1100 lb Tiger Shark caught in contest near Martha's Vineyard - Combined Thread

[rubberduck]

Just heard about this the other day. I guess it was part of that monster shark tournament that will air on ESPN in Sept. Huge catch and they were 6 minutes late to weight in so it didn't count.

Anyways, I'm newly certified and dive in New England. This is probably my biggest fear of diving. When I'm actually diving I find from the excitement that I actually don't even think of a shark but days later and after seeing pictures of this monster you start thinking what you would do if you came across one.


Last year there was 14 ft Great White that came into a cove on the Cape for a few days. No incidents but was on the news every night.

 

[bob1dp]

Wow. There is something about the size of the Tiger sharks jaws that make it look enormous. A photo of a 1,200 Mako from a couple of years earlier has such a smaller jaw area. Maybe it’s just the angle or the way the jaws are positioned.

 

[ReefGuy]

There's already two other threads on this.

 

[Scuba65]

Hey, Mike...those are awesome pictures. all of them..not just sharks, but i'm more parcial to the shark pictures of course. I"m hoping to take a trip soon to Cocos Island to see some hammers and would really like to see the great white.

 

[Otter]

I combined two of the smaller threads and left the one in the New England Club since thats where it happened and the thread there was so extensive, it would be confusing to combine this with that.

 

[fishoutawater]

Very nice pictures Mike.
Ya know? I'm a hunter and fisherman, and I can't put a finger on why seeing this shark in its present state bothers me, but it does.
Maybe it's because I don't get to dive (or just be on the ocean) as much as I want.
To me, the ocean is my special magic place. I don't want to see it or any of its contents abused like we do to the land.
I mean, where I live, I see deer, turkey, rabbits etc. everyday, and I know I couldn't hurt the population if I tried. Maybe if I lived on the coast and saw zillions of sharks all the time, I wouldn't be bothered by it. Maybe I'd be just like them guys that caught that shark. I hope not.
Or maybe its a predator thing. I don't kill other predators. Deer and rabbits multiply very rapidly. Bears don't. Likewise with sardines vs. sharks.
Then again, maybe it's the size thing. I once caught a fifty lb flathead catfish. During the boat ride back to my dock, I was looking at it on the bottom of my boat, and I asked myself, "why am I bringing it back?" To show my friends was my answer. I certainly had no plans of eating it. Too big. Young'ns taste better.
I thought to myself, "This fellas made it this far in his life, I'm not gonna kill it for a few googoogagas. We've all seen catfish before.
I wrestled it over the gunnel, he gave me a good splash and disappeared.
I know. Silly me. It was "just a fish".

 

[Mad_diver]

It's a bummer that these sharks have to lose their lives for this sport....
I would think gigantic sharks (or any large trophy fish) would be a special entity that would deserve respect for it's obvious survival skills.
It any part of this catch used for anything other than pictures and taxidermy?
if we keep catching and killing them, there won't be any.........

 

[Scuba65]

Very true...but, all for a stupid contest! don't get me going again

 

[Charlie99]

Very nice pictures Mike.
Ya know? I'm a hunter and fisherman, and I can't put a finger on why seeing this shark in its present state bothers me, but it does.

Empathy for a fellow predator?

 

[fishoutawater]

Actually Charlie, I haven't even hunted since I moved out into the sticks. Not much of a challenge anymore with deer standing in my yard every morning. Kinda takes the fun out of it. Especially since my wife named them all.
Guess I've lost my edge. I realized that when I lived in town, the only reason I hunted was to give me a reason to go out into the woods. Now that I'm there, I'd just as soon see the critters walking around. I just shoot 'em with my camera now.

I also think that's why I love diving so much. I can go down there and see them without dragging them out of the water and stabbing them to death.
But killing a beautiful critter like that tiger shark for the sake of a contest to see who's the most macho, is just plain moronic IMO. Now if he would have jumped in the water with that shark and killed him with a hawaiian sling, I might've been impressed. Kinda like killing a deer with a rifle. Any idiot can do that. Personally, I used to do it with a longbow I made myself, from Osage Orange wood.
OTOH, I'm definately not against hunting/fishing/spearfishing. As long as it's not a threatened species, and in accordance with local game laws yada yada yada.
BTW Charlie, Love that pic you have of the cleaner shrimp in the guy's mouth!