Snorkeler feared taken by shark

[Hetland]

What is really bad is that is based off of memory...then again I just watched it last night for the 50th time.

Seriously though, these stories really suck....the chances of this happening are incredible. So close to shore to...

agreed. chances are probably better at winning the lottery.... twice

 

[Haiko]

agreed. chances are probably better at winning the lottery.... twice

So.. you must be a lucky guy to get eaten by a shark?

 

[Scubasteve1982]

Almost another attack with video!

Here is the link: Video: Great white shark circles kayakers and fishermen in Sydney - Telegraph

 

[jepuskar]

'You're gonna need a bigger kayak??'

 

[Scubasteve1982]

'You're gonna need a bigger kayak??'

I knew that was coming!

 

[jepuskar]

'I can't take this abuse much longer'

Steve, you seem to always know what I'm going to say...I think you have that PMS or something.

 

[Scubasteve1982]

I have no reply

 

[seaducer]

My understanding is that people are not usually on the menu as they have comparatively little body fat compared to a seal. We are, despite what insurance company height/weight charts indicate, to bony and chewy for the average great white to decide to switch from the regular menu to eating people. Unless a great white is in mid ocean where there are no other meals around I don't see a shark's acquired "taste" for people as an issue - and frankly any pelagic shark encounter has a higher likely hood of an attack as there are often no other potential meals around so it is a take it when you can get it attitude regardless of any prior history of eating people.

Absolutely. And there really is no evidence that sharks that taste human flesh ever begin to hunt us.

This is common with older or injured predators like tigers. What happens is they are no longer capable of hunting their normal prey, and out of desparation they attack a slow moving and defenseless animal. If the predator is just sick or hurt then eventually they revert back to their normal prey. In the meantime they do begin to stalk people, as we are the only things they can realistically kill. There is no "taste of human flesh" so to speak, but more a matter of convienience. Of course dead is dead.

In the case of sharks, the evidence points more and more to mistaken identity in very violent attacks, and to curiosity in less violent attacks. I doubt anybody would survive the intitial approach by even a small white shark who thought you were a seal. The severity of the attack is very much a relative term, where we think that are all violent, but the shark is just "tasting" and then spitting out.

Free divers are at greater risk than scuba divers of being attacked by white or tiger sharks, since both predators tend to focus on the surface for their prey. They are both ambush predators that prefer to hit from below and behind, so if you spin frequently you may ward off an attack by just being alert. Healthy turtles and seals don't spend alot of time on the surface, but hurt ones do. If you can alter your behavior to something that doesn't resemble what the shark is looking for, you will get that butt puckering close encounter as opposed to the butt removing one. Hopefully. I had a big tiger spy hop and check me out while boogie boarding once. I don't know why she didn't grab me, all I know is I lost total faith in my convictions during that time.

Obviously there is some association of me with lunch, but no real association of me being lunch - although when an 8 to 10 ft sand tiger speeds up and starts following you closely, you do tend to wonder...

They are spooky looking, no doubt about it. A good bet is that they see divers spook fish out of hiding all the time, and so they are shadowing you to see if you scare up lunch, as opposed to the spearfishing scenario. It is possible but I think maybe not often enough to condition that type of response in a shark. Remember their brains are tiny and mostly involve sensory organs, and only some memory and cognitive functions. It takes alot of stimulation to force a new behavior, and I don't think spearfishing is that popular anymore, but regular sport diving on the wrecks is.

At any rate, as tragic as it is, there really is nothing you can do to prevent an attack once the shark has decided to bite. You can alter your behavior to avoid looking like prey, but in the end, that is all you can do. On the plus side, attacks are so rare as to be inconsiquential when considering all that can go wrong at sea. Of course, that is little consolation to the Guest family...:depressed:

 

[jepuskar]

I have no reply

umm....lolol

 

[jepuskar]

you will get that butt puckering close encounter

I heard that once while watching a Discovery program on our prison systems.