Dive boat operators face charges of illegally feeding sharks in state waters

[Wookie]

Maybe you should just stay in the kiddie pool w/them, it'll be much safer. Either that or join one of the shark dives and see for yourself that these are beautiful creatures and not the monsters from Jaws.

That isn't fair. Guy is worried for his kid's safety, and while I have nothing but respect for Abernathy, he has had a few folks bitten over the years. Yes, we make diving as safe as we can, and we make other parts of diving (shark encounters, wreck penetration, mixed gas) as safe as possible too, there is a very real chance someone can get hurt diving, and participating in this type of dive.

Shark encounters can be done safely. For someone to spear fish to feed sharks on otherwise regular recreational dive sites is short sighted and not as well thought out as it could be.

 

[mscott556]

There is no excuse for bringing them in to the baby dive locations like Breakers as I have heard was done by Calypso ( even if this is not their regular "feeding site"--it seems they have done several shoot everything sessions to bring in sharks on Breakers)

Again, where are you hearing this from? If that's what they are doing then I can understand being upset. But why don't you ask Tony or Luis first instead of rambling on about what you "heard"?

---------- Post added March 21st, 2014 at 09:24 AM ----------

That isn't fair. Guy is worried for his kid's safety, and while I have nothing but respect for Abernathy, he has had a few folks bitten over the years. Yes, we make diving as safe as we can, and we make other parts of diving (shark encounters, wreck penetration, mixed gas) as safe as possible too, there is a very real chance someone can get hurt diving, and participating in this type of dive.

Shark encounters can be done safely. For someone to spear fish to feed sharks on otherwise regular recreational dive sites is short sighted and not as well thought out as it could be.

I agree that the bait boxes are the way to go and have seen them used w/success on multiple charters. The Lemon Spot was in 90ft of water near Jupiter and had some strong currents. This wasn't exactly a spot for new/young divers, sharks or no sharks.

As for PBMako, I can't stand those "Won't someone please think of the children??" types.

 

[guyharrisonphoto]

That isn't fair. Guy is worried for his kid's safety, and while I have nothing but respect for Abernathy, he has had a few folks bitten over the years. Yes, we make diving as safe as we can, and we make other parts of diving (shark encounters, wreck penetration, mixed gas) as safe as possible too, there is a very real chance someone can get hurt diving, and participating in this type of dive.

Shark encounters can be done safely. For someone to spear fish to feed sharks on otherwise regular recreational dive sites is short sighted and not as well thought out as it could be.

Wookie, you hit it on the head. I have been outspoken against these particular shark dives because they are obviously and grossly unsafe. Spearing fish, using blood chum, hand-feeding without protective chain mail, divers spread out all over the place, flailing around chasing photos with no situational awareness, bare hands and feet exposed. Just look on You Tube, the videos speak for themselves. This is shark diving (an already risky activity) done in the most dangerous, irresponsible fashion possible. It was and is a tragedy waiting to happen. Too bad the hubris and adrenaline-junkiness that drove these dives has now become arrogance and outright greed, judging from their facebook posts.

By the way, their acolytes have actively encouraged, on this board, divers with less that 40 dives to go on these trips. Money apparently trumps all in this game.

As you said, even Abernethy has had some bites (and a fatality) on his Bahama trips. His diving operation is a model of conservatism and safety compared to these cowboy dives. The dead fish are locked in cartons, and rinsed of blood, before being put in the water. The only attractant is scent; not blood and not thrashing. Divers are on the bottom, grouped within touching distance, no exceptions, all eyes on sharks, watching each other's back, at a distance from the bait, in black head to toe, arms and legs tucked in close to the body. I have done one of his trips and did not see any frenzy or aggressive behavior over 8 full days in the water, even when there were 20-30 reefies and lemons and 3-4 tigers present. The exception was at the very end of the trip, when they opened the crates for "monster madness", which resulted in frenzy behavior and which I got as far away from as possible and would decline to do again.

While pushing these jokers back out to the hole in the wall might be nice for shallower divers, it will also ruin the hole in the wall for the rest of us. Conditioned sharks behaving aggressively on a 130' borderline deco dive with strong current and perhaps some narcosis in play? Really???? Although I agree with Dan that only "advanced" divers (inreal terms, not just the card) should do any of these dives, this advanced diver, for one, does not want to engage in, or experience the after-effects of this feeding, on my advanced dives.

 

[billinwilliamston]

Most sharks, by nature, do not stay in one place for their entire lives. They move over a large range of territory looking for food and to breed. It's not just about how the sharks behave when and where they are fed, it's also about how they behave on their way to their next stop.

While it may be safe for a trained, experienced dive guide to feed sharks in a given location, it does condition them to associate divers with food. There is no guarantee that the divers at the next stop on a shark's itinerary will be equipped physically or mentally to deal with a shark looking for a hand-out. Divers are relatively large, loud, clumsy and we smell bad. We are not something that particularly interests a shark looking for lunch, but that all changes once they have been fed a few times. This altered behavior is all well and good 3+ miles out in situations where only the experienced dare tread, but sharks don't know where the line is between the "kiddy pool" and the rest of the ocean. To say that it's safe as long is it's done with adult supervision is to deny the nature of the beast. I like seeing sharks when I'm diving, but I don't want them aggressively coming up to some 12 year old on a shallow reef DSD looking for a handout because someone fed them on their last stop.

As far as being busted for being 367 ft on the wrong side of the three mile line, who's really playing technicalities here? Isn't trying to get as close to the three mile line as possible without going over it really what got them in trouble in the first place?

 

[danvolker]

Again, where are you hearing this from? If that's what they are doing then I can understand being upset. But why don't you ask Tony or Luis first instead of rambling on about what you "heard"?

.

This is from several divers that were in the water just behind where Calypso divers had just passed through....and there were jacks shot to he*l all around them....and sharks that had been responding. The identities? They don't want to be named--for many reasons.

I can see you don't want to admit Calypso is trying to bring a "Shark dive" to the Breakers reef.....Are you going to deny that Calypso has been letting it's divers spearfish on Breakers?
There are plenty of charter boats on Breakers with photographers on board...they will be happy to drop photo shooters on top of Calypso divers to see and photograph the presence of spearguns....even if it means having to run the early trips around 7 or so I understand have become common for Calypso.....

 

[mscott556]

As far as being busted for being 367 ft on the wrong side of the three mile line, who's really playing technicalities here? Isn't trying to get as close to the three mile line as possible without going over it really what got them in trouble in the first place?

Yes, but you gotta go where the sharks are. I took a GPS reading on the boat as we went over the actual site and it showed closer to 3.25 miles, which is what Randy said it was.

---------- Post added March 21st, 2014 at 11:22 AM ----------

This is from several divers that were in the water just behind where Calypso divers had just passed through....and there were jacks shot to he*l all around them....and sharks that had been responding. The identities? They don't want to be named--for many reasons.

I can see you don't want to admit Calypso is trying to bring a "Shark dive" to the Breakers reef.....Are you going to deny that Calypso has been letting it's divers spearfish on Breakers?

I don't care one way or the other if they are spearing there. All I said is that you should go straight to the source instead of relying on 3rd parties before you slander someone.

 

[danvolker]

I don't care one way or the other if they are spearing there. All I said is that you should go straight to the source instead of relying on 3rd parties before you slander someone.

Well you need to care....Breakers is the defacto kiddie pool for new divers, and the bonus is that is one of the most beautiful coral reef dives in the hemisphere. It is not for spearing, only irresponsible spearfisherman will be shooting there, and it gets even more ridiculous when what they are shooting is jacks.....this is the kind of guy that needs sand kicked in their face.

And I have every intention of looking for the Captain/owner of Calypso and letting them know what I think of this entire issue....If they can demonstrate to me that there will be no more spearfishing on Breakers, and never any more shark dives on Breakers, then I will come on here and proclaim them to have "Seen the Light" and to have joined the ranks of the responsible Dive Charters.....

---------- Post added March 21st, 2014 at 11:35 AM ----------

[video=youtube_share;aSykvuuuV2o]http://youtu.be/aSykvuuuV2o[/video]


For those that have never seen Breakers Reef, here is one of many videos on it....
Depth is 37 to 60 for crown to bottom of inside ledge.

 

[mscott556]

And I have every intention of looking for the Captain/owner of Calypso and letting them know what I think of this entire issue...

All their info is on their site - Calypso Dive Charters | West Palm Beach Scuba Diving | South Florida Dive Charters | Palm Beach Dive Charters | Dive Charters
561-246-3727, Lake Park Marina, slip D50

 

[danvolker]

All their info is on their site - Calypso Dive Charters | West Palm Beach Scuba Diving | South Florida Dive Charters | Palm Beach Dive Charters | Dive Charters
561-246-3727, Lake Park Marina, slip D50

This is the kind of thing that needs to be done in-person. Would you like to facilitate that?

 

[dkramer]

I'm relatively new to diving & I don't claim to know everything but a few years back I attended a Wilderness School in Wyoming. We spent 10 days in the Teton Mountains as well as Yellowstone. Buffalo & Elk sightings in Yellowstone were common & they would often be very close. The wildlife biologist with our group warned us to be very careful around them. He considered them more dangerous than a normal wild animal because they had become accustom to human presence. Some folks may remember the issues they had with bears. Folks would go & take pictures of them scavenging at the garbage dump. Eventually it was learned that because the bears equated people with food & had lost their natural fear of humans, attacks increased. Anyone who has been to Yellowstone recently, knows that the park service goes to great lengths to make sure garbage is secured. Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned here.