Shark Diving

Here’s a question for all of you adrenalin junkies who want to try shark diving …..

What has approximately 26 serrated teeth in each row of its upper jaw, just for sawing – 24 pointed teeth in each row of its lower jaw for impaling with and a total of approx. It has 300 teeth in its mouth at one time, and to be on the safe side, it continuously recycles new ones and has approximately 30,000 teeth in its life time. It has a lateral line system, which detects pressure changes, vibrations in the water and currents. It has a length of approx. 26 feet and weighs in at approx. 5,000 lbs. It can speed through the water at up to 35 mph. It has skin like sandpaper, excellent eyesight even in low light, detects blood  hundreds of feet away and does not  have anything above it in the food chain apart from the odd Orca….  oh and last but no means least has its own theme tune. Anyone?

A Great white!!!

So the next question has to be – Are you up for getting in the waters to search out this infamous beast?

“Yes” I hear you say –

“Are you mad!”

“But, in a cage – what could possibly go wrong”

Equipment needed include a pair of cojones, a spare suit for the inevitable toilet situation and a sense of adventure.

Researchers have found that certain colours are very visible to sharks. For example yellow; shark researchers light-heartedly refer to this colour as “yum yum yellow!” {George H. Burgess} that’s yum yum for the shark not a fashion statement.

A firm in Australia is marketing a new wet suit that apparently will make humans invisible to the shark but like everything in life, opinions differ…. George H. Burgess {Florida Program for Shark Research}, says “all such suits might actually have the opposite effect. Because sharks see contrast particularly well, he says, a moving striped object would be “highly attractive” to them”. So the choice is yours.

You can read about Shark Attack Mitigation Systems (SAMS) here

What could be better than, feeling the excitement, the thrill and rush of adrenaline of a great white or any another shark for that matter, chasing your arse, in the open waters. My level of courage, I have to admit would be, limited to the safety of a cage as there is no way on earth I would go shark diving without one.

“Where would we be if we didn’t take a risk every now and then!!”

Shark diving.

So where can you find these beasts? Great whites are normally found in warm waters and can be found in as little as 3 feet of water down to approx. 1,280 metres. South Africa is gaining in popularity especially for White shark diving, with the best times being May through till September. In 1991, the first country to protect great whites was South Africa which opened up the cage diving industry.

At this present time there are approx. 12 licensed cage diving operators which turns the focus on making live sharks more valuable than dead. Another thing to consider, to conserve the shark is not to buy shark products that will only collect dust on your mantelpiece…if you don’t buy it, they have no reason to slaughter these beasts needlessly.

Below are a few examples of places to find great white:-

• Central Pacific – Hawaii. East Atlantic – Ghana – Democratic Republic of the Congo – Senegal.
• Eastern Pacific – Alaska to California, Panama to Chile.
• Mediterranean – South of France – West and South coast of Italy – Croatia, Malta – Greece – North Africa.
• Indian Ocean – Red Sea – South Africa – Seychelles.
• Western Atlantic – Bahamas, Cuba – Northern Gulf of Mexico  – Newfoundland to Florida – Argentina  and Guadeloupe – Brazil.
• Western Pacific – Australia – New Zealand – China – Japan – Korea – Philippines.

Great white numbers are dwindling they need protecting be educated and pass on your knowledge.

ENJOY AND BE SAFE !!

Any pictures or stories to share and tell would be greatly appreciated.

I have to admit I had to research this one, it varies with different opinions, so the facts above have been gathered from a number of different sources…regarding to spec of the Great white. 

These are just pups – Its their mother you need to look out for !!