Thursday 15 May 2014

Introduction

Well the ocean is so big and filled with dangerous thing. Like some people say

"A thing that looks so beautiful from outside, that thing is dangerous from inside."


But some people love this ocean, they go to dive so that they can spend time looking at fishes, coral reefs,etc and for that they dive in the ocean and go deep and deep. Well the fish species are getting extinct day by day not only because animals and humans eat them but because the other fish species also eat them.

So to save the under water animals we have to make some difference and to make difference we should be aware that what equipments are available to us nowadays and what methods can be used to make some difference.

Also,I would like to explain how are sharks dangerous to us and how are we dangerous for them. And how can we conserve/save sharks !!

Sharks Are Dangerous....



Well, sharks are Dangerous for humans. Some types of attack that they perform are :-

 Provoked Attack 
Provoked attacks are caused by humans touching sharks. Often this involves unhooking sharks or removing them from fishing nets. However, recently there have been a number of incidents involving divers who were attacked after grabbing or feeding a shark while underwater.

 Unprovoked attacks
 Unprovoked attacks happen when sharks make the first contact. This can take three forms:

Hit-and-Run 
Hit-and-Run Attacks happen near beaches, where sharks try to make a living capturing fish. In pounding surf, strong currents, and murky water, a shark may mistake the movements of
humans, usually at the surface, for those of their normal food, fish. The shark makes one grab, lets go, and immediately leaves the area. Legs or feet are often bitten; injuries usually are minor and deaths rarely occur.


 Sneak Attack
Sneak Attacks take place in deeper waters. The victim doesn't see the shark before the attack. The result can be serious injury or death, especially if the shark continues to attack.

  Bump-and-Bite
Bump-and-Bite Attacks happen when the shark circles and actually bumps the victim with its head or body before biting. As in the sneak attack, the shark may attack repeatedly and cause serious injury or death.

Wednesday 14 May 2014

TOP DANGEROUS SHARKS

1. Megalodon Shark


Megalodon, meaning "big tooth",is an extict species of shark that lived approximately 28 to 1.5 million years ago, during the  Cenozioc Era.
Weight about 100 tonnes.
Jaw weight about 18 tonnes.It eats a human like a human eats a grape.

 

 

2. Bullshark



The bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas), also known as the Zambezi shark or, unofficially, as Zambi in Africa and Nicaragua shark in Nicaragua, is a shark commonly found worldwide in warm, shallow waters along coasts and in rivers. The bull shark is known for its aggressive nature, predilection for warm shallow water, and presence in brackish and freshwater systems including estuaries and rivers.
Bull sharks can thrive in both saltwater and freshwater and can travel far up rivers.
Bull sharks are not true freshwater sharks, despite their ability to survive in freshwater habitats.

10 Most Dangerous Sharks? The Great White Is #1. Photo:Terry Goss/Wikimedia Commons3. Great White Shark

 The great white shark, also known as the great white, white pointer, white shark, or white death, is a species of large lamniform shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans.
It is mainly known for its size.
This shark reaches its maturity around 15 years of age and was previously believed to have a life span of over 30 years. The true lifespan of great white sharks is estimated to be as long as 70 years or more, making it one of the longest lived cartilaginous fish currently known. Great white sharks can accelerate to speeds that exceed 56 km/h (35 mph).

4. Tiger Shark

 The tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier, is a species of requiem shark and the only member of the genus Galeocerdo. Commonly known as sea tiger, the tiger shark is a relatively large macropredator, capable of attaining a length of over 5 m (16 ft). It is found in many tropical and temperate waters, and it is especially common around central Pacific islands. Its name derives from the dark stripes down its body which resemble a tiger's pattern, which fade as the shark matures.

The tiger shark is a solitary, mostly nocturnal hunter. Its diet includes a wide variety of prey, ranging from crustaceans, fish, seals, birds, squid, turtles, and sea snakes to dolphins and even other smaller sharks. Due to its tendency to swallow virtually anything it encounters, including inedible manmade objects that linger in its stomach, the tiger shark has been nicknamed "the garbage can of the sea". The tiger shark is considered a near threatened species due to finning and fishing by humans.

5. Ocean White Tip Shark


The oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus) is a large pelagic sharks inhabiting tropical and warm temperate seas. Its stocky body is most notable for its long, white-tipped, rounded fins.

This aggressive but slow-moving fish dominates feeding frenzies, and is a danger to shipwreck or air crash survivors. Recent studies show steeply declining populations because its large fins are highly valued as the chief ingredient of shark fin soup and, as with other shark species, the whitetip faces mounting fishing pressure throughout its range.

Saving Sharks

With our little brain and our action we can save sharks. You will ask why should we save sharks if they are
very dangerous. Well, I will tell you that why should we save shark :-

Nearly one out of five shark species is classified by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) as Threatened with extinction. That doesn’t even include hundreds of species (almost half of all sharks) whose population status cannot be assessed because there is lack of information. Scientists warn that, in actuality, a third of sharks might already be threatened.

Why should the decrease in shark population make us worry?
1. Well, a healthy and abundant ocean depends on predators like sharks keeping ecosystems balanced.
2. And living sharks fuel local economies in places like Palau where sharks bring in an estimated $18 million per year through dive tourism.

Sharks may rule the ocean, but they are vulnerable. They grow slowly, produce few young, and, as such, are exceptionally susceptible to overexploitation.

Overfishing- is driving sharks to the brink - with many populations down by 80 percent. Tens of millions are killed each year for their meat, fins, liver, and other products.

Bycatch– or catching sharks incidentally while fishing for other commercial species – poses a significant threat to sharks. At the same time, new markets for shark products are blurring the line between targeted and accidental catches.

Finning– Shark fins usually fetch a much higher price than shark meat, providing an economic incentive for the wasteful and indefensible practice of “finning” (removing shark fins and discarding the often still alive shark at sea).  Finning is often associated with shark overfishing, especially as keeping only the fins allows fishermen to kill many more sharks in a trip than if they were required to bring back the entire animal.

The future of sharks hinges on holding shark fishing and trade to sustainable levels.  The best way to ensure an end to finning is to require that sharks are landed with their fins still “naturally” attached. Fishing limits must be guided by science and reflect a precautionary approach. We must also invest in shark research and catch reporting, and protect vital shark habitats. And last, but most definitely not least, you can help by thinking twice before buying shark products. As with any seafood or fish products, if you choose to eat seafood, you should refrain from a purchase unless you can be certain that it's coming from a sustainable source.




TOP PROJECTS FOR SAVING SHARKS

1. Reporting The Danger Sharks Face In Scholary Journals

In 2008, researcher Francesco Feretti and his colleagues published a startling and important survey of shark population declines in the Mediterranean Sea. Feretti and his co-authors pored over all available data on Mediterranean shark populations over the past two centuries.
By arranging all the data in order the researcher made the world aware of the sharks in danger so that the people could help in saving sharks.

2. Lobbying Policymakers to Protect Sharks

Groups like the Pew Charitable Trusts fund and employ lobbyists who persuade lawmakers to support legislation that create sanctions against shark fishing, provide enforcement of protective laws and offer incentives to protect sharks.

One sterling example of the work of lobbying groups like the Pew Charitable Trusts is the U.S. Shark Conservation Act of 2009. This law would make removing a shark's fin - even one from a dead shark or having a shark fin aboard a vessel illegal.


3. Recording Shark Attacks

Keeping files on shark attacks to aid shark conservation efforts may seem counterintuitive, but recording hard data on the number and circumstances of shark attacks around the world seems to have done just that. The University of Florida's Museum of Natural History (FMNH) houses and helps to compile the Shark Attack Files.
For example, the Shark Attack Files show that in the 10 years between 1999 and 2009, there were 51 fatal shark attacks throughout the entire world.

4. Going Underwater for Sharks

Some shark conservationists do their best work on dry land. Others literally like to get their feet wet.
Conservation groups on the high seas have a lot of work to do.

 Purse seine nets, for example, are long walls of netting that hang up to 300 meters (984 feet) underwater and are attached to floats on the surface. These nets are drawn together at the bottom, trapping everything within them. When fishermen come to haul the nets up, they take everything — sharks included. This process is called bycatching; it's an unfortunate, but legal, byproduct of fishing. However, some conservationists will go underwater to free trapped sharks from opened nets that have yet to be hauled.

By harassing illegal fishermen and overseeing legal operations, shark conservationists in the water try to create breathing room for endangered sharks.

5. Battling Shark Fin Soup on Land

Shark fin soup, considered a delicacy in Asia, Australia and Hawaii, is responsible for the removal of millions of kilograms of shark fins annually. While numerous conservation efforts focus on cutting off supplies of the main ingredient in shark fin soup, at least one trains its eye on the demand side.

For the past few years, residents of China — one of the biggest consumers of the dish
— have been treated to a grassroots public service campaign that alerts them to the environmental havoc that bowl of soup can cause. Basketball star Yao Ming serves as a mouthpiece for the campaign, which aims to rid the Chinese public of its affection for shark fin soup through bus stop ads, billboards and television spots.





6. Studying Whale Sharks in Public Aquariums


Some of the largest aquariums in the world have dedicated much of their research and funding to studying and conserving the world's whale sharks. For example, the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List has declared the elusive and little-understood shark species vulnerable. By studying the sharks kept in captivity, and participating in and funding research in the sharks' natural habitat, aquariums in such diverse locations as Georgia, Taiwan and Okinawa hope to protect these sharks by better understanding how humanity affects them.

By learning of the dangers humans pose to whale sharks while encountering them face to face, aquarium guests can become informed and concerned activists.

 

7. Ridding Marinas of Shark Fishing

Vacationing tourists who remove sharks from local fisheries for sport and recreation are considered inhumane by many conservationists. Getting shark meat home when home is another country is virtually impossible, and few tourists are willing to pay for the cost to have a shark mounted and shipped. Instead, a shark caught by a tourist is often used for a commemorative photo and left to rot.
In response, some shark conservationists have created a shark-free marina movement that targets flippant tourists. This tactic hits tourists where they stay by lobbying marinas and facilities attached to resorts to ban dead sharks from their docks and piers. Recreational shark fishermen may think twice before killing a shark for the photo op if they know they can't offload the carcass from their fishing boat. The tactic has appeal in that it still respects the sport of fishing; it simply encourages fishermen to catch and release.
Resorts and marinas in six different countries have banned dead sharks from their facilities as a result of this conservation movement.