SEA LIFE
SHARKS
PREHISTORIC PAST, UNCERTAIN FUTURE “Sharks were one of the fi rst species to evolve,” explains Andy Dehart, director of biological programmes for the National Aquarium, Washington DC, and shark adviser to the Discovery Channel. “There are over 400 species of sharks with a wide range of body types, tooth types and natural habitats. Because the sharks evolved in the natural world as a highly effi cient predator over 400 million years ago, there has been very lit le change to them since prehistoric times.” Until now. Modern fi shing techniques, a growing demand for shark meat and a lack of public will to protect them (they aren't exactly pandas), have leſt many species of shark on the endangered list. With 201 sharks on the so-called Red List of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), scientists fear falling numbers could disrupt the ocean’s ecosystem. The Shark Foundation estimates that in the past 15 years the number of hammerhead sharks off the east coast of America has fallen by 89 percent, that of thresher sharks by 80 per cent, and white sharks by about 79 percent. As shark populations decline, their prey become more plentiful and the delicate marine balance is upset. While sharks have killed an average of 4.3 humans per year in the past decade, according to the
"I SURVIVED A SHARK ATTACK" Two survivors – still swimming – describe their ordeals
American ten-time Olympic medallist Gary Hall Jr (pictured) encountered a shark when he and his sister, Bebe, were spearfi shing three miles off the Florida Keys: “We were 250m from our dive boat and spot ed
a large reef shark.
"I kept my eye on it as we headed to our boat. Bebe felt a bump on her arm that she later realised was a shark
bite. Aſt er it bit her, it came at me. We were screaming, but it happened so fast, we just acted on instinct. “The shark came at me, thrashing between my legs and trying to bite at me. I punched it in the nose a few times while kicking on my back. It kept coming, its head at my suit. I grabbed its fi ns and was able to roll it over on its back. It swam away, but then turned around violently and started to charge my sister who was bleeding. “My heart was beating at its maximum because there were three or four sharks circling us now. We swam back to the boat and used a tourniquet to stem the bleeding before we could get medical help. My sister was a real sport. But I still love open water swimming. It is fantastic and I used it during my training for the Olympics.” Open water swimmer and Paralympic hopeful, Achmat Hassiem, of South Africa, has a remarkable perspective on life despite having his leg torn off by a great white shark while saving his brother's life. "Losing a leg is nothing compared to losing a brother,” he says. Get ing back in the ocean was “the worst thing ever”, he recalls. "The fi rst time I went underwater the fear kicked in. It took a couple of weeks to get brave enough to do it properly." However, sport had been his life before the at ack and it was sport – swimming, in fact – that helped heal him aſt erwards. Five years on from the at ack, Hassiem is in the world's top ten for but erfl y and freestyle and hopes to go home with a gold medal at the 2012 London Paralympics.
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International Shark At ack File, it is estimated that 100 million sharks are killed each year due to commercial and recreational fi shing. Aſt er 400 million years of ruling the oceans, sharks have met their match.
SHARK APPEAL One of the main drivers of this hunting industry is shark fi n soup, which the wealthy in China are fond of. In the last ten years, the explosion of the middle class in China has created an unprecedented demand for items that signal status and prestige, including this soup, thus fuelling the illegal fi n-poaching industry. "Finning” involves removing the fi n with a hot metal blade. The shark is oſt en dumped back into the ocean where it dies from suff ocation or predators, yet few governments enforce laws that prohibit this barbaric practice. Other parts of the shark are also sought aſt er. Bull shark testosterone is said to aid body builders, while shark liver is used for machine oil, and in health and beauty supplements and cosmetics. Parts of the shark have medicinal value as well. The shark cornea, for example, has been used in eye surgery (since its cornea is similar to our own).
SELF-PROTECTION Contrary to popular opinion, only a few sharks are dangerous to humans: mainly the great white, oceanic white-tip, tiger and bull. Humans also have a relatively high survival rate when the two species meet. Of the 108 shark encounters documented worldwide between August 2010 and August 2011 by the International Shark
Sharks are beautiful creatures
but they strike fear into the heart of all watersport enthusiasts
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