2 women killed by sharks i Egypt

[BoltSnap]

I'm literally relaying what the local dive instructors thought, calm down

Yeah, the great experts.

 

[Saltwater_Parrot]

When I visited Sharm earlier this year, I was talking to one of the instructors about shark attacks in the area and he brought up the 2010 attacks. Apparently, where animals are getting transported at sea if some die they just get thrown overboard which attracts the sharks. Some tour guides use chum to attract them. His view is that people are attracting sharks to the area by conditioning them to associate us with food. As a marine biologist, I am inclined to agree. I'm due back there in October, and this does worry me.

From Wiki - "A variety of theories were put forward to explain the attacks. This includes overfishing in the Red Sea or on the illegal or inadvertent feeding of sharks or smaller fish close to the shore, which produced scents that attracted more sharks. Another theory considers the dumping of sheep carcasses in the Red Sea by a livestock transport during the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha had attracted the sharks to the shore."

It's so sad for the sharks and for the people.

That, and many shark populations are making relatively strong comebacks in many parts of the world (not sure specifically about Egypt though).
Higher number of sharks + association with feeding and you have a situation where it comes down to probabilities that will more often be fulfilled.

 

[SubMarineBiologist]

Yeah, the great experts.

Yes, the natives who spend more time in the water than most of us, fancy that!
I will add, that this is my career field (marine biology) and it's absolutely possible.

 

[BoltSnap]

Yes, the natives who spend more time in the water than most of us, fancy that!
I will add, that this is my career field (marine biology) and it's absolutely possible.

I am one of the "natives" and I know the natives and talk with them and know the culture and politics there. It BS that has no basis in science, mere rumors and tea time shooting the Shiite talk.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Some die and are thrown overboard. This has been happening for ages for as long as ships were used to transport livestock from one market to another market across the world.

Of course. But how many places where animals are transported via ship go through dive destinations as popular as the Red Sea? It is simple statistics of more dead animals on the surface in shark habitat combined with more people in the water resulting in higher probability of attacks on humans.

Let's say animals were transported in the Salish Sea (Washington state to southern BC). Well, in that case, we have orcas killing any non-bottom dwelling sharks, so they could be dumping carcasses all day long, the orcas would get most/all of the carcasses if they wanted to. But there would be likely no attacks on people. Plus, I'm pretty sure the density of divers in the Red Sea far exceeds the Salish Sea. Just an uneducated guess.

 

[SubMarineBiologist]

I am one of the "natives" and I know the natives and talk with them and know the culture and politics there. It BS that has no basis in science, mere rumors and tea time shooting the Shiite talk.

fabulous, I'll go and hand my degree and career back to the vendors.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

When I visited Sharm earlier this year, I was talking to one of the instructors about shark attacks in the area and he brought up the 2010 attacks. Apparently, where animals are getting transported at sea if some die they just get thrown overboard which attracts the sharks. Some tour guides use chum to attract them. His view is that people are attracting sharks to the area by conditioning them to associate us with food. As a marine biologist, I am inclined to agree. I'm due back there in October, and this does worry me.

From Wiki - "A variety of theories were put forward to explain the attacks. This includes overfishing in the Red Sea or on the illegal or inadvertent feeding of sharks or smaller fish close to the shore, which produced scents that attracted more sharks. Another theory considers the dumping of sheep carcasses in the Red Sea by a livestock transport during the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha had attracted the sharks to the shore."

It's so sad for the sharks and for the people.

One of the problems I see is celebrity marine biologists exercising dangerous/disruptive practices around sharks. I'm not just referring to Ocean Ramsay. There are others. When their self-interest goes against or impedes science, I believe the problem is exacerbated. I am no marine biologist, but I try to read explanations from publishing marine biologists who explain the issues in layman's terms.

 

[BoltSnap]

fabulous, I'll go and hand my degree and career back to the vendors.

You're telling me that shooting the Shiite with dive instructors about complex environmental issues at tea time is now the basis for coming to scientific conclusions? Yeah, the new Middlestern contribution to the world, science by rumor. Actually, in reality that's how decisions are made in my part of the world, based on rumor. Tea shops are the center of power and decision making for science.

 

[sourdough]

Sharks are monsters, as hard as everyone wants to convince you otherwise, remember you are swimming with real life monsta.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Sharks are monsters, as hard as everyone wants to convince you otherwise, remember you are swimming with real life monsta.

you just need a pet orca!