MOSSEL BAY NEWS - The controversy raging across social networks about shark research conducted by Chris Fishcer's non-profit organisation, OCEARCH came to a dramatic apex last week when a Capetonian body boarder died in a shark attack at Kogel Bay.
Following the fatal attack, the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) decided to suspend the Ocearch-Sharkmen research permit. According to a statement issued by the DEA, further discussions were to follow with the crew to determine the way forward.
The Sharkmen initiative presented a unique opportunity for local researchers to answer probing questions in a quest to understand the basic life history of sharks.
According to Fiona Ayerst, professional underwater photographer from Mossel Bay and a director of Sharklife, an organisation established to fight for the protection of sharks, all shark researchers in South Africa were invited to a discussion hosted by the DEA before the research started. She also stated that, from research conducted elsewhere by OCEARCH elsewhere in the world, new aggregations or hot-spots and pupping areas have been discovered in the open ocean and have now been protected, resulting in policy affected and changes made to laws to protect these areas from fishing.
Raging cross fire
"Having seen the responses, especially from other water users, having open public meetings would have been heated, but also may have improved everyone's understanding of what was going to happen and why. It seems to me that much of the current discussion involves incorrect information and misunderstandings, which could have been dealt with better. In fact, this could have been a fantastic opportunity for conservationists and scientists to get involved and to educate," Ayerst commented.
Fishcer's methods have been under fire for some time, originating from what Fischer referred to as a 'very vocal and emotive' group based in California (US). The method in question involves hooking sharks and raising them out of the water on an elevated platform, taking various samples and tagging them.
"I wanted to watch the tagging procedure. All the sharks I saw operated on swam away strongly and I have seen the same sharks moving around the ocean on the Internet since then," Ayerst confirmed after being on board the Ocearch vessel during tagging done in Mossel Bay.
"I left the boat feeling positive and comforted, to the extent that, quite out of character, I even congratulated one of the crew members on the manner in which he had handled and obviously cared for the sharks."
The debate, however, gained momentum again when the work shifted to False Bay and concerns for human safety became the main public issue, fuelled by reports concerning the exaggerated amount of chum allegedly used to lure sharks. Chumming, the use of a bloody mixture of fish byproducts dropped into the water, is one of the most effective ways to draw sharks in for capture and research, therefore it is common practice amongst cage diving operators, researchers and fishermen alike. The use of chumming is, however, strictly regulated and even restricted in some waters, therefore obtaining permits and staying within the boundaries stated therein, is essential.
According to the statement issued by the DEA, the potential of sharks moving away from the White Shark Cage Diving areas following sustained increased activity was also taken into consideration before issuing the Ocearch research permit. This was controlled by restricting the amount of time that the research vessel could spend in any one particular area to 48 hours. In Mossel Bay, local shark cage operators are confirmed to have been on the Ocearch research vessel on occasion as part of an act of goodwill and transparency.
Chumming under the magnifying glass
New research by The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO - Australia) done off North Neptune Island in South Australia during 2010-2011 showed that chumming could lead to changes in the behaviour of white sharks. They noted "significant changes" in white shark behaviour after 2007, when chumming increased as the shark cage diving industry expanded. The report said that while this did not mean the number of sharks had increased, it did reflect "that they are staying for longer periods, and that each individual is seen more often".
Since the attack in Kogel Bay, it is widely, and perhaps emotionally speculated that increased chumming is to blame.
In official statements issued by the DEA as well as the City of Cape Town, both respectively have placed an experienced official and a senior staff member (unassociated with the project) on the research vessel to specifically monitor chumming activities. Both confirmed that the amount of chum on board was substantially less than estimated and used at a lower rate than anticipated.
City of Cape Town head of environmental policy and strategy, Greg Oelofse commented that the amount of chum used during the research was insignificant in comparison to natural chum sources in the bay, including the natural chum slick emanating from Seal Island, fishing activities in False Bay and the small and immaterial chumming by permitted cage divers.
Although there is to date no conclusive proof of a link, this presents a grey area, culminating in the possibly misdirected anger regarding the effects of chumming along the coastline. What is ultimately sad is that the ongoing debate could end up dividing those who should stand together in providing a line of defence in the conservation of sharks and other ocean species under threat.
Worse, it could even serve to increase people's fears of the ocean and especially of sharks. "Through my involvement with Sharklife I have seen that in our world as it currently is, policy cannot be changed without science. We unfortunately need this science to effect change. We all know how threatened our sharks are and yet very few of us really do anything about it," Ayerst concluded. "It will be interesting to see how the Ocearch project pans out. I do believe Chris is a man of his word. Science aside, this debate and the others that will follow have surely put sharks on the map in more ways than one."
ARTICLE: CORNELLE CARSTENS, MOSSEL BAY ADVERTISER JOURNALIST
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