A shark bite incident - the real story
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/fishing...the-real-story
Late last year, while assisting with a marine research project at Palmyra Atoll, I was injured in an incident involving a grey reef shark.
A news story on the incident was published here in New Zealand some time later, accompanied by several graphic photos that made the injuries I incurred seem more serious than they actually were.
The news story and photos appeared without my knowledge or consent in the newspaper, so you can imagine my surprise when I awoke one morning in Palmyra to scores of emails from friends worried about my health and wellbeing. In fact, such was the overwhelming response and concern I want people to know that I healed quickly and was back at work filling my marine scientist role just two days after the accident occurred. And then, just three weeks later, I was rapt to be back in the water again.
That said, I want to take this opportunity to correct a few errors of fact and perception that accompanied the original report. Specifically, I want people to understand that this was not a ‘shark attack’ as the headline stated; it was simply a shark bite – and the difference is crucial.
At the time I was assisting a University of Hawaii research team place sonic tags on humphead Maori wrasse. This species of fish can grow to great proportions, is very shy and difficult to capture, yet is globally threatened.
“They have been overfished around the world to such an extent that Palmyra is one of the few places left where you can see and study them. The UH project is designed to help us better understand their home range and movement patterns, and is the first step toward designing management strategies to help protect the species across its range,” according to Dr Eric Conklin, Marine Science Advisor of The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii.
Part of the project involved the team attempting to capture a large wrasse using a barrier net, but unfortunately a passing two-metre grey reef shark became entangled in the netting first. The team stopped immediately to untangle the shark, but once free, the shark began swimming slowly toward another portion of the net in a disoriented and lethargic manner. Seeing this, I moved quickly to hold the net down so it could pass freely. When the shark veered away, I momentarily turned my attention back to the net, only to look up and see that the shark had made an abrupt turn and was heading back towards me at great speed.
Before swimming off, it bit me twice over the top of the head, removing my mask, and inflicted a third glancing bite, leaving cuts on the left side of my face. (My mask was not shattered and twisted, as one media report stated.)
The response to the accident was prompt and smooth. Within minutes, I was rushed back to the station, where several on-island personnel with medical training for remote locations successfully patched me up. They received guidance from our on-call remote medical staff.
I was fortunate that day – the outcome could have been far worse. Still, I have never considered the incident an ‘attack.’ Most sharks at Palmyra are reef sharks – grey, white-tipped and black-tipped – and not aggressive, unless provoked or threatened.
Dr Conklin notes that this is the first time there has been an incident involving a shark at Palmyra, and there was a good reason for it.
“Grey reef sharks will generally not attack unless they feel threatened, and even then they will generally display aggressive behavior in an attempt to scare away their perceived threat before attacking. In this case, the shark may have felt threatened or confused after being caught in the net, and its behavior is consistent with that,” he said.
Sharks are common at Palmyra. Indeed, researchers dive there safely on a daily basis surrounded by sharks. The atoll is one of the few remaining places in the world where top predators such as sharks and other large fish still dominate the marine reef ecosystem. Their presence is a sign of overall reef ecosystem health and a key reason why Palmyra is one of the few places in the world where they can be studied in natural numbers across their habitat range.
My own beliefs about sharks are echoed by Dr Jonathan Gardner, a marine scientist at Victoria University of Wellington, who also conducts research at Palmyra: “Sharks may be unpredictable, but they generally don’t cause significant problems for human populations. They deserve our respect and admiration, but perhaps, more than anything, they deserve our protection.
“We need far less hysteria about sharks and far more understanding of their biology and their natural role in marine systems. It’s important to see this incident for what it really was – an encounter with a shark in its environment, which thankfully didn’t result in permanent injury. All of the researchers involved will doubtless understand this and be back in the water tomorrow to further contribute to the acquisition of new knowledge about sharks.”
I have unwavering respect for sharks and have always loved being around them. Indeed, this incident has only strengthened my respect for these magnificent creatures.
