RealSurf Surfers' Forum

Cranked wrote:

Braithy wrote:Wasn't one of the divers who got taken in WA wearing a shark shield?

Im not aware of that in WA but there was that diver killed while doing research in SA while wearing one.

Do you mean the death of Paul William Buckland?

Full coroners report: http://www.courts.sa.gov.au/CoronersFin ... illiam.pdf

If you take the time to read it, you will see that the coroner actually recommends the use of the SharkShield. The shark attack was thought to be due to incorrect use of the Shark Pod. Read it, it's quite clear and a gripping read, unlike my disjointed stuff.

Cranked wrote:

Braithy wrote:Wasn't one of the divers who got taken in WA wearing a shark shield?

Im not aware of that in WA but there was that diver killed while doing research in SA while wearing one.

I think I found the one you are mentioning here: A 23 year old research diver named Jarrod David Stehbens, killed in SA on 24-8-2005.
https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct= ... 1572,d.dGY
You guys crack me up with your complete lack of attention to detail


Here is part of what the coroner said:

"In particular, I examined the issue as to whether the deceased ought to have been wearing an electronic shark repellent device at the time he executed the fatal dive and whether if he had been wearing such a device, the outcome in this case may have been different."

The particular models involved were the SeaChange Shark Shield Dive01 model. The Shark Shields were stowed away on the boat. Their presence on the boat was not exactly conspicuous and in any event not known to any of the diving party.

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MrMik wrote: You guys crack me up with your complete lack of attention to detail

yah you're totally right, in general with shark shield stuff i lack attention fullstop. if it came to the point where a shark shield was necessary, i'd move to somewhere warmer in a heartbeat and start over again ... or perish the thought, just give the whole game away.


doesn't mean i don't enjoy your posts about them though. I mean what are the chances you own a GWS to conduct these tests with. it's just outstanding.

Great stuff mikman.

Was going to have a surf this morning but a labradoddle and bull terrier where spotted close to shore. Waves just weren't that good to risk it.

The latest in shark shields............

http://www.drive.com.au/motor-news/auss ... iq10v.html

Story in the SMH mentioned Mick fanning got paid $75K for the Channel Nine interview and promptly gave it to the Ballina victim.
Outstanding !

$75K is a lot of anyones money. Not even a portion of it but the full amount... What a generous bloke. Fair bloody dinkum.

Braithy wrote:

alakaboo wrote:Bomboraa probably has a better idea, braithy, but I think the idea that big whites only eat mammals is overblown. Probably because it has a longer residence time in the digestive tract.
I know for a fact that they eat stingrays.

A big meal would keep them going for a while. With the water this warm most of their energetic needs are met, and they are very efficient swimmers.

Plus, dolphins.

so fishing stock numbers – salmons, blues etc – could be a direct correlation to whites being inshore more?

Salmon for sure I reckon, as they hug the coastline. Bulls love to munch them as well. There's another inshore schooling fish which has made a huge come back in NSW because of a change to commercial fishing: yellowtail kingfish. The one decent thing that mongrel Eddie Obeid did was ban floating kingfish traps. These traps devastated the kingie population. Now they are prolific. The Harbour's full of rat kings most of the year but especially in summer and autumn, so is Long Reef. Juvenile whites also love eating rat kingies.
Bluefin not so much as far as attracting whites inshore, as they are a true bluewater fish and you don't find them, at least in NSW, til your'e at least 20km out. But you certainly find whites with the bluefin schools so it just means a better chance of all those baby whites born since they became protected, surviving. Makos love the bluefin too and are far more common travelling with the bluefin.
I think one other thing to ponder is we had that decade long drought which really affected inshore pelagic and schooling fish along NSW coast. Was amazing when it broke: baitfish numbers exploded, the baitfish predators appeared and the whole coast came to life. Lots of nutrients being pumped into the ocean. Be interesting to compare shark attack/encounter stats during that decade of drought to post drought when we've had decent rain. Drought on land drought at sea is an old fisho's lament.

Good point.
The turnaround at my regular fishing spot was astonishing, it was like the early 90s again.

Wonder what the sharks were eating in the interim?

I remember Fong did a test, putting a current through his tinny (I'm not making this up am I ???)

He mentioned that sharks in close proximity were repelled, but that it initially attracted a number of sharks. I've heard this from a few sources, the last of which was Paul de Gelder at a recent speech (the navy diver who was attacked in Sydney Harbour).

So, my take is that I won't be buying a shield, and I won't be going near anyone that's wearing one in the line-up (hmmm....there's an idea).

The second coroners report mentioned above is also very interesting, but much too long for some. I mean the one about the research diver who got eaten while the Shark Shields were gathering dust in the boat.
In a passage towards the end of the report, an expert outlines one possible scenario causing shark attacks: The beasties are not hungry enough!
When there is abundant food available, they may eventually be full, and then they can enjoy the luxury of a cruise and an exploratory nibble here and there. Too much shark food out towards the open ocean could bring in bored and inquisitive sharks with too much time on their fins!

Braithy wrote:I read it all too. I'm not sure either would do much of anything with a white around.

Wasn't one of the divers who got taken in WA wearing a shark shield?

I recall a case where a diver was killed, SA or WA, he was wearing a shark shield but it wasn't turned on

Where the bugger is Shearer, this shark stuff has really sent him underground.

marauding mullet wrote:

Braithy wrote:I read it all too. I'm not sure either would do much of anything with a white around.

Wasn't one of the divers who got taken in WA wearing a shark shield?

I recall a case where a diver was killed, SA or WA, he was wearing a shark shield but it wasn't turned on

yeah, maybe that's what i'm thinking of too. I remember there some little catch to the story.

bomboraa wrote:

Braithy wrote:

alakaboo wrote:Bomboraa probably has a better idea, braithy, but I think the idea that big whites only eat mammals is overblown. Probably because it has a longer residence time in the digestive tract.
I know for a fact that they eat stingrays.

A big meal would keep them going for a while. With the water this warm most of their energetic needs are met, and they are very efficient swimmers.

Plus, dolphins.

so fishing stock numbers – salmons, blues etc – could be a direct correlation to whites being inshore more?

Salmon for sure I reckon, as they hug the coastline. Bulls love to munch them as well. There's another inshore schooling fish which has made a huge come back in NSW because of a change to commercial fishing: yellowtail kingfish. The one decent thing that mongrel Eddie Obeid did was ban floating kingfish traps. These traps devastated the kingie population. Now they are prolific. The Harbour's full of rat kings most of the year but especially in summer and autumn, so is Long Reef. Juvenile whites also love eating rat kingies.
Bluefin not so much as far as attracting whites inshore, as they are a true bluewater fish and you don't find them, at least in NSW, til your'e at least 20km out. But you certainly find whites with the bluefin schools so it just means a better chance of all those baby whites born since they became protected, surviving. Makos love the bluefin too and are far more common travelling with the bluefin.
I think one other thing to ponder is we had that decade long drought which really affected inshore pelagic and schooling fish along NSW coast. Was amazing when it broke: baitfish numbers exploded, the baitfish predators appeared and the whole coast came to life. Lots of nutrients being pumped into the ocean. Be interesting to compare shark attack/encounter stats during that decade of drought to post drought when we've had decent rain. Drought on land drought at sea is an old fisho's lament.

Super interesting reading. i've heard the old drought on land, drought at sea too.

The whole ballina area is under the perfect storm of conditions. way above average rainfall, bait fish bringing in massive numbers of other school feeding fish and pelagics in turn bring in the noahs.

just from my memory here on the east coast, through the drought, i can't think of many shark sightings let alone attacks. Bullys were rampant in the canals and creeks, but when aren't they.

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