Maui Sharks
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DiveMaven
Contributor
We shore dive quite a bit in Maui and were there a week ago with no problems. Except for the usual white tip in the cave at Makena, there were no shark sightings or problems. I definitely never worry about it.
You'd be lucky if you got to see a shark on a dive. Bring a camera.
spoolin01
Contributor
Not many oceans where some aggressive species of sharks are not at least a remote risk. Pretty remote though, when you consider. Even better news is that spearfishers, surfers, and probably snorkelers are higher up the list than divers. I always think I'd like to see one and take a pic, but in truth I'd be a little worried.
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I'm also in the never seen a shark shore diving on Maui camp. And we've dove both north and south - multiple trips.Not recently though.
You could see Tigers at Olawalu but I never have - one beach with permanent signs - at least when we were there. Stay near the bottom - they're probably more afraid of you than you are them so you won't even see them if they see/hear/smell you first. Unless you look like a turtle - yum...
There's an interesting recent study about how the shelf around Maui promotes more shark populations than some of the other islands. Google it if interested. They tracked some Tigers and found they were even coming over from another island. Not trying to cause you any alarm but you should be aware of all the facts.
You should see reef sharks around Molokini or Lana'i off a boat. Definitely no threat to you, only 5-6' long. Simply excellent to watch. I'd worry more about stepping on a stonefish or spiny urchin.
You could see Tigers at Olawalu but I never have - one beach with permanent signs - at least when we were there. Stay near the bottom - they're probably more afraid of you than you are them so you won't even see them if they see/hear/smell you first. Unless you look like a turtle - yum...
There's an interesting recent study about how the shelf around Maui promotes more shark populations than some of the other islands. Google it if interested. They tracked some Tigers and found they were even coming over from another island. Not trying to cause you any alarm but you should be aware of all the facts.
You should see reef sharks around Molokini or Lana'i off a boat. Definitely no threat to you, only 5-6' long. Simply excellent to watch. I'd worry more about stepping on a stonefish or spiny urchin.
smellzlikefish
Contributor
I could be mistaken, but I believe the study you are referring to tagged sharks in Maui to watch their movements. It produced a map that showed the Hawaiian Islands and a whole bunch of points around Maui that represented tiger sharks. People misconstrued this map to say that tigers were far more common around Maui than elsewhere. The reality is that the map showed a lot of tiger sharks in the Maui area because that is where the bulk of the tagging was performed. Tigers are wide-ranging predators-a number of sharks were originally tagged around Oahu and swam 1000 miles to the northwestern Hawaiian Islands!
A well know shark expert at Long Beach State told me that open circuit scuba divers are very unlikely to see a large predatory shark because OC divers sound like a freight train under water. We are WAY scarier than they are.
leo
Contributor
I've done many shoredives... and hundreds of times of free diving all over the West and South. While I'll admit that seeing a shark is rare (other than nurse or white tips in south most cave at Makena, closest to the Landing), I've seen a few over the years... including a white tip in the shallows just north of the Makena resort (while swimming out to Makena) and a few tigers (one at the tip of the south lava "tube" of Makena, one at Dry Rocks (north end of Palauea) and one in Namalu). If diving, I wouldn't think a thing of seeing a shark (well, I'd think "yea!, cool, a shark!)... if on the surface with snorkel gear I'd think cool, then get a little spooked at a tiger.
Bottom line, there are shark bites (not really attacks) every year or few, but nearly all can be attributed to the victim chumming the water (uh, spear fishing), trying to look like a seal (uh, surfing in a wetsuit), or murky water (especially after rains/winds) or being in the water at dawn/dusk... avoid this "4" and have very little to worry about.
Bottom line, there are shark bites (not really attacks) every year or few, but nearly all can be attributed to the victim chumming the water (uh, spear fishing), trying to look like a seal (uh, surfing in a wetsuit), or murky water (especially after rains/winds) or being in the water at dawn/dusk... avoid this "4" and have very little to worry about.
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