Bull shark dives Cancun/Coz/PDC?

[GregT943]

I'm looking at going to Cancun in either December or January and I plan on doing at least a few days of diving. I'm just looking for some info on the Bull shark dives some operators advertise. I tried searching for a trip report but couldn't find one. Do they feed the sharks on the dive? Do they use chum to attract the sharks? Or do the sharks simply congregate there in such regular numbers that chum/bait is not needed at all? Is it worth the cash?

I love diving with sharks, but I'm not a big fan of shark feeding dives. I would appreciate any info or reviews on this dive. Thanks

 

[stevep4444]

I did a Bull Shark dive last December in PDC. The shop I dove with did not chum or feed the sharks but apparently, one dive shop in PDC was feeding them. The day we were out there were a few mature female Bull Sharks and it was impressive as they circled us curiously. Shortly after that time things changed.Since they are not protected in that area,and were easy to find in good numbers, some fisherman took advantage of this to fish many of them out on a couple of different ocassions. After the purge I think it was hit and miss whether the remaining sharks were seen on dives.

 

[GregT943]

Wow, that's really sad that they were fished out. I hope their population has begun to rebound since then and they are working on protecting that area

 

[andreslee]

Hi Greg, recetly I was in Cancun, and meet a guy that feed´s bull sharks. I dont have a lot of information about bull sharks but there is something I can tell you, these guy know what he is talking about. He show me this video in his android ‪Bull Sharks | AlwaysDiving.com‬‏ - YouTube his name is alvaro

 

[phantom divers]

Hello Greg let me give you some info about the shark diving...The shark diving has become more popular in the last 4 years and they are here between november and february we feel very proud to say that we were the first dive shop who start this dive here in this area and yes we feed them but the way that we do is completely different than the rest why????
1. We been travel to many places where shark feeding is done to learn technics about how interact with them
2.Marine biologist had been here to talk us about their feeding behavior...because we dont want to change it...the amount of food we give them is minimum compare to the quantity they need to survive,the food is only to atracck them.
3. We have an emergency plan in case something goes wrong, the sharks are very intelligent and we never had an accident before but the risk still there you can not say that this dive is 100% safe...the feeder and the guide they both wears a shark suit all the time and they are 20 feet away from the group
4. We also have created a non profit organization to study them...where they go the rest of the year,reproduction and feedi ng behavior...Part of the money we charge on this dive goes to this organization to buy equipment like electronic tags or bring people to help us with this proyect etc

Anyway my friend hope this info help you and please if you have any question or comment please let us know you can visit
Buceo en Playa del Carmen - Phantom Divers Home or send us an email info@phantomdivers.com

Best regards from the phantom staff

 

[RU4SKUBA]

Feeding the sharks teaches them to return to the same spot, so when someone bribes a crewman on Phantom Diver's boat... the shark fin hunters get the location and harvest them all. Bye bye bull sharks, like in Nov 2010 when PDC locals estimate 14-16 bull shark were taken at a local chumming spot.

So are Phantom Divers and their customers to blame when this happens? No. Do they share some of the blame. Undoubtedly and for good reason.

For profit, they are upsetting the balance of nature to provide entertainment at the expense of the animals doomed by human greed and stupidity. They KNOW its going to lead to the demise of the creatures, but they're going to milk their cow anyway. Its unfair to blame them, since they don't actually dump their finless carcasses overboard. Really.

 

[majsa]

I dove Playa del Carmen and Cozumel last year for Christmas (first time).

I went through Fantasea Dive (Jason Sartain). Very small shop (shack?) but I prefer the 1 v 1 dives on a panga to larger boats.
Out of the 5 dives, we saw bulls on 3 of them. He doesnt chum and was getting pretty hostile about the ones that do.

If your interested: Playa Del Carmen diving - small uncrowded groups

 

[GregT943]

I definitely would prefer to go with an operator who does not chum/feed the sharks. I have never been a big fan of shark feeding dives. Are there any operators who leave out of Cancun who do not chum and feed on the shark dives?

 

[phantom divers]

Things that happen; are moved by someones passion

Mexico Will Ban Shark Fishing as Global Sanctuary Movement Grows - NYTimes.com