Tigana's Shark Encounter Tigana is aware that shark encounters are controversial: to attract sharks to the shark cage, tour operators have to lure the sharks by feeding them. Critics complain that feeding sharks is a bad idea because it trains sharks to seek out humans. The more sharks seek out humans, the greater the chance of a shark attack on swimmers, surfers, or divers. Just as it is illegal to feed wild bears or mountain lions, because it would encourage them to come down out of the hills and into our cities, critics argue that it should be illegal to feed the sharks. There is little evidence, however, that feeding small numbers of sharks out in the ocean actually increases the risk of shark attack. Indeed, there are good reasons to believe that shark feeding is safe. Shark feeding can be both an important tourist industry and a significant educational tool in promoting shark conservation. Other critics complain that shark feeding makes sharks dependent upon the tour operators, but Tigana believes that this is a less serious problem for the sharks than shark fishing, and particularly the abhorant practice of shark finning.
Taking pictures under water turned out to be more difficult than simply buying an underwater camera. The sharks are moving, the shark cage moves up and down with the waves, and there is nowhere to reall "stand" to brace yourself to take a picture. The underwater disposable camera Tigana and her mom used for these photos only have a range of about 3 meters. So, all they could do was hold the camera beneath the surface, point it in the general direction of the sharks, and hope for the best.
Tigana had only snorkeled once before (the previous day) but managed without difficulty.	Close up of shark cage wall

Email: Runte@uleth.ca

This site last updated: January, 2008. Full shark conservation site scheduled for launch March 2008.