Shark Stories
update:
The best peer-reviewed estimate for the eastern Australia + New Zealand population comes from Hillary et al. (2018): ~280–650 adults and ~2,500–6,750 total. That is the figure most researchers cite as the first robust estimate for that region.
Nature
Genetic work since then confirms low effective breeder numbers and high relatedness, which increases conservation concern and motivates continued CKMR and genomic monitoring.
ResearchGate
Academia
Newer 2025 media claims of “<500 breeding animals for all of Australia” are noteworthy, but you should verify with the peer-reviewed paper or official NSW DPI/Deakin publications before using that figure in formal work.
Andrew P wrote:tubeshooter wrote:They take a DNA sample when they tag a shark, and they can extract DNA from a board that's been bitten by a shark.
We should be getting some info by now on which tag numbers are responsible for attacks.Not sure if they can use the DNA for identifying individuals tubey, more likely species
Such a sad incident that impacts the family and the whole community. Condolences to all.
Where are the all the shark biologists with updates on great white shark population figures?
i had a look and the numbers seem very outdated. Apparently 500 - 750 GWs on the east coast. I would x 100 that
wonder if the numbers on Dorsal are for each specie or all pooled together......funny how you never hear of bronze whalers these days as they were as common as dogs balls years ago
simba wrote:wonder if the numbers on Dorsal are for each specie or all pooled together......funny how you never hear of bronze whalers these days as they were as common as dogs balls years ago
Portland has been working hard to rid the coast of the bronzeys and seven gillers. as their saying goes 'if the tuna boat's fucked, it's flake off the breakwater, kids' (how's the even polarisation of the comments.. haha, love I Heart Portland.)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/188361684560807/posts/9292423857487832/
so if you have 280-650 adults and 2500 - 6750 total in 2016 (article published in 2018 so account for a couple of years lag when data were collected) how many of the 2220 - 6100 have reached adulthood in the last 9 years? accounting for natural mortality (slow growth, long lived = low natural mortality) and very limited fishing mortality. lots more methinks
stunet wrote:tubeshooter wrote:Yeah, I realise only a small percentage of large sharks have probably been tagged but it would be interesting to know if any of the tagged sharks have been responsible for one or more attacks.
Surely there must be one or two that have had a go.
And like Fraz suggests, maybe a higher level of notification if a shark with history has pinged a buoy.Steve may be better positioned to answer this than I am, but I recall someone checking the DPI quarterly records and finding that once a (tagged) shark was hooked on a drum line there was an increased chance it'd be hooked again.
The inferences from that - if it's true - would need to be closely studied as prima facie it'd seem the drum lines are attracting sharks. Some of those drum lines are pretty damn close to where I surf.
How often is the bait taken but the shark isn’t hooked would be another interesting angle. If they’re able to scoff a free feed off it…
I reckon they should get zapped or something when they drag them out. Rough them up a bit… condition them away from coming to the beaches.
The CSIRO has claimed "There is no scientific evidence showing tagged sharks being involved in human encounters."
Any evidence they have not been involved?
I found this on the DNA sampling of sharks, and it looks like identifying individuals can be done.
Forensic genetic identification of sharks involved in human attacks
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1872497321000958
simba wrote:wonder if the numbers on Dorsal are for each specie or all pooled together......funny how you never hear of bronze whalers these days as they were as common as dogs balls years ago
Simba, I think they are just tagging Whites, Bulls and Tigers so if the Bronzeys are not tagged there may not be any data for them.
Also looks like the numbering system is consecutive so the three species are lumped together which makes it difficult to say how many of each have been tagged.
Be interesting to drill down the data and look at some of the trends. For instance locally the catch rate of the Whites seems to drop off when the water is dirty, now it has finally cleared up, they are back on the bite.
A few interesting stories on shark attacks and near misses on the Shark Shield report so I thought I would start this thread. Don't want to trivialize the subject as people have had their lives taken or changed forever by what can happen. I thought it might serve as an educational purpose by hearing others experiences so we may all learn from them and hopefully avoid it happening to us.
One of them was a mate of mine named Hazey.
He had been surfing at Castles, a notoriously sharky wave in the bay at Cactus.
Several hundred metres offshore the wave breaks before reforming into Inside Castles making a long left with several sections. The wave has been the scene of several attacks and near misses over the years including the local known as "Sharkbait" who had been attacked more than once.
Gerry Lopez is another who came very close to being attacked out there and vowed to never surf Cactus again after his near miss.
Well Hazey was surfing out the back with another bloke named Steve when out of the blue he was launched into the air still on his board by a huge force from below.
A shark had rammed him with a direct hit straight up into the air! In a moment it was gone but soon returned to the stunned Hazey and started biting him and his board. Hazey instinctively put his arms out to protect himself but both his arms ended up in its mouth. As the jaws closed down his arms could have easily been severed, but several teeth on the sharks lower jaw had become dislodged and imbedded in the board leaving his upper arms with massive injuries, but the vital inner arms where major arteries run were not majorly damaged. This probably saved his life.
By this time Steve had reacted and in a rush of adrenalin and pure ballsy courage he threw himself onto the sharks back and started gouging at the sharks eyeballs, eventually feeling one pop and the shark departed.
Steve got the two surfboards together and got himself and Hazey on and started the long paddle to shore.
Then they were both thrown into the air as the shark rammed them a third time before disappearing again. They continued to make their way closer to shore and the shark nudged them again. Steve told me he thought he really must of pissed it off when he popped its eye.
Finally they we're just a metre from shore when the shark made its fifth and final appearance. It beelined towards them and the shore while they stood in waist deep water with their boards. The sharks mouth was just rapidly opening and closing like one of those wind up sets of false teeth. The boys separated and put their hands on either side of it's body and held it on a 90 degree angle to the beach as they made the final steps to the safety of the sand.
Hazey was rushed to Ceduna hospital and then flown to Adelaide for micro surgery on his shredded arms.
Steve ended up receiving a bravery award and they both sold their story to 60 minutes and made $50,000 each out of it!
It was quite a story!