Shark Focus

SharkShoppingDon’t forgetwww.sharktrust.org/sharkshopfor all your festive shopping needs!Cuddlies, puzzles and trinketswith gifts from just £1.99 there’ssomething for everyone!Last posting date from the office isthe 17 th December (UK mainland).So order early to ensureyour gifts arrive in time forChristmas!Shark Focuswww.sharktrust.orgSharks in FocusCompetition winners revealedPorbeagle SharksShark expeditionplusall your Shark Trustand European shark newsTHE MAGAZINE OF THE SHARK TRUSTIssue 30 November 2007Gifts for outside the UK should be ordered well in advanceto ensure a Christmas delivery – last posting date 7 th December,contact the Shark Trust if you wish to check.Specialtenthanniversary32 pageissueSupporting the

UK PorbeagleShark ExpeditionBetween July 14th and 20th 2007, together with seven volunteers, I ran the firstever Porbeagle Shark expedition in UK waters. The aims of the expedition were:To be the first to deploy satellite (pop off) tags on Porbeagles this side ofthe Atlantic.To achieve the first decent quality underwater footage and still images.To observe the sharks on the surface and work out how to be able to getcage divers in the water with them.Richard Peirce (centre) withexpedition memberswww.peirceshark.comThe original plan was to catch sharks for tagging atthe beginning of the expedition and then move on tothe more difficult photography however the difficultpart had been achieved first. During the next fourdays we deployed four out of five of our satellitetags, three return tags, and took fin tips for DNAanalysis. We deployed two tags set for sixty days,one for thirty and one for ninety. The 30 day tagpopped up on time 65 kilometres away off Newquay,the first 60 day tag surfaced near Lundy, the second170 km South West off Lands End and the 90 daytag popped up, on time, 200 km west of Irelandhaving left the continental shelf. Once the data hasbeen studied and tracks of travel established it willbe possible to start to understand whether a degreeof philopatry is indicated.It’s rare that you get to tick all the boxes. Wedeployed our tags, got our images, collected DNA,and I am now working out how to cage dive withthese amazing sharks.The summer’s unsettled weather was wellestablished by the time of the expedition and sowe were lucky to have only lost one day. Four ofthe five satellite tags to be deployed were suppliedby Nick Pade, a PhD student from AberdeenUniversity doing his thesis on Porbeagles, Iprovided the fifth tag.The precise locations we worked have not beenpublished. These sharks are an easy targetfor commercial longline fishing and it wouldhave been counterproductive to give out catchlocations, tantamount to providing a map to guidefishermen to them. These fears were well foundedbecause the week after our expedition we gotreports of a longliner, working only a few milesaway around Lundy, having caught and killed oversixty sharks. During our five days we observeda sex mix biased towards females of probablyseventy percent. This catching of over sixty sharks,mostly females, will have had a devastating effecton the Bristol Channel Porbeagle population.I knew that obtaining underwater images, bothstill and moving, would be difficult due to theirnervousness. Twice previously I had Porbeaglesaround my RIB in chummed situations and tried toslip into the water to get shots. On one occasionI dropped in on the opposite side to the sharkand by the time I had sneaked round the backof the boat hoping for a shot it was gone. Onthe other I repeated the tactic with only slightlymore success. The shark did a fast crossing passangling towards me and jinked away just as I wasthinking a shot might be possible. .I reckoned that the best chance of getting imageslay in doing so by remote means. Once we hadfootage and images we could then experimentand get in the water with the sharks. SimonSpear was the expedition’s videographer andusing a polecam, assisted by Mike Sharland andDavid Green with a back up camera, he obtainedgood footage on day one! We certainly had fivedifferent sharks round our boat and it could easilyhave been double that number. As soon as wehad a shark in the chummed area it would find thebait tube and we would work the shark towardsthe boat using the tube. This was how we got thesharks close to the polecam, and from the moviefootage, grabbed still images.During the video and photographic part of the weekI had an excellent opportunity to study the sharksfree swimming near the boat. From what I had seen,cage diving was a problem well worth crackingbecause these sharks are reactive to chum andwould be really exciting to view underwater. Atone time I thought they were darting in and buzzingthe pole camera, and then I realised the camerawas right beside the chum bag. The mirrored baittube had proved a very successful tool with Bluesharks and so it was with Porbeagles. They nevertied to grab it but always checked it out giving meconfidence that we could use it to work them up toa cage.The main reason for caging will be to keep thehumans under control in one place. Snorkelers/divers finning around and blowing bubbles lookingfor and chasing the sharks will mean no sharks.The cage being over the side from the time of arrivaland at the start of chumming means that the sharksapproach the boat with the cage as part of theprofile.Next year’s expedition will further refine thistechnique and should lead to Porbeagle cage diving.Left: One of the Porbeagles capturedon film, copyright Shark Cornwall 07Expedition (Allen).Top right: Underwater footage ofPorbeagle Shark in UK waters, copyrightShark Cornwall 07 Expedition (Spear).Bottom right: Porbeagle Sharks in a fishmarket. Copyright Jed Trewin.Impact of fisheries on PorbeaglesPorbeagle Sharks, close relatives of White and Mako Sharks are prized for both their meat and fins. Meatis usually consumed locally while most fins are exported to Asia for use in the delicacy “shark fin soup”.Populations of this swift, powerful species are found on both sides of the Atlantic and in the southernhemisphere, but have been overfished off Europe.In the Northeast Atlantic it is thought that Porbeagle Sharks aggregate in regionally discrete populationsand so removing high numbers of sharks from one area has very serious ramifications for their ongoingsurvival. The Shark Trust was dismayed with the reports of significant numbers of Porbeagles being landedfrom the Bristol Channel this summer, within the Porbeagle Expedition’s study area.The IUCN includes the Northeast Atlantic population of Porbeagle Sharks in its highest Red List threatcategory: Critically Endangered and the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) hasrecommended that no fishing on this population be allowed.However, Porbeagle Sharks continue to be taken in targeted fisheries and incidentally in EU andinternational waters. Despite their dire status, there are no EU limits for the species. In 2006, the EuropeanCommission proposed the first Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for Porbeagle, but the Council of Ministersrejected it. Sweden is the only EU Member State to protect this imperilled species.This December the Shark Trust will belobbying UK ministers and the EuropeanCommission to adopt a zero quota forPorbeagles with appropriate bycatchmeasures in line with ICES recommendations.Only through these stringent measures willPorbeagles have a future in our marineenvironment.4 www.sharktrust.org Shark Focus 30 Shark Focus 30 www.sharktrust.org 5

WORLD SHARKNEWSNews since last FocusSHARK TRUST PROJECTSNEWSGoodbye Rachel.JUNEDeath of Manta Ray sheds new light on speciesThe Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in Japan saw the first birth of a Manta Ray in captivity. Unfortunately,the baby ray died five days later, in part from injuries inflicted by its father.Recent parthenogenesis findings in female sharks in captivityThe mysterious appearance in 2001 of an infant female bonnethead shark at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zooin a tank that held only two adult female sharks was the result of parthenogenesis (virgin birth).Sea Shepherd Galapagos sting results in seizure of over 18,000 shark finsSea Shepherd Conservation Society seized a total of 18,673 shark fins and arrested four suspects. InEcuador, exportation and commercialisation of shark fins is against the law.Taiwan to ban Whale Shark tradeProducts derived from Whale Sharks are now banned from sale in Taiwan. Fishermen are obliged toreturn caught Whale Sharks to the ocean, whether the fish is dead or alive.JULYFirst quality footage of free-swimming PorbeaglesRichard Peirce, Chairman of the Shark Trust, used two polecams to obtain the first ever quality underwaterfree-swimming footage of Porbeagle Sharks. The expedition took place off the North Cornish Coast.Ban lifted on sale of shark fins in EcuadorEcuador’s president overturned a ban on the sale of shark fins, but stipulated they can only be sold if thesharks are caught accidentally. Rafael Correa said legalization of the sale of shark fins would generate incomefor fishermen but added that shark fishing would remain illegal.First successful mating of Angel Sharks at Deep Sea WorldDeep Sea World, Fife has just confirmed that its female Angel Shark – on loan from Underwater World,Hastings - is pregnant. This is a first for this rare species in the captive environment.EGGCASE HUNTING Down UnderJo Stead is a PhD student studying shark biology and ecology in Moreton Bay, Nr Brisbane, Australia. InShark Focus 27 we told you about the Great Eggcase Hunt taking off around the world. Jo contacted usto tell us about some lucky eggcase finds in Australia.The University of Queensland has a research stationon North Stradbroke Island and on two occasionsBrownbanded Bambooshark egg cases have beenfound along the shore and taken to the researchstation.The first was discovered washed up on the rocksnear the research station just before Christmas 2003and was placed in the station’s aquarium system inthe hope it had survived.Lucky the Brownbanded Bambooshark in her tank.Finally on Friday March 3rd 2004 the egg hatched anda female pup emerged. Weighing 23.9g and 19.3 cmlong the station staff named her “Lucky”.Recently two other stranded egg cases werediscovered by local 12-year-olds Hunter Murray andJai Burns.After 3 months the first egg hatched and the pupwas immediately dubbed “Lucky 2”, the secondpup hatched a couple of days later and was named“Speedy”. Once the sharks have grown a little biggerthey will be released back into the wild.THE DEEPEGGCASE HUNTSMany thanks, again, go to Claire Richards of TheDeep aquarium, Hull. After running seven GreatEggcase Hunts on the northeast coast last yearand finding just one catshark eggcase. Claireorganized a further five eggcase hunts, this year,to see if she could find more. Over 70 peopleattended these hunts and… found no eggcases!This is a very interesting and important resultas although many skate and ray species havebeen over-exploited, there are still many catsharkslaying eggs in the North Sea which poses thequestion – where are their eggcases going?Check out www.eggcase.org for more eggcaseinformation.Hello Nick!New Staff Member!It is with sadness that the Shark Trust bids a fondfarewell to Rachel Turner who has moved on from theShark Trust to begin a PhD at Newcastle University,we wish you every success. We welcome Nick Steelas her replacement and will now be on the other endof enquiries@sharktrust.org if you would like tospeak to him.Photo CompetitionThere were over 400 entries to the Sharks in Focusphotography competition, some stunning, someemotive, some funny and all of them demonstratingthe power that sharks have to capture the imagination.The winning photo was announced at the BirminghamDive Show and it, with a selection of the othercommended photos, can be seen on page 12 and 13.Sightings DatabaseThe Shark Trust has developed an online database tohouse records of shark, skate and ray sightings andcatches. The database allows users to upload imagesand sighting information from any shark, skate or rayinteraction from anywhere in the world. This is thencatalogued and displayed on the Shark Trust website– www.sharktrust.org/sd. Log on to submit yourimages and tell the rest of the world what you saw!AUGUSTPorbeagle Sharks at risk after fisherman lands 60 in single dayConservationists are investigating reports of a vast catch of more than 60 rare sharks by a long-linefisherman operating from a port in North Devon.Sharks have genes for fingers and toesThe basic process for developing fingers and toes in land animals may have existed for more than500 million years in shark genes. The discovery pushes back the date of the evolutionary “fin to limb”advance by some 135 million years.Third-ever White Shark on display at aquariumFor the third time since 2004, the Monterey Bay Aquarium has placed a young white shark on publicexhibit. The aquarium hopes to keep him on exhibit for several months.SEPTEMBERSharks as far as the eye can seeOver 400 Basking Sharks were seen feeding off plankton fronts off Land’s End. It is possible that oursummer of bad weather may have prevented the plankton fronts from forming and the return of summerhas allowed for these fronts to formPacific Angel Shark born in S.F. aquarium; believed first in captivitySan Francisco’s Aquarium of the Bay is claiming the first-ever birth of a captive Pacific Angel Shark.OCTOBERPygmy swellshark found in Sarawak watersMarine scientists from the Fisheries Research Institute (FRI) here have discovered a new species ofswellshark in the waters off Sarawak.SHARK TRUST OutreachBig Draw at the Dive ShowThe Shark Trust was, once again, present at oneof the UK’s largest dive expositions spreadingawareness about sharks and engaging members ofthe diving community in shark conservation.The Trust had a large presence at the showcomprising the awareness and sales stand, a BigDraw event ‘The 3D Undersea Megacreativity’ anda gallery of the winning images in the ‘Sharks inFocus’ photography competition.Manned admirably by a team of enthusiastic anddedicated staff members and volunteers the SharkTrust gained nearly 30 new members, got over1500 people to sign the ‘Every Fin Counts’ antisharkfinning petition and garnered nearly 1000entries into our prize draw! See page 14 and 15 formore information on European Shark Week.As part of the Shark Trust’s entry for the BigDraw campaign, visitors to the Dive Show wereencouraged to draw their favourite sharks andother underwater animals for the 3-D UnderseaMegacreativity and over two days created a minidive site in the middle of the Dive Show.The overall winner of the Sharks in Focuscompetition was announced as Andrew Bellamyand a gallery of some of the winning and highlycommended images was on display. The winningimage and some of the other commended imagescan be seen on pages 12 and 13!The Shark Trust wishes to thank all of thehardworking volunteers and staff members whohelped us out over the weekend – Thanks verymuch! Pictures and a report can be seen on theShark Trust website. Many thanks also go toNorthern Diver who generously donated a fantasticcamera with underwater housing as our show prize.Shark Trust at the Dive Show.6 www.sharktrust.org Shark Focus 30 Shark Focus 30 Go to www.sharktrust.org >>> galleries to see Dive Show pictures 7

MEMBER’S pagesArtisanal Shark Fishing in Tofu Beach, MozambiqueCarpet Shark Research Down UnderI am a PhD student studying their biologyand ecology. Based at the Universityof Queensland, Australia and I amstudying three species of carpet shark:the Brownbanded Bambooshark, andthe Spotted and Dwarf Banded (Ornate)Wobbegongs. All three of these speciesoccur locally, so the majority of myfieldwork is conducted in and aroundMoreton Bay, just off Brisbane.Wobbegongs are a benthic shark found aroundAustralia and South East Asia. There are currentlyseven described species of wobbegong and they allhave attractive camouflage spot patterns on theirback and fleshy lobes, known as ‘barbels’, aroundtheir mouth. Apparently, they get their name fromthese barbels as wobbegong means ‘bearded fish’ ina southern aboriginal dialect.Although wobbegong sharks are not activelytargeted by fisheries in Queensland they arefrequently caught as bycatch. There is a targetedfishery for them in New South Wales and this hasexperienced significant declines in catch rates overthe past decade. Spotted and Ornate Wobbegongshave both been classed by the World ConservationUnion (IUCN) as ‘Vulnerable’ in NSW and ‘NearThreatened’ throughout the rest of their range.The Brownbanded Bambooshark is a speciesof long tailed carpet shark. It has a large rangethat extends from the northern coast of Australiathrough South East Asia to the east coast of India.Throughout this range it is collected for aquaria andin Southeast Asia it is actively targeted by artisanalfisheries. Although not targeted in Australia it isfrequently taken as bycatch. Globally, BrownbandedBamboosharks are classed by the IUCN as ‘NearThreatened’Snorkelling with a wobbegongAll three species are important species forboth fisheries and the aquaria trade. Yet,despite their commercial importance, verylittle is actually known about their biology.The successful management andconservation of any species can only beimplemented once a sound knowledge ofits biology has been attained. Thereforethe aim of this research is to determine asmuch as possible about their biology andecology in the hope that this informationwill be applied to their sustainablemanagement and conservation.The main emphasis of my research ison the Brownbanded Bamboosharks, but Iam working in collaboration with Dr CharlieHuveneers, who recently completed astudy on wobbegong biology in NSW, withthe aim of filling any gaps of informationon wobbegong biology. Wobbegongsand bamboo sharks are frequentlyfound/caught together and it is interestingecologically to investigate how these twoapparently similar sharks co-exist.One of the study sites is the rock wall at Amity,North Stradbroke Island. This has been the siteof a tag and release study to determine spottedwobbegong growth rates. Each wobbegong is caughtby hand net while free diving and is subsequentlymeasured, weighed, tagged and then released. Thewobbegongs seem to remain in this area and ithas been possible to recapture many of them anddetermine their growth rates in the wild.A similar tag and release study of bamboo sharksis being conducted throughout Moreton Bay with thehelp of local fishers. As well as trying to determinegrowth rates other aspects of their biology is beinginvestigated including their diet, reproductive andfeeding behaviour, and their habitat use by a taggingand tracking study.The habitat an animal uses in a normal24hr cycle is often referred to as its homerange. Information regarding an animal’shome range is particularly important forthe creation of effective protection zones.To date two successful tracks havebeen conducted and provisional resultsindicate that bamboo sharks have smallhome ranges and feed on the incominghigh tide in the mangroves.Joanna SteadJo releasing a taggedcarpetshark.Fundraising for the Shark TrustAs we are going to press, long time sharkenthusiast Kosh Kelly intends to cycle fromWhitehaven, North Yorkshire to SunderlandTyne and Wear – a journey of around 100miles – in just 24 hours!Using the C2C cycle route Kosh will betaking on the challenge on the 9th Novemberand donating all of his sponsorship moneyto the Shark Trust.Asked about this epic test Kosh notes that“I’ve been training for this ride since March2007, but I don’t think any physical trainingwill help with the mental side of riding fortwenty four hours”.Our thoughts are with you Kosh and wewish you every success. If anyone wouldlike to sponsor Kosh in his challenge pleaseemail enquiries@sharktrust.org and wewill gladly pass on your details.Beside the Indian Ocean Mozambique is host toapproximately 114 species of elasmobranch fishes.I have witnessed the extirpation of four of thesespecies due to the small fleet of artisan fishermenbased nearby. The artisanal sector is widespreadalong the length of the Mozambique coastline, withan estimated 15,000 boats operating throughout.These boats provide employment for around 58,000people, but the impact on the local shark populationis devastating.There are four active shark fishers who, instead ofutilizing boats, actually swim out from the headlandsto set longlines with approximately 20 hooks to beretrieved the following day.Several elasmobranch species are caught fromTofo Beach including mantas, devil rays, whiprays,stingrays, white spotted eagle rays and zebrasharks which are targeted mainly by spear-fishers.Line fishers have been seen to land guitarfish,hammerheads, tiger and various other carcharhinidsharks during normal fishing activities, indeed severallarge ray and shark species are caught each week.Local populations of white-spotted guitarfish andbow-mouth guitarfish have been reduced to very lowlevels.I’m at Tofo Beach, Inhambane province, Mozambique,to my left is a female blacktip shark, pregnant with two pups,beside her is a juvenile tiger shark under a metre in length.In normal circumstances this would be a joyous occasion with two such beautifulanimals in close proximity. However, these sharks are dead, the fishermen who havecaught them are removing their fins to sell and the two pups are cast aside.Although shark meat is utilized, sharks are oftentargeted for their fins which are sold directly to buyersin the Mozambique capital of Maputo. There is onemain fin buyer in Inhambane. According to one spearfisher,sharks and guitarfish are target species dueto their relative large size, fins are apparently beingon-sold to Chinese buyers in Maputo.In Mozambique, catch restrictions are in place, two“tubaroes” per fisher per day is allowed with theexception of “Tubarao branco”, the white shark,the only protected shark in Mozambique (1). Thelegislation seems encouraging on paperwork, but ashark is a shark to the local fisherman on his boat,exact species identification or conservation status isirrelevant.Representatives from Eyes On The Horizon (EOTH)and local government officials joined forces toinvestigate the illegal fisheries operating from TofoBeach. This operation confiscated eight illegal longlinesrigged for sharks. Given that the large hooks,swivels and steel traces are difficult to source inMozambique, it appears likely that fishermen arebeing supplied from non-local sources.Drew Corma(1) “Colectanea de Legislacao do Ambiente” (2ndedition) Lei de Pescas:Anexo 2:page, 371.8 Send in your stories to enquiries@ www.sharktrust.org Shark Focus 30 Shark Focus 30 Send in your stories to enquiries@ www.sharktrust.org 9

JuniorMEMBER’S pagesLondon Dive Show Competition WinnerMy Grateful Thanks!Adriatic SharksThe Shark Trust’s connection in Bosniaand Herzegovinia, Andrej Gajić, hasrecently completed his second GreatEggcase Hunt in Ražanj, Croatia andfound some Lesser Spotted (Smallspotted)Catshark eggcases! Andrej is currentlyworking with the Shark Trust to write anEnglish-Serbian Great Eggcase Hunt IDGuide to encourage more eggcase huntsaround the Adriatic Sea.Andrej has recently completed a newposter showing the teeth and jaws of theSmallspotted Catshark here is a smallversion of it-Basking Shark sightingHi, Shark Trust confession!When I was at Land’s End on07/08/07 I saw a Basking Shark.It was swimming around inthe sea and looked like it wasfeeding. It appeared to be about5 metres long. I saw it quiteclearly through binoculars andwe watched it for around 15minutes. As we watched it fromthe cliff top the photos haven’tcome out that well as the zoomwasn’t strong enough.It was a brilliant sight as seeinga Basking Shark was one of thethings I’ve always wanted to do.Regards,Dan Clarke (age 13).Draw on the ShoreThe Shark Trust recently teamed up with the MarineLife Information Network (MarLIN) to hold a beachbased event in Plymouth. During half term, familiescame down to Mount Batten beach to take part ina beach clean, a sand sculpture competition, somedrawing activities and, best of all, a Seashore Safari.During the safari we came across this SmallspottedCatshark – in a tidepool! After a quick look at her weput her back and she swam off happily.This is a short article to say a huge thank you forthe lovely surprise of winning a superb camera!I attended the dive show at the Excel Centre inLondon in January 2007. I bought each of myfamily a raffle ticket from the Shark Trust and Iwas so surprised when I won.It has taken me a long time to write this articleas I have been so busy preparing for, and taking,my GCSEs. Last week end I went diving atStoney Cove and while I was under the waterI thought that I really must write to say what asuper camera it is.I support the Shark Trust because, eversince I was a toddler, I have loved sharks. ForChristmas 2004, my uncle, Alan, bought me theOpen Water course. I completed that course andwent on to complete my Advanced Open Waterqualification whilst on holiday in Egypt in thesummer of 2005.When I was diving in Egypt in the summer of2005 I was lucky enough to see a Tiger Shark. Itwas so exciting – I nearly forgot myself and triedto get quite close. In summer 2006 I went backto the Red Sea and I was so fortunate becauseon that trip I swam with Whitetip and Grey ReefSharks.I’d like to end this article by saying a hugethank you to everyone at the Shark Trust, notonly for my lovely camera but also for doingthe work the that you do to protect these lovelyanimals.Alan Barry15 years old, SidcupThe full poster is available to downloadfrom www.sharktrust.org>>> Downloads >>> ID GuidesWell done Andrej and keep up the greatwork!Champion Fundraiser!Thanks to the Dragonfly Class, fromRoberttown in West Yorkshire who haveraised £183 for the Shark Trust to help stopcruelty to sharks.When the Shark Trust was in Northern Ireland forthe (wonderful) Animal Magic event at Castle Espie,the Each conservation class was team given were £10 lucky as enough a starting to gainan extra team member in the shape of Jack Davisonpoint to raise money for a charity of their(age 6). With boundless enthusiasm and an amazingknowledge of all things sharky, Jack was a greatchoice. Year 3 ‘Dragonfly Class’ chose thehelp Shark and Trust we thank and him by very making much. baubles Here’s a and pictureof him, he was 6 in the photo, but is 7 now, and hisselling them at the Christmas Fayre, doinga sponsored spell and having a games daythe class raised a fantastic £367 whichwas split between the school fund and theShark Trust.younger brother Ryan.PUZZLE CORNERTest your shark knowledge withthis mini quiz!1) What is a shark’s skeleton made out of?a) boneb) cartilagec) adamantium2) How many teeth do some sharks getthrough in their lifetime?a) Over 20b) Over 2000c) Over 200003) The smallest shark in the oceana) fits in the palm of your handb) lives in the intestines of Whalesc) swims backwardsGet Busy!!Shark Quiz4) True and False – which of the followingnames are genuine shark names andwhich are made up?Mallethead SharkGravy SharkLemon SharkPondicherry SharkPool SharkCrying IzakHenry’s CatsharkHappy ChappieGoblin SharkTasselled WobbegongAnswers: 1b, 2c, 3a, 4 the false names are theGravy, Pool and Henry’s Shark.The Shark Trust website is packed full of activities, games, puzzles, wordsearchesand factsheets about sharks and the marine environment. Check out the Activity Zoneat www.sharktrust.org >>> Education. Why not draw us a picture or write a storyand we’ll put it up on the website!10 www.sharktrust.org Shark Focus 30 Shark Focus 30 Send your pictures to enquiries@www.sharktrust.org ! 11

Sharks in Focusstunningshark shots from around the world“All-in-all, the variety of winning imagesmakes the important point that the sharks,in their variety, cheek, charm and absoluterefusal to pose, are the real winners.”Jeremy Stafford-DeitschCategory winner, Stormy SeasSabrina BelloniRagged Tooth Shark.Aiwal Shoals, Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa.Category winner, Challenging Times (below left)Timo WeberLots of fish were used as decoration- in London!Borough Market, London.Category winner, Quirky Encounters (below right)Peter VerhoogLemon Shark.Aldabra Atoll, Seychelles.To commemorate the Shark Trust reaching its tenth anniversary year it joined forces withDiver magazine to host Sharks in Focus a photography competition devised to celebratethe beauty and highlight the vulnerability of sharks, skates, rays and chimaera.Nearly 200 people from across the globe enteredphotos to the competition, each vying for thechance to win a week long dive holiday for two inthe Maldives. Comprising four categories – PerfectCalm, Stormy Seas, Challenging Times and QuirkyEncounters – the competition received an arrestingarray of powerful, stunning and emotive images.Judges Kate Humble (Wildlife presenter), JeremyStafford-Deitsch (underwater photographer andShark Trust patron) and John Bantin (underwaterphotographer and Diver technical editor) had sometough decisions to make but eventually named theoverall and the category winners and listed 36 otherimages for special commendation.Displayed here are the winning images and thepublic’s favourite as voted by members of the publicthrough a poll held on the Shark Trust website.Overall winnerAndrew BellamyWhich one, me or him? Elphinstone Reef, Red Sea.Category winner, Public voteJames LeaLady and the Tramp.Bimini, Bahamas.Thank you very much to the prize sponsors BarefootTraveller and Euro-Divers for donating the overallprize and O’Three, Mares, Tony Backhurst, Suunto,Ocean Optics and Fujifilm for supplying the categoryand public vote prizes.Category winner, Perfect CalmTerry GossA young White playfully investigates.Isla Guadalupe, Mexico.12 Go to www.sharktrust.org >>> shark photo competition to see all the images Shark Focus 30 Shark Focus 30 Go to www.sharktrust.org >>> shark photo competition to see all the images 13

sharkEXPERIENCEshark SALESFourth ElementEvery Fin Counts!IntroducingPaul CoxShark Trust trusteeCinemaquatics have teamed up with thelegendary shark scientist Samuel “Doc” Gruberto organise an extraordinary shark trip, calledSharks up Close, to be run from the Shark Labon South Bimini Island in the Bahamas nextMarch.The shallow clear waters of the Bahamasallow all of the shark encounters to take placewhilst snorkelling rather than diving, so there areno divers’ bubbles to frighten the sharks away.The participants will be swimming with sharksevery day, interspersed with the Doc givinglectures on different aspects of shark behaviourand biology.On a similar week’s course last year theparticipants worked with Lemon Sharks in theresearch pens, got involved with tagging a TigerShark as well as encountering Black Nose andCaribbean Reef Sharks, Nurse Sharks, SouthernStingrays and Eagle Rays and a memorable hourspent swimming with a Bull Shark covered infresh mating scars.On hand will also be father and sonconservation team John and Sune Nightingalewho will be giving courses in underwater sharkfilming and photography.The number of places on the course is strictlylimited and all profits from the trip will go tohelping the conservation work of the Shark Trustand the research programmes at the BiminiShark Lab.Expect to meet a lot of sharks, learn a greatdeal about them and come home with someamazing photos.For details go to www.cinemaquatics.co.ukFourth Element have launched a series of snazzyt-shirts to highlight the threats faced by sharkswhile allowing you to cut a serious dash at thesame time.Available in both women’s and men’s fit, thetees are 100% cotton, machine washable andabove all look really rather nifty.The three stylish designs are available tobuy from all good Fourth Element stockistsand a whopping £3 from each t-shirt sold isbeing generously donated to the Shark Trust!Check out www.fourthelement.com for moreinformation!Pictures IncPaul Martin continues his support of the SharkTrust by offering a massive donation to the SharkTrust for every one of his limited edition sharkprints sold. There are some absolutely stunningimages available on the Pictures Inc websiteand we urge you to take a look at them – andmaybe even buy some! Paul also generouslydonated four of his prints to be auctioned at theBirmingham Dive Show just passed and the GalaBall evening last week! Visit their website atwww.picturesinc.co.uk!Web UpdateThe summer saw over 40 online volunteers take on the research and data collection of around 500 sharkspecies. The task was to create a comprehensive online Shark Information Database that is available forthe public to use. We would like to say thank you to every one that was involved in this immense task; ouroffice-based volunteers are currently putting the entries online. Check out the growing database onwww.sharktrust.org >>> Shark Facts >>> Shark Database.We have just launched our search for more volunteers to help us begin a new database, a catalogueof skates and rays around the world. If you are able to write concisely, in your own words and have someexperience of data collection then we would like to hear from you. You can find out more information atwww.sharktrust.org >>> Get Involved.Members area details: Username: Mako, Password: Shark.The first ever European Shark Week tookplace between the 8th – 14th October.Throughout Europe individuals, aquariumsand organisations expressed their support forimproved shark fisheries management in EUwaters by holding events and promoting theEvery Fin Counts petition.The Shark Trust sent fins out to aquariumsand venues across the UK and at theBirmingham Dive Show (October 13 and 14th),the industrious Shark Trust staff spread theword about European Shark Week andencouraged many of the show visitors tosign petition fins.The Shark Trust is very grateful for allof the aquariums and individuals whoenthusiastically embraced EuropeanShark Week and encouraged so manypeople to sign the petition fins – Thankyou very much for helping to makeEuropean Shark Week a success!These fins, which have also beensigned across Europe and furtherafield, will be presented to theEuropean Commission in Brussels atthe start of November – keep youreyes on the Shark Trust website formore details!Copyright Rachel Ball/Liverpool MuseumCopyright Sealife KönigswinterTop: Cat Gordon collecting European SharkWeek petitionsBotom, left: A young artist at LiverpoolMuseum’s Shark Week event.Bottom, right: European Shark Week at theSealife Aquarium in Königswinter, Germany.Aquarium Manager, National Marine AquariumI am delighted to be able to join the board of the Shark Trust andadd my experience and enthusiasm to the already notable listof trustees. I was a relative latecomer to marine biology andconservation having enjoyed a career in investment bankingduring my twenties. Eventually my love of diving and my concernfor the treatment of our oceans led me to take up marine biology,specifically communication of marine biology. In my seven yearsat the National Marine Aquarium I have taught and talked tothousands of people aged 2 to 100. During that time and throughthose conversations I have found that there is an incredible hungerfor information on sharks and a real desire to meet the “monstersof the sea”. I am pleased to say that during that short time I havedetected a real change in attitude in the majority of people that wemeet, due in no small part to the work of the Shark Trust and otherconservation and awareness organisations. The plight of sharksis a stunning and tragic case study for the plight of the oceans ingeneral and I look forward to helping to try and improve the futureprospects for sharks and the environment in which they live.In the next issue of SharkFocusManta Rays in the Maldives.Reports on the 10th Anniversary Gala Ball andEEA Conference.Weird and wonderful sharks of the world.14 Go to www.sharktrust.org >>> shark gallery for more European Shark Week images Shark Focus 30 Shark Focus 30 Sign our petition at www.sharktrust.org/petitions 15