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Aqua-Predators-Shark-2of2
J. Moore (j#d#.moore@canrem.com)
Tue, 27 Jun 95 12:37:00 -0500
Continued from previous message...
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The following quoted material is from:
1987 *Sharks*
Various editors and contributors: Consulting Editor, Dr. John D. Stevens
(Senior Research Scientist, Division of Fisheries, CSIRO Marine
Laboratories, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia)
Facts on File: New York and Oxford.
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[The following covers much the same ground, and simply confirms that the
three species of sharks in question, the bull shark, the tiger shark,
and the great white shark, are all dangerous to any animal which
habitually uses shallow waters of seas. This especially holds true for
the bull shark, which is highly dangerous to any animal which uses the
waters of not only seas, but also estuaries, and rivers and lakes
with an outlet to the sea. In other words, the habitat of the aquatic
ancestor postulated by the AAT.]
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Shark Attack in Australian Waters
Chapter by Roland Hughes BSc (former editor, *Australian Natural
History*, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia)
pg. 110:
Coppleson concluded that the swimmer attacked by a shark is usually
either a lone bather, part of a small group or on the edge of a large
group. Shark attacks can occur in all kinds of weather, on dull days
and fine days, at high, medium or low tides, in clear, muddy or even
brackish water.
pg. 116-117:
Bull or Zambezi Shark
*Carcharhinus leucas*
Because it is less physically impressive than either great white or
tiger sharks, the bull shark's reputation as a danger to humans has been
underemphasised. However, it is abundant in tropical and subtropical
seas, estuaries and even freshwater rivers (specimens have been
collected 3700 kilometers from the sea in the Peruvian Amazon). It
frequents shallow water near beaches, and is a versatile and
opportunistic feeder that will attack without provocation. The bull
shark is a stout to heavy-bodied species that grows to 3.4 metres in
length, and is now known to be the culprit in attacks formerly blamed on
the elusive Ganges Shark (*Glyphis gangeticus*).
Tiger Shark
*Galeocerdo cuvier*
Regarded as the most dangerous shark in tropical waters, the tiger
shares with the great white and bull sharks membership of the 'unholy
trinity' of proven maneaters. It grows to about 6 metres and is
responsible for repeated attacks on swimmers, divers, and boats.
Great White Shark
*Carcharondon carcharias*
Primarily a coastal and offshore species of continental and insular
shalves, the great white grows to about 6 metres and is regarded as
second only to the orca, or killer whale, as a marine predator. It has
been identified in attacks on humans off California, southern Australia,
New Zealand and South Africa.
Shark Attack in the United States
Chapter by Dr. Guido Dingerkus (Director, Natural History Consultants,
Goshen, New York, USA)
pg. 123:
One of the most dangerous sharks, and in tropical waters
unquestionably the most dangerous, is the tiger shark (*Galeocerdo
cuvier*).
pg. 123:
Off Bimini, in the Bahamas, the author has caught six of these sharks,
ranging in length from four to six metres, in only one or two metres of
water. It is, therefore, a species that poses a serious threat to
bathers in shallow, warm waters.
pg. 124:
The bull shark, *Carcharhinus leucas*, is probably the next most
dangerous shark in warm waters.
pg. 124:
Coming into shallow water, it will feed on almost anything it
encounters, swallowing smaller prey whole and using its razor-sharp
teeth to bite circular chunks out of larger prey. It is probably the
only species to enter pure fresh water, and has been caught as far as
3200 kilometers upstream in the Amazon River. It is especially
aggressive in fresh water, where it apparently comes to feed. In Lak
Nicaragua many human deaths have been caused by this shark.
All these factos probably mean that the bull shark comes into close
association with humans quite frequently.
Shark Attack in South Africa
Chapter by Dr. Leonard J.V. Campagno (Senior Research Scientist, J.L.B.
Smith Institute of Ichthyology, Grahamstown, South Africa)
pg. 137:
At least some writers have thought the Zambezi shark the most dangerous
species in the warm waters of Natal, and responsible for many attacks
off bathing beaches there. In terms of relative abundance and habitat
the Zambezi shark is, or was, more likely to come in contact with humans
than the tiger or great white sharks, which also occur in the warm
inshore waters of Natal. Although smaller than the other two, the
Zambezi shark has very large teeth, massive jaw muscles for its size,
eats almost as wide a range of food as the tiger shark, and occurs in a
greater variety of inshore habitats than the other species.
Shark Attack in New Zealand
Chapter by Larry J. Paul BSc (Hons.) (Fisheries Research Division,
Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Adelaide, South Australia)
pg. 152:
How does one avoid becoming a shark statistic?
Only by never going into the water, for sharks are unpredictable and no
measures give total security.
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[Although sharks may not have been quite as much a danger as crocodiles
for a relatively small, comparatively slow-swimming and defenseless
aquatic ancestor, the AAT needs to address the extremely serious threat
to these habitually aquatic creatures posed by both sharks and
crocodiles.]
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Jim Moore (j#d#.moore@canrem.com)
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