We are not against eco-friendly shark cage diving for tourism and research, but we are vehemently against the use of chumming (using a mix of blood, meat, fish to lure the sharks close enough to the boats for people in the cage to see) and the taunting of these great creatures with bait to try get a good photo for tourist's holiday albums.The negative impact of feeding (or luring with the smell of food) of wild animals to within a few metres of humans is commonly accepted when referring to baboons and lions in the wild, yet coaxing and teasing the king of the ocean with food until it snaps (literally) is seen as a great way to make money.
| Did you know? Australian Shark Cage dive operator proves that chum is NOT the only way to attract the Great Whites |
Chum- free Eco friendly Great White Shark Cage Diving is happening in Australia, using audio sound vibrations to attract the world’s largest predatory fish, with ACDC being the Great Whites favourite music!! The benefits of using the sound vibration is that it is omnidirectional and instantaneous and completely eco friendly. find out more |
The fact that a portion of the large amounts of money
raised do go back into Shark Conservation & Research
is a major reason why marine biologists seem to overlook
the possible link. From a scientific point of view it
is not possible to categorically Prove OR Disprove the
link between chumming great whites and the increase in
shark attacks on surfers and spearo's in the Cape over
the last 20 years, because there are just too many variables
in the equation to form a conclusive hypothesis. Increased
amounts of surfers in the water, longer water time due
to increased wetsuit technology, Great Whites being on
the protected species list, or the daily chumming in the
Shark Cage Dive industry? Regularly attracting wild animals
with food can't be good, why is it permitted with the
Great White. If the main positive behind it is raising
money for Research/Conservation, to put it in a human
context...
"If someone runs a brothel, makes a large amount
of money, then gives a percentage back to a charity supporting
Battered Women, would that be a morally acceptable setup?"
The only people who seem to support the shark cage diving
industry are those with vested interests (Shark
Cage Dive Operators, local communties getting
kick-backs,
Marine Biologists who don't surf, adventure tour
companies and backpackers & hotels who receive
a healthy commission of R250 a pop). These
people are not affected by the sharks change in behaviour,
many of them never leave the safety of their boats, and
some do not even venture off land, and could care less
about the increasing amount of surfers who have lost their legs &
lives since the industry began in 1991. Remember, its
us surfers and spearfishermen who are the ones who remain
in the waters daily, floating on the surface for hours,
without a cage, and any change in behaviour, no matter
how small, is going to affect us, not you. Its time for
people to wake up, make a noise, and make change happen
.
Let's move to have the industry
regulated and outlaw the use of any form of chum or bait
to lure the Great Whites, and just enjoy
the priviledge of viewing them naturally as we would with
any other great creature.
So inform yourself, and consider the impacts your
choices make.
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- Justin Othersurfa
