Sharks & monthly period - part II

[peter]

Dear Walter

You have made many whales,dolphins and seals very happy now they know that they being mamals are no longer highly sort after shark tucker. Misinformation maybe?. I also would question the ratio of men to women factor. I remember as a boy a lot of women probably would not go swimming when down at the beach. I'm told by a reliable scource (girlfriend)they probably would not have gone swimming while menstruating in general.So more boys in water means?....more "boy doeuvres"!
Also sharks attacking swimmers and surfers for reasons other than food is old information.

Dear JO
Another tidbit of misinformation I don't think sharks worry if it's old blood or new blood. Burly (chum)is quite effective as are dead animals at any stage of decomposition.

 

[vr]

I'm not Walter, though I'll address your faulty reasoning. He said, correctly, that scientific evidence indicates sharks are not attracted to mammalian blood. He didn't say sharks aren't attracted to some mammals. It is clear that some sharks are attracted to seals.

By present estimates, women constitute at least 40% of the sport diver population. While that is a high enough ratio to be significant, the percentage of women who dive during menses would have to be estimated if tests were to be drawn solely from empirical evidence. Fortunately, more reliable and manageable tests have been conducted.

Misinformation on Walter's part? No. Faulty reasoning and missing information on yours? Yes.

 

[peter]

Originally posted by vr
I'm not Walter, though I'll address your faulty reasoning. He said, correctly, that scientific evidence indicates sharks are not attracted to mammalian blood. He didn't say sharks aren't attracted to some mammals. It is clear that some sharks are attracted to seals.

By present estimates, women constitute at least 40% of the sport diver population. While that is a high enough ratio to be significant, the percentage of women who dive during menses would have to be estimated if tests were to be drawn solely from empirical evidence. Fortunately, more reliable and manageable tests have been conducted.

Misinformation on Walter's part? No. Faulty reasoning and missing information on yours? Yes.

VR

A. How is a shark who was not present at the kill of a whale, seal, dolphin, presuming death was instantaneous or even if the animal dies of natural causes and is in a state of decay able to pin point where the carcas is?

B. By presant day estimates,YES. But Walter's info comes from a time when men dominated water sports like surfing, diving and spear fishing even more than they do today. Using old data and applying it to today's statistics is misinformation. So all I am saying that his info is a little off the mark for facts and figures.

 

[vr]

A. You are assuming sharks come upon the carcasses of the mammals you mentioned. More likely, as has been observed, sharks like the great white encounter it live and kill the mammal. The great white shark typically takes one bite, backs off, and lets the animal bleed to death. It is thought that this is a defensive measure for the great white.

B. I think I see your point. Statistics alone can be misleading. Even 93.1% is not necessarily revealing unless other conditions and factors are known. However, it is not misinformation nor is it off the mark. It was simply the best available information at the time, and the truth of it was borne out by more detailed studies later.

 

[King_Neptune]

I can't help but notice that their seems to be continued "I think..." or "Sharks think/don't think..." when I can't help but wonder what research you all have done?

Not that I am saying that anything is set in stone or Factual but the closest thing I've seen in mentioning that someone actual looked for some foundation is that of Dr. Jacalyn J. Robert-McComb... Which I will re-post again and provide you all with the link for the FULL ARTICLE...

Women Diving during Menses

There is no evidence of increased shark interest in a menstruating female. The hemolytic blood associated with menses may instead act as a shark deterrent (Edmonds, et al., 1992, p.65). In fact, 89% of 69 surveyed women said they dived during menses (Crown, 1977). However, if a female is experiencing physiological distress during menses it would be prudent not to dive since stress can contribute to DCS (Arness, 1997).

Does anyone know of any other or more recent studies?

=-)