Diving with the Bull sharks

[ggunn]

So does that mean that you wrote it and posted it as a joke? Or did you just pass it off as 'real' news.

Sorry, I don't really get it.

mfinley919 was just doing a little chumming himself...

 

[Mike]

mfinley919 was just doing a little chumming himself...

 

[tight rope walker]

My fight instructor taught me that to ask a question is but a moments shame. But to not ask a question, and live a lifetime of ignorance, is a livetime of shame. So here goes. It is apparent that the practice of chumming for sharks is frowned on. So when sharks appear, is it just a coincidence, or is it becasuse you are in a place the sharks frequent? But to me the most important question is, I,ve also read here that it is very important to use a reputable dive operator. Makse sense. But when that shark takes a SPECIAL interest in you or a member of your group. at that point how does the operator protect you? Or does he prevent that situation from happening in the first place? I am not going to quote people here because I believe we are all adults, and would naturally stand behind what we say. I am having a hard time wrapping myself around this procedure, and that is what has kept me from these type of encounters. Once that animal wants to make you his new best friend, whats the procedure from preventing a accident? Or is it making sure that it never gets to that point?

 

[docmartin]

I just have a quick question. And in the words of Hooper," I just don't want to get beat up here". Everything I've read or seen states that of all the shark species, the bull is the worst. I don't want to waste anybodys time here, but, if you get in a cadge when a great whites in the water, and the bull sharks the worst, shouldn't you get in a cadge when a bulls in the water?

you go in the cadge
cadge goes in the water
you go in the water
sharks in the water, our shark

well, sounds logical but is based on a bit of bull (sorry, could not resist). the claim that the bull shark is the most dangerous is based on the number of attacks. from that perspective it is the most dangerous. this is caused by a number of reasons: 1. the bull shark is fairly abundant 2. it can be found all over the world including in fresh water 3. it likes shallow waters and, therefore, can often be found in close proximity to beaches and bathers 4. shallow water close to beaches is often murky (sand, runoff etc.) 4. it is indeed fairly aggressive

if you were to look at the risk to a diver when encountering a bull, the risk profile is a little different. the likelihood of encountering a bull is higher than seeing a tiger or a great white. however, when you have an encounter most would agree that they feel far safer with a bull than a great white in a cageless encounter. first, the shark is much smaller and there is a great difference between the bite of a 7 ft shark versus a 15 ft shark. Both can kill you but mortality rates are much higher for a great white or a tiger attack. That's why bulls lead in number of attacks but not in number of deadly attacks. secondly, bull sharks don't really go much after prey in the size range of a human and in a diving situation there is basically no risk that a bull will mistake you for a prey item. thirdly, the stimulus of people in shallow, murky water splashing about that may incite a bull to take a bite does not exist in a diving situation.

as a result, encountering a bull shark under water is actually not very dangerous. an attack on a diver is a rarity and in the vast majority of cases involves spearfishing. bulls are known to be very aggressive in challenging spearfishermen for their take.

as far as bull shark dives such as practised by operators in Playa i'd say the following:
1. not having safety procedures in place is a bad thing.
2. dives with bull sharks are riskier than dives with most other sharks.
3. potentially pulling the sharks in Playa closer to the beach and into shallower water could become a problem.
3. many experts will argue that chumming is not the same as feeding - there are many ways to conduct a dive that introduces food and some are considered worse than others (e.g. hand feeding versus chumsicle). If you have experienced different approaches yourself you will agree that some will get the sharks more agitated than others. Playa operators may well practise a range of different approaches, some riskier than others.
4. the logic of the anti-shark feed proponents is often presented as unassailable and in this thread it looks like there is consensus against shark feeding dives because they are an accident waiting to happen. the fact is that these dives happen daily, all over the world with thousands of divers and many kinds of sharks. admittedly, I only know of two such dives that target mainly bulls - the one in Playa and the one in Fiji with enormous hand fed bulls and tigers. In the history of organized shark dives I'm aware of one deadly accident that happened last year and, indeed, a bull was involved. Anyone else know of any other deaths or major injuries?
5. often the argument is made that shark feeds make the area more dangerous for divers that do not participate in them. I don't think that this is supported by any accident data but I must admit I have not looked either. My personal and statistically totally insignificant experience is that I have dived in many areas where shark feeding is routine. The sharks have often been waiting for food under the boat even before a diver entered the water. I have never seen any aggressive behavior by a shark in these situations when no food was offered. I have, however, been bitten by a triggerfish on such an occasion.

I know this is a very controversial subject. There is a lot of data on shark attacks (and shark feeding) but it is usually ignored in the discussions which tend to veer off into feeding bears and lions and other completely unrelated life forms. shark dives appear to be remarkably safe. however, one thing is for sure: Diving with a bull shark is riskier than doing the same dive without a bull shark. and feeding a bull shark will bring it in closer and make it more excited. you decide if seeing the bull shark is worth the risk to you and how close you want to get. And definitely watch out for those damned trigger fish!

 

[tight rope walker]

Thanks doc for the info. regardless of the bite radius, I wouldn't want to get bit by either one.

And in the immortal words of Quint,
Sometimes the shark swims away,
Sometimes he don't

 

[docmartin]

My fight instructor taught me that to ask a question is but a moments shame. But to not ask a question, and live a lifetime of ignorance, is a livetime of shame. So here goes. It is apparent that the practice of chumming for sharks is frowned on. So when sharks appear, is it just a coincidence, or is it becasuse you are in a place the sharks frequent? But to me the most important question is, I,ve also read here that it is very important to use a reputable dive operator. Makse sense. But when that shark takes a SPECIAL interest in you or a member of your group. at that point how does the operator protect you? Or does he prevent that situation from happening in the first place? I am not going to quote people here because I believe we are all adults, and would naturally stand behind what we say. I am having a hard time wrapping myself around this procedure, and that is what has kept me from these type of encounters. Once that animal wants to make you his new best friend, whats the procedure from preventing a accident? Or is it making sure that it never gets to that point?

some dives are better organized than others. I have seen some operations that will put safety divers in the water that cover your back and could potentially try to intervene if a shark took too much of an interest in you. however, i do not think that this is the rule. as far as procedures to prevent accidents, here are a couple of things I like to follow based on the safety procedures Jim Abernathy recommends for his tiger shark trips: Sharks are attracted by contrast. anything that triggers their curiosity could lead to an "exploratory" bite that could make you bleed to death. therefore, no flowing hair i.e. wear a hood, no bright colors i.e. wear black, as little exposed skin as possible because white skin contrasted with a dark wetsuit looks like a piece of dead fish i.e. wear full length wetsuits, gloves and booties or socks to cover your ankles. dive as a team i.e. watch each others' backs, alert each other to the sharks that you see, stay within touching distance when there are more than three sharks present so that you can quickly get your buddy's attention. also, unless you have a big camera rig to shove into the shark's face you may want to bring a 3 ft piece of PVC pipe or similar. if a shark comes close to bump you do not poke the shark with the pipe but rather you hold it VERTICALLY in front of you (horizontal and it will play fetch with the stick and possibly your arm). the shark will not be able to bite the vertical 3 ft stick or you for that matter. it will bump the stick and turn away. i have used the vertical stick many times with bumping tigers and it works like a charm (until it doesn't )

 

[greylion]

Interesting discussion. One thing is certain, when diving Playa del Carmen you have a much better chance of seeing a large pelagic. A couple of years ago I was diving Tortuga and we saw a large Hammerhead there, she took off as soon as she saw us, very cool and unusual for that area I was told. We never saw a bull though and this was in December.

I wouldn't mind doing this but my wife wouldn't go with me if I pointed a spear gun at her. She always has been the voice of reason.

 

[tight rope walker]

The same thing happened to myself and my wife in saba. Out of no where came a 12 foot hammerhead. Another diver said it was 12 feet as I was too busy reviewing my will on the back of my slate. As fast as it appeared it disappeared which was just fine with me. During our service interval, I decided to go snorkeling, and I'm not ashamed to tell you I kept constantly looking under, back towards my legs to make sure they were still there.

 

[docmartin]

anyone up for a night snorkel off the beach in Playa? I'll stay on land and watch your belongings.

 

[greylion]

The same thing happened to myself and my wife in saba. Out of no where came a 12 foot hammerhead. Another diver said it was 12 feet as I was too busy reviewing my will on the back of my slate. As fast as it appeared it disappeared which was just fine with me. During our service interval, I decided to go snorkeling, and I'm not ashamed to tell you I kept constantly looking under, back towards my legs to make sure they were still there.

Did the other diver have a tape measure or does he have calibrated eyeballs? It does tend to get the juices flowing, some high and some low.