Tiger Shark - Jupiter, FL 03/23/2014

[Murfdizzle21]

I have to disagree, many of us have seen with our own eyes a change in how the sharks behave over the last year. A year ago the sharks would pass by at a distance and you'd have to swim really hard to get close enough for a photo or decent video. Now they come right up to non-feeding divers. Sure they might not stick around but that is a definite change in behavior. A lot of folks who enjoy the shark feeding dives generally won't admit/recognize this change, but more objective folks will.

What is more debatable is if this is bad/dangerous. I am not sure what the answer to that is. Definitely a hot-button topic though.

Nice video as usual by the way!

Were talking scientific evidence sir, not your opinion. I can say it hasn't you can say it has, we need scientific proof. Maybe it has changed their behavior? Does that mean they're going to start attacking people? I don't think it does, like you said, you have no fish they leave. So who ever is saying sharks come up to them aggressively and the person has no fish, I have to think they're lying or exaggerating. We've had dives no sharks and a buffet laid out for them. I appreciate the compliment on the video, can't wait to get back out there.

 

[djtimmy77]

Were talking scientific evidence sir, not your opinion. I can say it hasn't you can say it has, we need scientific proof.

This is a cop-out...a diversion...something that Randy himself might say in an attempt to nullify actual experiences people are having. It is not really possible to get legit scientific evidence, the behavior has already changed.

Obviously people who really enjoy the activity are going to defend it and make claims that it has zero effect on the shark behavior and people against it are going to say that the sharks are biting divers, babies, and puppies. That won't change.

Until it is shown that it actually makes it dangerous for other divers I am on the fence. I've been on one of the early bluewater drift dives myself. My biggest complaint is that many of the videos show people trampling all over the reef. I am quite pleased that more recent videos are showing the activity out in the sand.

I apologize for doing what you didn't want people to do on this thread.

 

[falcon125]

Great video.
I think you should teach the shark some tricks. Why should they get a free meal?
Do their fins twitch when you scratch their belly?

 

[dreamdive]

Can you post your scientific evidence? Who has studied it in these waters with this population? I can tell you that I read a lot of scientific papers and not all of the science presented is worth a penny.

 

[sportxlh]

I read that Shark feeding is illegal in Florida. It is on posted on this Forum. Is the post about FWC not correct? I ask that because I am a cave diver but I am going to Jupiter for a dive. Need clarification.

State waters extend 3 miles from shore and it is illegal there. In federal waters it is not illegal.

---------- Post added March 25th, 2014 at 01:50 PM ----------

I dove with Randy Jordan and Emerald Charters on both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday we saw one hammer, viz was only about 30 feet and it was 68 degrees at the bottom. On sunday viz was a little bit better, wasn't as cold, and spent our entire last dive with a female tiger shark. She was about 8 or 9 feet I'd say. She was shy at first making passes up high and then she came close and ate some food from Randy. She ended up hanging with us the whole dive and eating all the food. It was great. I could care less what your opinions are on shark feeding,

I have mixed feelings on these shark dives but have enjoyed the videos. Thanks for posting. Although Halyon's video was a more unnerving. Hopefully Randy doesn't get hurt if a similarly inclined Tiger shows up again.

 

[diversteve]

there is not enough evidence to show that these shark feeding dives have an effect on their behavior.

What I saw on your video clearly indicates behavior modification of the Tiger - every time she returned for another handout contrary to her usual method of having to hunt for live prey. It's associating black rubber coated beings with food in her simple view of the world. We probably smell bad also but hey a free meal is a free meal right?

You should also consider the fact that not everyone is as tolerant of big sharks as we are. If in her simple brain she decides that maybe since the black colored humans feed her, maybe the next time she's off LBTS or one of the nearby beaches - the pale ones might also if she gives them a bump. Or takes a taste herself of something she normally wouldn't be aware of. If she bites in the fat part, it may kill someone. Or at least remove a limb.

Or she scares the crap out of a bunch of tourists - without any overtly hostile actions on her part. They complain and shark hunters are out looking for her the same day. They're not going to net her and take her to Seaworld either.

So indirectly Randy's actions may actually lead to the demise of the very thing he's making a living from. If you care at all about her you'll stop supporting that. If not, you're as sad as he is. Except he's smarter because you pay him to see it. If no one did, he'd stop.

She doesn't deserve to die because Randy has altered her behavior to be more accepting of humans. What if the next group she encounters in the area are spearos carrying bang sticks for the bulls. And one can't tell the difference between cruise and attack position so blows her brains out when she swims up to him. Or is new and gets scared.

That would be the true shame...

 

[Murfdizzle21]

I am in no way debating feeding her changes the behavior, I know it does, she comes by and gets a reward. Whether that change of behavior makes her more aggressive or not, I don't believe it does. She's not going to start relying on humans for food, the food we give them are mere snacks of what they need to eat daily. So since she's a big shark apparently she deserves to die if she comes up to a diver who doesn't want to see her? did you forget we're entering their ocean? All these divers who are not "tolerant of big sharks" should stay out of the ocean. If you're spearfishing, you should be prepared to see sharks, you're in the ocean with a twitching bloody fish, sharks have bother spearfisherman since the beginning, long before we fed them. That guy Anthony who shot the cobia off the bull shark and got bit on the leg, that happened long before anyone was feeding the sharks.

 

[danvolker]

I am in no way debating feeding her changes the behavior, I know it does, she comes by and gets a reward. Whether that change of behavior makes her more aggressive or not, I don't believe it does. She's not going to start relying on humans for food, the food we give them are mere snacks of what they need to eat daily. So since she's a big shark apparently she deserves to die if she comes up to a diver who doesn't want to see her? did you forget we're entering their ocean? All these divers who are not "tolerant of big sharks" should stay out of the ocean.

Ignorant comment. If posting history is representative here, pretty much every diver that dives Palm Beach is "tolerant of big sharks", and most like seeing them.....But, this has NOTHING to do with the majority of these divers being "tolerant" of new aggressive shark behaviors taught to them by divers engaged in hand feeding.

I don't think the majority of divers SHOULD BE tolerant of artificial changes caused by hand feeding wild predators. And I am thinking that the MAJORITY of divers in Palm Beach will champion the cause of the FWC officers, and these guys will be the heroes in the story as this goes to court.

---------- Post added March 25th, 2014 at 04:43 PM ----------

Can you post your scientific evidence? Who has studied it in these waters with this population? I can tell you that I read a lot of scientific papers and not all of the science presented is worth a penny.

If you walk quickly behind a horse, do you need a scientific study to be willing to consider it likely that surprising the horse from the rear, could make him kick you ?
If you kept walking behind the horse, for months, until the study was completed, you may have been kicked so many times that you could no longer do more than drool and whimper.

Some things call for science...Some call for common sense!

 

[diver 85]

You Nega-feeders, please don't look @ these links....................Crudely presented-------but a video of a video I present you:...Fiji 2010 Beqa Lagoon....

14 ft Tiger----on 1st dive...

Feeding The 14' Tiger Shark Video by GEAUXtiger | Photobucket

14' Tiger Shark---feeding It Video by GEAUXtiger | Photobucket

18 ft'er came in on 2nd dive-------this was the 1st time the TS's had shown up in 3 weeks, & we Got 2......lol.....

18' Tiger Shark Feeding Video by GEAUXtiger | Photobucket

18' Tiger Shark Feeding Video by GEAUXtiger | Photobucket

 

[TracyN]

I've been on a couple of his dives. It is an accident waiting to happen. At first it was cool but when a large hammerhead got close enough for me to touch it had I chosen to, things weren't so cool anymore. The thing was swimming straight for me and turned away at the last moment.