Sharks. The word alone brings a mix of emotions. We asked our Facebook fans to tell us the first word that came to mind when they see the image of a toothy shark up close. Although our fans’ comments were mainly positive, this isn’t always the case. There are many people who have an instinctual fear of sharks and would never want to come across one in the water.
Nat Geo WILD sponsored an expedition that would help get a better understanding of shark behaviour in order to enable safer shark encounters and eliminate fear. Essentially though, the purpose of this is for the protection of this majestic and ancient animal.
A team of experts, divers and conservationists set out to dispel common myths regarding shark attacks. Included in this team was shark experts Mark Addison and Andy Casagrande, scientific experts Ryan Johnson, Vic Peddemors and Matt Dicken, shark conservationists and divers Gail Addison, Olivia Symcox and Clare Daly.
The myths they set out to test were ‘the bare-skin’, ‘the urine’, ‘the bling’, ‘the splashing’ tests and ‘the colour experiment’.
How these myths were created is anyone’s guess, but they are believed the world over. Are sharks really attracted to the colour yellow? Does the smell of urine initiate an attack? Would a dangling camera or shiny watch spur on a nibble?
The results aired live last Friday, 25 November 2011. They had hoped to air live reactions of sharks to each test, however, due to unfavourable conditions, the divers could not do so. The team wanted to assure the audience that no results were edited and that what they were witnessing was a genuine reaction of the sharks. Hoping to do this in the future, the show continued with explanation of the results and clips from previously recorded tests.
We contacted Ryan Johnson to find out what they learned. According to their findings, of all the experiments, the one that held some standing was ‘the bling test'. The tests were conducted on various species of sharks, but it was the black tips that responded to the glittering necklace that was held out into the water. The shark curiously approached it and followed it down to the bottom.
The black tip was also curious at the splashing about and swimming away of a swimmer on a surfboard. This test was not conducted near great whites because according to Ryan Johnson, the act of splashing and swimming away is a an action that prey would do which is bound to perk an interest in any predator.
One thing of note was when Ryan entered the water with a waterproof dictaphone. He became the centre of attention of sevengill sharks. The electrical signals emitted were enough to get the sharks to try to attack and bite. This makes sense as all aquatic animals emit an electrical field into the surrounding water and given sharks’ sensitive electrosensory systems, these charges equal food.
Shark shields, a system that is meant to repel sharks via an electric field, were also used and although great whites did not approach, apparently both raggies and sevengills were not deterred by the shield.
Also involved in the project were shark attack victims. They shared their stories and entered shark-filled waters for the first time since their encounters.
Mark Addison mentions that it is a ‘great opportunity to investigate some often held misconceptions about shark and shark attacks.’
They all hope to further investigate their findings and make this an ongoing experiment.
Check out more facts about the experiment here.
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