Massachusetts Beaches,” is about as utterly ridiculous as they come. Just to clarify the headline, multiple sightings of great white sharks near the coastline are what prompted the closing of several Chatham beaches, not sightings of the movie Jaws. The article goes so far as to say that the recent white shark sightings near Chatham, Massachusetts are "terrifying residents of nearby Martha’s Vineyard" (where Jaws was filmed). Say what? Was there any reporting done to substantiate the terror has fallen upon the residents of Martha’s Vineyard? It seems that the good people of Martha’s Vineyard wouldn’t be too fazed by white shark sightings, considering that there have been white sharks reported around the Vineyard repeatedly in recent years. I guess the white sharks around Chatham are more fear-inducing than the ones that were in closer proximity to Martha’s Vineyard in the past.

Thanks for spreading unnecessary fear, ContactMusic. Now, back to reality.

According to ABC, a swimming ban was put into effect at multiple Chatham beaches after multiple great white shark sightings were confirmed in the area. According to WCBV-TV three white sharks were spotted Saturday evening. Chatham officials have placed the no-swimming ban in effect until at least mid-week for all east-side beaches. The good news is that researchers were able to tag two of the sharks, one of which was tagged within 75 yards of the coastline.

Two great white sharks have been tagged with satellite tracking devices off of Cape Cod

Greg Skomal of the Massachusetts’ Division of Marine Wildlife, along with a team of fishermen, were able to tag two of the great white sharks with satellite tracking devices. Skomal described the tagging of the two white sharks as being “fantastic,” from a scientific perspective.The event marked the first time that great white sharks had been tagged in the Atlantic, according to a WCBV video feature. Update: Multiple news sources are now saying that this weekend’s taggings of two great white sharks mark the second and third time white sharks have been tagged in the Atlantic.

It is also worth pointing out that the WCBV video feature makes note that at least one aspect of tourism in the area has received a bit of boost, due to the shark sightings. An interest in excursions to attempt to view the great whites has increased business for at least one excursion operator who typically runs trips to view seals.

Both the ABC report and the WCBV-TV reports managed to do a decent job of objectively reporting the story, without throwing in the typical hype. Hopefully, the tagging of the sharks will provide information that will help lead to a better understanding of a species that is often misrepresented and misunderstood.

Five shark sightings near Monomy Island have drawn media attention to the Chatham, Massachusetts area once again. (Possible white shark sightings near Chatham drew media attention last month, as well.) According to NECN, at least one of the sharks spotted was confirmed as a great white shark. Greg Skomal of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries says that seal populations are the likely cause of the presence of sharks. While Skomal encourages beach-goers to pay attention whenever they enter the ocean, when asked if it was safe to go back in the water, he said, “I’d go swimming.” As common sense would dictate, swimmers are being warned to avoid areas with large seal congregations, since seals are a natural food source for large sharks.

The video footage above is not without its share of cliche sensationalism and comes complete with the obligatory Jaws reference, a ridiculously facetious “fish story,” and a reporter suggesting to a child that being in the water with sharks might result in the child being eaten. While white sharks are not uncommon in the New England area, particularly around this time of year, the last recorded fatal shark attack in Massachusetts waters occurred in 1936.

The Tribune of San Luis Obispo serves up some sensationlism in the article, ,13-foot shark slashes seal while boaters watch off Cambria; After fishing and diving off Cambria, North County trio gets a chilling, up-close look at a feeding great white. The story details the account of three divers who witnessed a white shark feeding on a seal off the coast of Cambria, Ca. The divers witnessed the event while aboard a Zodiac. While the article itself remains fairly objective and is well-written, the headline and secondary title take a natural feeding event and turn it into a “chilling” encounter for the witnesses, as the shark “slashes” through the seal. Can’t a white shark just eat a meal without it being likened to a scene from a horror movie? I’m glad my meals aren’t documented by the media, I can see the headline now…

According to the article Chinese belly-gods warn: Eating shark fins to have ecological, health consequences, not only does the shark fin market pose a devastating risk to marine ecosystems, it may also pose a health risk to its consumers. Steve Trent of Wild Aid is pushing for promoting awareness about dangers of shark fin consumption in China, the world’s largest consumer of shark fins. Part of this awareness campaign includes Public Service Announcements like the one below (Warning: contains brief finning imagery)

According to Trent,

"Research shows they contain heavy metals such as mercury, which can cause damage to the nervous system and male infertility."

According to the article, Trent said that most Chinese shark fin consumers were not aware of the ecological effects of the shark fin industry. He also noted that many consumers did not even that shark fin delicacies actually contained the fins. This is due to the literal translation of &quotyu chi" meaning "fish fin". Due to this confusion, some consumers assumed they were eating highly nutritional domestic fish. Trent encourages responsible fishing practices and goes on to say that the "hunting of sharks should be carried out in a sustainable way, restraint should be exercised in consumption of the cartilaginous fish, and the practice of hunting sharks merely for fins should be banned."