CodeMaster
Expert Member
Phew... thank gawd it was in the sea, I would really start to worry if it was on the beach
Is this seriously how bad some of our journalism has become?
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Surfer killed in shark attack.
- Thread starter CodeMaster
- Start date
Phew... thank gawd it was in the sea, I would really start to worry if it was on the beach
Is this seriously how bad some of our journalism has become?
Datura
Captain Faptastic
Phew... thank gawd it was in the sea, I would really start to worry if it was on the beach
Is this seriously how bad some of our journalism has become?
There have been a few shark attacks in rivers...
I feel sorry for this surfer - The news has hit our community hard as we are just down the coast from them. One thing, the guy was surfing in the Transkei. That area is so thick with sharks its not even funny. Ive dived there several times and seen some pretty scary sharks. If you dive East London you mostly only see Raggies, but in the Kei I have bumped into the occasional Zambezi. That part of the coast (like Mozambique) is very very much not surfer safe. Those guys need nets or something.
Those electric guards are stupid. I have one and you can actually feel the electric current it feels out (you get a sharp little jolt), so its pretty impractical. I really hope they put some nets up in the Kei. They have a good surfing community thing going there and I would hate to see that go.
Those electric guards are stupid. I have one and you can actually feel the electric current it feels out (you get a sharp little jolt), so its pretty impractical. I really hope they put some nets up in the Kei. They have a good surfing community thing going there and I would hate to see that go.
Nothxkbi
Banned
Horrible way to go. RIP man.
CodeMaster
Expert Member
Yeah, and when last did you see someone surfing in the Breede River?
http://www.wavescape.co.za/environment/sharks/bizarre-bull-shark-record.html
http://www.wavescape.co.za/environment/sharks/bizarre-bull-shark-record.html
Datura
Captain Faptastic
I always wondered if those electronic gadgets worked.
I think this guy was attacked by a Tiger Shark...
Transkei is very shark infested. How easy would it be to net surf spots and popular beaches?
Yeah they do, but the one I have I feel the jolts. I most often wear it when Im taking pictures at reef or something like that. Just dangling there trying to take a picture you definitely feel the jolts.
Yeah, the Kei has a plethora of sharks. Ive never seen a tiger though, hopefully I wont.
Well this is Port St Johns, one of the few "developed" (as in it might have running water and electricity) areas there, so there should only be one or two beaches to watch. At least give them one safe beach to surf in. I dont know how much it would cost to setup and maintain. Judging by the Durban nets it takes a lot of manpower and money to watch them.
I wonder if they could make a line of those shocking shark deterrent things running off solar energy or something?
OverKill69
Senior Member
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Shet...
I'm a shark lover and I hate reading stories like this because it sends the wrong message about sharks
I've dived with sharks many times. Raggies, zambies, tigers, white and black tips... everything except a great white until now...
It really is unfortunate when surfers get attacked.
People have the idea that sharks are mindless killers and want to do nothing more than eat people.
My condolences go out to the family, and I wish to convey my deepest sympathies at the loss of a young man of the sea.
I call on everyone here though to not blame sharks in general. They are apex predators that do what comes naturally to them in their natural environment.
Yes, sharks are dangerous, but no more dangerous than a leopard or a lion out in the wild. Yet we respect those creatures and give them a wide berth.
Every year, over 170 000 000 sharks get slaughtered world wide. On long lines, shark nets and for their fins... that is a disgusting figure... 170 MILLION SHARKS EVERY YEAR.
And instead of learning more about these magnificent predators, we indiscriminately slaughter because of our fear.
For all surfers, lifeguards, swimmers, divers and beach users:
http://www.sharklife.co.za/
You'll find the necessary information you need to avoid a confrontation with these misunderstood animals... and hopefully, we can all learn something from this tragedy.
R.I.P.
I'm a shark lover and I hate reading stories like this because it sends the wrong message about sharks
I've dived with sharks many times. Raggies, zambies, tigers, white and black tips... everything except a great white until now...
It really is unfortunate when surfers get attacked.
People have the idea that sharks are mindless killers and want to do nothing more than eat people.
My condolences go out to the family, and I wish to convey my deepest sympathies at the loss of a young man of the sea.
I call on everyone here though to not blame sharks in general. They are apex predators that do what comes naturally to them in their natural environment.
Yes, sharks are dangerous, but no more dangerous than a leopard or a lion out in the wild. Yet we respect those creatures and give them a wide berth.
Every year, over 170 000 000 sharks get slaughtered world wide. On long lines, shark nets and for their fins... that is a disgusting figure... 170 MILLION SHARKS EVERY YEAR.
And instead of learning more about these magnificent predators, we indiscriminately slaughter because of our fear.
For all surfers, lifeguards, swimmers, divers and beach users:
http://www.sharklife.co.za/
You'll find the necessary information you need to avoid a confrontation with these misunderstood animals... and hopefully, we can all learn something from this tragedy.
R.I.P.
Datura
Captain Faptastic
Shet...
I'm a shark lover and I hate reading stories like this because it sends the wrong message about sharks
I've dived with sharks many times. Raggies, zambies, tigers, white and black tips... everything except a great white until now...
It really is unfortunate when surfers get attacked.
People have the idea that sharks are mindless killers and want to do nothing more than eat people.
My condolences go out to the family, and I wish to convey my deepest sympathies at the loss of a young man of the sea.
I call on everyone here though to not blame sharks in general. They are apex predators that do what comes naturally to them in their natural environment.
Yes, sharks are dangerous, but no more dangerous than a leopard or a lion out in the wild. Yet we respect those creatures and give them a wide berth.
Every year, over 170 000 000 sharks get slaughtered world wide. On long lines, shark nets and for their fins... that is a disgusting figure... 170 MILLION SHARKS EVERY YEAR.
And instead of learning more about these magnificent predators, we indiscriminately slaughter because of our fear.
For all surfers, lifeguards, swimmers, divers and beach users:
http://www.sharklife.co.za/
You'll find the necessary information you need to avoid a confrontation with these misunderstood animals... and hopefully, we can all learn something from this tragedy.
R.I.P.
Thanks for what is, in my opinion, the best post I have read on this forum for a while. They are indeed beautiful and enigmatic creatures and people do need to educate themselves more.
There are no more lions in the wild really. All of them are in demarcated reserves, managed farms or cages. For your analogy to be fair the lions would have to be walking freely around the streets. I personally would love all sharks to be in shark nature reserves and shark farms rather than eating me. Just like a lion.Shet...
I'm a shark lover and I hate reading stories like this because it sends the wrong message about sharks
I've dived with sharks many times. Raggies, zambies, tigers, white and black tips... everything except a great white until now...
It really is unfortunate when surfers get attacked.
People have the idea that sharks are mindless killers and want to do nothing more than eat people.
My condolences go out to the family, and I wish to convey my deepest sympathies at the loss of a young man of the sea.
I call on everyone here though to not blame sharks in general. They are apex predators that do what comes naturally to them in their natural environment.
Yes, sharks are dangerous, but no more dangerous than a leopard or a lion out in the wild.
I respect sharks and any shark attack victim or normal human being will tell you they would love to give sharks wide berths. Problem is, in the ocean you dont have those options available yet.
But you just told us that they are killed for their fins
Its not like a group of people can get a posse together to go after a shark because it bit someone. I think what you were trying to say is dont hate sharks because of fear. Because no one slaughters sharks (afaik) out of fear. I agree, sharks are wonderful creatures, but your anti against commercial shark fishing and fears or surfers dont seem to gel in the same post. Surfers dont go kill sharks because theyre bitten by them. Most surfers are incredibly nature conscious.
Last edited:
Ono'rach
Executive Member
Shet...
I'm a shark lover and I hate reading stories like this because it sends the wrong message about sharks
I've dived with sharks many times. Raggies, zambies, tigers, white and black tips... everything except a great white until now...
It really is unfortunate when surfers get attacked.
People have the idea that sharks are mindless killers and want to do nothing more than eat people.
My condolences go out to the family, and I wish to convey my deepest sympathies at the loss of a young man of the sea.
I call on everyone here though to not blame sharks in general. They are apex predators that do what comes naturally to them in their natural environment.
Yes, sharks are dangerous, but no more dangerous than a leopard or a lion out in the wild. Yet we respect those creatures and give them a wide berth.
Every year, over 170 000 000 sharks get slaughtered world wide. On long lines, shark nets and for their fins... that is a disgusting figure... 170 MILLION SHARKS EVERY YEAR.
And instead of learning more about these magnificent predators, we indiscriminately slaughter because of our fear.
For all surfers, lifeguards, swimmers, divers and beach users:
http://www.sharklife.co.za/
You'll find the necessary information you need to avoid a confrontation with these misunderstood animals... and hopefully, we can all learn something from this tragedy.
R.I.P.
I totally agree with you here. They are not vicious killers, they are exceptionally efficient predators acting on instinct.
It still is terribly sad when somebody is attacked. RIP
Mike Hoxbig
Honorary Master
McSack
Executive Member
I often wonder what effect all the "shark tourism" has had on the behaviour of sharks in our waters. Surely somewhere along the line there's going to be some kind of pavlovian response associating the presence of humans in the water (albiet in cages or on boats) with food.
If I see a shark in the street I will kill it. I expect the same from it if I go into the ocean.
Battle lines drawn
Hehe... well.. you better watch out: http://www.sharklife.co.za/index.ph...goodna-30km-from-the-coast-&catid=1&Itemid=26
F
Fudzy
Guest
Not the worst way to go out, I'd take being eaten by a shark over terminal cancer any day.
Condolences to his family and friends all the same.
Condolences to his family and friends all the same.
Mike Hoxbig
Honorary Master
Or AIDS for that matter. Plus your kids will have a cool story to tell - "daddy was bulldozed by a shark" sounds a heck of a lot better than "daddy died in a diaper with a drip hanging from his nose".
OverKill69
Senior Member
- Joined
- May 12, 2008
- Messages
- 796
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Yeah dude... it is a tragedy when someone gets attacked... but when someone gets mauled by a leopard in the middle of the Kruger at night, people are quick to say: "That's what you get for walking alone in the bush at night."
But when a shark attacks someone in the surf, it's all "KILL EM ALL!!!"
Not trivializing this incident, but I am advocating that your "average Joe" learns a little more about sharks to try and change the world wide opinion one person at a time.
The problem is, a shark comes out of nowhere, takes a nibble and slips away with very little warning and theater... if you're on the surface. and that little exploratory nibble is usually enough to cause massive amounts of tissue damage.
The fact of the matter is: we're just not part of the shark's ecosystem. We're not food to them, we're not competition, and we're not a perceived threat.
The old wisdom was that surfers are mistaken for seals or turtles when viewed from underneath, but the latest research has shown that sharks have an incredibly complex sensory arsenal which is more than capable of distinguishing us from their usual diet. The fact that sharks don't pick off surfers EVERY DAY is also evidence of this. If it was a case of mistaken identity, surfers would be an endangered species.
Some experts believe it to be pure curiosity... sharks identify an unknown entity and usually keep their distance. But, every now and then, a brazen shark will decide to test these strangers, and unfortunately, what results from their "tests" are to our extreme detriment.
Sharks NEVER consume humans... because we don't taste of anything they have been hardwired to eat. That is why it is usually one bite, and then the shark will leave.
When you dive with sharks, you can WATCH them and see if they develop an interest in you that might be construed as threatening... and you can take preventative measures.
However, if you're on the surface, you probably don't even know that you're under surveillance.
The problem comes with the brutality and the spectacle of an encounter with a shark. the words "SHARK ATTACK" used by the media, the aura of mystery and misconception all because of a certain film (which I thought was a brilliant movie - fiction).
They even look like something you don't want to mess with... I mean, Rottweilers kill more people every year than sharks, but you don't think of a rottie as a killer by the way it looks at you.
i could go on and on...
I'm really sad the ocean claimed another soul... God be with his family and all those that were close to him.
But when a shark attacks someone in the surf, it's all "KILL EM ALL!!!"
Not trivializing this incident, but I am advocating that your "average Joe" learns a little more about sharks to try and change the world wide opinion one person at a time.
The problem is, a shark comes out of nowhere, takes a nibble and slips away with very little warning and theater... if you're on the surface. and that little exploratory nibble is usually enough to cause massive amounts of tissue damage.
The fact of the matter is: we're just not part of the shark's ecosystem. We're not food to them, we're not competition, and we're not a perceived threat.
The old wisdom was that surfers are mistaken for seals or turtles when viewed from underneath, but the latest research has shown that sharks have an incredibly complex sensory arsenal which is more than capable of distinguishing us from their usual diet. The fact that sharks don't pick off surfers EVERY DAY is also evidence of this. If it was a case of mistaken identity, surfers would be an endangered species.
Some experts believe it to be pure curiosity... sharks identify an unknown entity and usually keep their distance. But, every now and then, a brazen shark will decide to test these strangers, and unfortunately, what results from their "tests" are to our extreme detriment.
Sharks NEVER consume humans... because we don't taste of anything they have been hardwired to eat. That is why it is usually one bite, and then the shark will leave.
When you dive with sharks, you can WATCH them and see if they develop an interest in you that might be construed as threatening... and you can take preventative measures.
However, if you're on the surface, you probably don't even know that you're under surveillance.
The problem comes with the brutality and the spectacle of an encounter with a shark. the words "SHARK ATTACK" used by the media, the aura of mystery and misconception all because of a certain film (which I thought was a brilliant movie - fiction).
They even look like something you don't want to mess with... I mean, Rottweilers kill more people every year than sharks, but you don't think of a rottie as a killer by the way it looks at you.
i could go on and on...
I'm really sad the ocean claimed another soul... God be with his family and all those that were close to him.
Those electric guards attract sharks as far as I'm concerned. We were out in a netted area not to long ago and we saw three sharks in a short space of time, one coming extremely close to us, needless to say I did not hang around to see how much closer it was going to get. After we got out we noticed this one guy had one of those electrical repellents on his board, first time we ever saw one (he was not from here) and also the first time we saw so many sharks in a really short space of time. Coincidence?
The sea is pretty brown right now from the rivers opening the lagoons with all the rains we've had. Down south it's probably 10x worse with all the rivers they have down there. Very few people I know will surf in that brown chocolate milk, it's looking for crap.
When pets kill we kill back.