Question...

[DeepBlueResort]

Hi All

Another example I can give is I know an underwater Videographer who was going on a shark dive, on the way there he fell off his motorcycle and did the dive with blood coming out of the cuts on his legs.

The sharks paid no more attention to him than they did anyone else.

 

[saildiver]

Hi All

Another example I can give is I know an underwater Videographer who was going on a shark dive, on the way there he fell off his motorcycle and did the dive with blood coming out of the cuts on his legs.

The sharks paid no more attention to him than they did anyone else.

Sorry Guys -I've got to disagree on this one. Now I've done plenty of shark research and spearfishing in shark infested waters and I've never been actually attacked. Though I've had tigers get so interested that I wasn't going to wait and find out,and once a 12 ft great hammerhead snuck up behind me when I had a stringer full of fish and got within a foot of me before taking off-but when I have gotten a bleed under water I never even thought of ending the dive early-although if a Tiger,Bull,Bronze Whaler,Oceanic White tip,or Great White etc were circling me,I probably would(GW-definately) if I were the least concerned that they were interested in me. But sharks are attracted to human blood too-remember the USS Indianapolis,where some 400+ naval personell floating in life vests at sea were estimated lost to sharks over about 4-5 days after thier ship was sunk by a japanese sub-it wasn't fish blood that attracted those sharks. But personally,I think sharks all have their own food preferences,by species,usually fish,sometimes seals,dolphins or whales,or even seagulls or other birds-and some just don't seem too be very choosey,ie,Tigers-but I personally don't think we are high on the list of most sharks' favorites,or alot more of us would be attacked-we are really easy targets....but just remember-respect all sharks-espescially big ones,but even small ones will nip you -don't get too macho or complacent...Peace...Saildiver

 

[DeepBlueResort]

Hi All

I agree with saildiver 100% i am just saying that i know that this happened and the person was OK.

This was just an example of don't do this but the person was still OK, i would not recommend it or suggest it.

 

[isurus]

Hi All

I agree with saildiver 100% i am just saying that i know that this happened and the person was OK.

This was just an example of don't do this but the person was still OK, i would not recommend it or suggest it.

The comparison to Indianapolis is not really valid imo in adidtion to blood there was huge amounts of oil, food smells, sweat, loud noises, massive vibrations and all sorts of other stimuli that would ring the dinner bell for miles around. furthermore this was in the open ocean where inquisitive pelagics like oceanics, blues, silkies and ocean going tigers were more likely to respond as opposed to on a reef and those involved were unfortunately in the water for a long time bleeding sweating and sending out continuous stimuli over a wider range for a long long time. For what its worth it was pretty likely there were sharks following the ship when it was torpedoed picking up any scraps binned/flushed out of the boat.

In these circumstances the right (or perhaps more aptly wrong) sort of sharks can and will get interested, a small cut under a wetsuit is not in my opinion comparable. In psite of this as sD poitns out all sharks and indeed most marine life should be treated with appropriate respect for what it can do to you.

 

[dive_lover88]

I have been hearing an increase in shark attack cases where the victims are not bleeding or whatsoever ,does this mean that ppl will have higher possiblity of getting attacked when they are bleeding?

 

[saildiver]

The comparison to Indianapolis is not really valid imo in adidtion to blood there was huge amounts of oil, food smells, sweat, loud noises, massive vibrations and all sorts of other stimuli that would ring the dinner bell for miles around. furthermore this was in the open ocean where inquisitive pelagics like oceanics, blues, silkies and ocean going tigers were more likely to respond as opposed to on a reef and those involved were unfortunately in the water for a long time bleeding sweating and sending out continuous stimuli over a wider range for a long long time. For what its worth it was pretty likely there were sharks following the ship when it was torpedoed picking up any scraps binned/flushed out of the boat.

In these circumstances the right (or perhaps more aptly wrong) sort of sharks can and will get interested, a small cut under a wetsuit is not in my opinion comparable. In psite of this as sD poitns out all sharks and indeed most marine life should be treated with appropriate respect for what it can do to you.

Isurus-there is plenty of debatable material here. I agree that the inital explosions might expect to draw the attention of some sharks-but could it also scare them away?The USS Indianapolis sunk in the evening "like a rock" 10 minutes after it was torpedoed-in the few minutes and hours after the sinking I'd expect that the yelling and "vibrations"would have been at their peak, however the first wave of the shark attacks did not begin until the next morning and lasted for the next 4 1/2 days. In regards to the "food and other smells " on the ship-they would have gone done mostly with the ship to the bottom 10-12,000 feet below where mutiple levels of horizotal deep water currents would have carried them who knows where,but probably there was not a direct olfactory path for sharks to follow to the men floating 2-21/2 miles above and several miles down current as each day passed. But some of those food smells/scraps could have stayed in the water for a while on the surface-but are you saying that you think human food scraps(I know-depends on what kind of food) are more likely to attract sharks to attack us than human blood is when its surrounding us? I also agree that gas and oil was in the water with the men for most of the 5 days-but do you think gas and oil causes sharks to attack people-some experts have even felt it may have protected the men from even more shark attacks in some way by making them smell/taste even worse. Its also quite clear that most of the men who were attacked by sharks already had severe injuries and were bleeding or leaking body fluids (ie from burns)...although some were attacked who had no injuries but that was rare. You bring up another interesting point- about sharks that follow large ships and feed on whats tossed overboard or waste products-however this would usually only amount to a few(2-4?) sharks at most. I would agree that human blood may not have been the only thing that attracted the sharks-certainly other bodily smells- ie,leaking body fluids as mentioned before,urine,sweat, and feces could all potentially attract sharks. This combined with talking, moving men on the surface-with sharks attracted to the area by thier incredible sense of smell-with precisely the type of pelagic aggressive sharks (that inhabit that part of the ocean)that do attack people even without that much provocation(Oceanic White -Tips,Blues,Tigers,and perhaps Whalers)- combined to create the disaster that occured. But still-personell who were not seriously injured(therefore,not bleeding!) were the least likely to be attacked by sharks in those conditions. I don't think we have to reprove that sharks are attracted to blood. Chumming the water with blood from almost any animal is likely to bring sharks. The ancient Hawiians as well as many other older cultures, were known to sacrifice humans to sharks,and attracted them on a regular basis with human bood to "Heiaus"-Hawaiian made "in the water shark temples"-and human blood was part of a ceremony of worship of the Shark God-in fact-some sharks are said to still come to these areas out of habit. As I said before I don't think that we are number 1 on most shark's diets-but a large hungry shark is definately looking for an easy meal and blood to a shark means that you're easy(and sometimes even a small one)....I certainly would rather not be bleeding the next time a 14 foot tiger shark comes by to check me out-even from a small cut(their noses are so uncanny!)...he might get more interested :11ztongue in me than usual...Peace...Saildiver.

 

[Mantasscareme]

I think it would help if this question were discussed in terms of what sharks actually are potentially dangerous. A bull would probably show more interest in people in it's inviroment than a nurse shark, right? What about the reef species, such as gray reef sharks ect., how would they stack up in terms of possible risk? I've yet to see a shark while diving (I've seen tons of leopard sharks snorkeling in shallow water), so this is a question which concerns me as well.

 

[saildiver]

I think it would help if this question were discussed in terms of what sharks actually are potentially dangerous. A bull would probably show more interest in people in it's inviroment than a nurse shark, right? What about the reef species, such as gray reef sharks ect., how would they stack up in terms of possible risk? I've yet to see a shark while diving (I've seen tons of leopard sharks snorkeling in shallow water), so this is a question which concerns me as well.

Dear Mantasscareme-that depends on where you are diving-as I earlier posted on this thread its very rare for scuba divers to be attacked-if my memory is correct-in 2004,there were 74 shark attacks reported in the Global Shark File-only 5 were on scuba divers(actually a worse year than usual)-but as usual the great whites were the worst offenders for scuba divers-in W. Austrailia,a 3-4 m. Great White bit the legs of a diver, in the Kuril Islands north of Japan,a Great White bit a diver ( who was also fishing with a net) across the thigh and calf, and in California, off Mendicino,a 5-6m. Great White fatally attacked a diver. In the Carribbean,off St. Lucia, an 8 FT. Bull Shark bit a diver on the left forearm....and last but not least, in New South Wales,a 1.2 ft. Wobegon Shark bit a diver on the wrist -leaving puncture marks. But it really depends on what sharks are where you are diving-the sharks with the worst reputations are ....Great Whites,Tigers,Bulls,Oceanic White-tips(even though not most of us are'nt ever going to be unfortunate enough to be around this pelagic shark),Bronze Whalers,Silvertips,Great Hammerheads,Makos(the last two are rarely encountered by divers)Silkys,and occasionally Grey Reef Sharks/ Black-tips will bite-but usually only if provoked. I've been in the water with all of the above sharks(except a Great White and a Mako)-the shark which made me the most uncomfortable was an Oceanic White-tip-most of the rest, with the exception of a couple experiences,were very enjoyable interactions with sharks(I estimate I've seen at least 20,000 sharks in the water in my life)-but I prefer not to dive areas that are well known for Great Whites...Peace...Saildiver.

 

[dive_lover88]

ok,so that means that the "blue waters" sharks are more dangerous compared to the sharks closer to shore?

 

[Mantasscareme]

Well, my guess is that the oceanic white tip (the only blue water species I can really think of) would have to be more oppertunistic and aggressive simply because it lives in such a nutrient-poor enviroment. When you go weeks without seeing another living creature, a shark would probably try to take whatever it can get. That's just my compleetely uneducated guess