Sharks – What do you believe?

I am sitting here reading about one of my favorite species, Sharks. It does not matter which kind, any shark. What I am seeing and reading concerns me. This morning I was reading on a website dedicated to sharks. I went to the page in hopes to find resources on the subject. What I find are commercials to dive with the sharks. This is done by bating, bringing in food to attract the sharks so others may interact with them or photograph them.  It is not natural for sharks to be fed by humans and to associate humans with food.  The next association will be man is food. When this occurs, humans will scream sharks are human killers, never looking at the past for the cause and reasons for the sharks actions started when humans began interacting with sharks. When it was fun, dangerous, serving ones ego.

I love diving with the sharks. Every dive site I have visited, sharks were present only because of the human interaction of feeding sharks was common in the area. One of the locations is Cay Sal Banks. Here, shark feeding was promoted and the days I was visiting the site, no shark feeding was occurring, yet the quantity of sharks present was amazing. This was in 2005. In 2009 I visited Cay Sal Banks to again dive with and film the sharks. Only this time, I could hardly believe the difference. There were just a handful of sharks. Where did they all go? Was it because feeding in the area has not occurred for a number of years? Was it because the number of sharks in the ocean were diminishing or both? I became concerned. It was at this point I turned my interests towards sharks.

One can argue, we’re not doing anything wrong and we have the right yada yada … to feed the sharks. We should not encourage people to “dive with the sharks” for the sake of diving with sharks by baiting the shark to the area.  Diving with the sharks should be a natural occurring event. One where the shark and the diver meet each other, dynamically.

Imagine if someone coming into your place of residence and begin following you around, offering gifts of food, snapping pictures, trying to touch you, ride you. Would you feel invaded? Would you feel at peace with your surroundings with all this commotion going on in your yard,  because some species feels, they being superior,  may interact with you at their will?

Moving on to another subject of finning. The removal of fins (dorsal and pectoral) then discard the body back into the ocean. This is alright because (followed by any excuse) … What is being performed is atrocious. Imaging a species coming along and saying the feet and hands of humans when ingested will better ones dexterity.  So the species goes out and begins cutting of the arms and legs of humans, to discard the rest of the body. Sounds pretty sick and there is nothing you can do about it. The species says, there are billions of humans, it is our tradition and besides humans are a menace and what’s a 100 million a year going to harm? Do you believe we would sit idle while this was occurring? I don’t think so and why should we expect any other creature?

This is wasteful act and a major problem, all motivated by money. Here we see humans acting irresponsibly because it’s tradition or there are millions of sharks or sharks are dangerous creatures. Maybe it is  because one can or because no one said I couldn’t do it! It will be a shame to be looked at as the generation that took, leaving nothing behind. So what! I won’t be alive when that happens, so I don’t care. How does that sound? Pretty selfish? Sad? Imagine a world where our future is a picture of what use to be, what this planet once had. What will be left?

Definition of a fin:

A membranous, winglike or paddle like organ attached to any of various parts of the body of fishes and certain other aquatic animals, used for propulsion, steering, or balancing. dictionary.com

An external membranous process of an aquatic animal (as a fish) used in propelling or guiding the body. Merriam Webster Dictionary

Finning, and slaughtering is occurring all around the world. Proof! There is proof? There most certainly is proof and people have been murdered getting proof.  Why do Governments not step in to stop this slaughter? A recent Article. Governments do not get involved because it produces revenue or saves revenue, plain and simple.

To help you see what occurs behind the curtain, the following movies were made by individuals who took the risk of filming what would otherwise not be allowed. Why would anyone not want these acts filmed?

Is there a problem?

Movies:

National Geographic “The Cove”

Sharkwater

What are your thoughts on feeding sharks, and/or shark finning? What can we do? What should we do?

Larry

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