DAY 26: JAWS

 
  

Just hanging out with the sting rays...



...forgetting that there is a creature alive today that has survived millions of years of evolution...



...it lives to kill....




...it will attack and devour anything...




...it is as if god created the devil...




...and gave him JAWS





OK so the deceptive among you would have realised that we are actually in Manly Aquarium... and we were swimming with Grey Nurse sharks, which aren't actually dangerous.

Practising the universal sign for, SHIT!!!THERE'S A SHARK BEHIND YOU

Despite a fearsome appearance and strong swimming abilities, Grey Nurse sharks are relatively placid and slow moving animals.  They are considered not aggressive unless provoked.  They are the most widely kept shark in public aquariums around the world (according to Wikipedia), due to their fairly large size, higher adaptability to captivity than other large sharks and crooked, fierce-looking teeth.

All quiet in Manly... no fins yet



  OCEAN WORLD SHARK DIVE XTREME it is then!

No turning back...

I asked our diving instructor Dicky why Grey Nurse sharks were less dangerous to swim with than other sharks (they look pretty mean to me)  but he explained it has to do with their teeth, which are sharp but smooth (where as a Great White has serated teeth).  He compared it to cutting a steak with two forks, or cutting a steak with a steak knife.



'GET OUT OF THE WATER!!!  FOR GODS SAKE, SAVE YOURSELVES!!!'


There was a serious side to the experience though, sadly due to the promotion of all sharks as evil and dangerous through films like Jaws (which I have just totally added to with this blog post - but here comes the bit about shark conservation to make up for shameful use of shark photos for dramatic effect) and through fishing for fins, Grey Nurse sharks are endangered, which is tragic because they are stunning to see close up.

Our instructor told us about a fantastic film on the subject of shark conservation, which I would urge you to watch...
http://www.sharkwater.com/

...turns out sharks are not man-eating monsters, and need our help.

After watching this, I was horrified to find out about the shark-finning practises where their fins are cut off and the carcass thrown back into the sea, where they sink to the bottom and are eaten alive by other fish.  I felt terrible about Day 6's eating shark fin soup experience!!! 

However, on further investigation I found out that Australia has a Shark Advisory Group and Action Plan, recommending that sharks not be killed for their fins alone and that where sharks are fished, that they be utilised for their entire carcass, not just their fins.  In accordance with these recommendations, finning bans have been imposed in nearly all state and territory longline fisheries with the exception of the Northern Territory.  In these states landing requirements dictate that when sharks are caught, either as target species or bycatch, their carcasses must be retained with their fins to ensure full usage of the shark. 

This made me feel slightly better, but I definitely wont be ordering the shark fin soup ever again!