Another Senseless Death

This time, it was a pregnant female that was caught and killed in the shark nets installed near Scottburgh beach today. A shark whose population is so threatened, it is raised in test tubes in Australia in a desperate attempt to save it from extinction. A shark that is rarely linked to incidents with humans (and more than half of those are provoked) whose main source of food is small fish and crustaceans. A shark who had made it through two sets of nets to the beach, and was then caught in the cloudy water returning to the sea. A shark that was brutally strangled and suffocated to death. A shark that never should have died.

And what’s worse, she was a pregnant female whose death marks the demise of dozens of unborn Raggedtooth Sharks. Running the gauntlet of hundreds of meters of nets installed up the coastline of South Africa, she had most likely made it the long journey up to Sodwana and back instinct guiding her to her birthing place before becoming entangled, not seeing the camaflouged black net in the murky water. Surprised, she must have fought to free herself, only worsening the nets’ hold as it tightened around her gills slowly choking the last breaths of air out of her. A beautifully elegant animal, she spent her last painful moments desperately alone probably never imagining a fate such as this, the remora affixed to her belly giving her no solace.


I found her a few hours later. Diving down, I knew there was a shark on the net – a dead shark. But no amount of dead sharks can prepare you emotionally for the sight. There she was, her head and gills engulfed in tightly meshed net, her timid eyes glazed over forced to accept her fate, her harmless mouth agape frozen in time as she struggled for her last breath of air. This magnificent shark, the kind that is so shy it won’t even allow a diver to come too close, murdered by ignorance and greed. My heart sank when I realized she was with carrying a precious cargo – as many mature females are at this time of year – a new generation of sharks slaughtered before entering the world. I stroked her graceful snout and wished her death was not in vain. That the world would wake up and stop the insanity. That the archaic nets would finally be removed – having caused the deaths of thousands of harmless sharks, dolphins, turtles, rays, and whales while serving a primarily psychological purpose. But while causing very real destruction to a very fragile place.



Then, I could only watch as men dragged her to the surface, joking and laughing as they tried to pull her into the boat, a very large shark, having spent years avoiding the nets of death, As if her death wasn’t brutal and senseless enough, they proceeded to dismember and destroy her in front of my eyes. She was just another fish to them. They gaffed her so hard the gaff broke in two, affixed thick ropes that sawed thru her gills, the water turning red with blood, and then, poked out her eyes only to stick their index fingers into her eye sockets. Her majestic beauty transformed into gore. The air filled with the pungent smell every shark conservationist dreads. The smell of fresh, dead shark.


More than 6,000 of her kind have been caught and killed in the last three decades joining the over 26,000 other harmless sharks that have been slaughtered. And many more will continue to die every year. Senselessly. Brutally. Needlessly.

Generations of animals – many threatened with extinction - who play a critical role in this planet’s health killed because of a media-induced, irrational fear.

When will this madness stop?

(All photos and images courtesy of Paul Wildman. Copyright, Paul Wildman, 2008.)

Running with the Big Animals

I have been all over the world diving with some of the most incredible animals on the planet. But today, I had the best diving experience I have ever had. Without any tanks. Which is the exact reason why it was so special.

Having just completed my freediving lessons, I was eager to try out my new skills. Somehow Mother Nature knew and delivered the perfect day which was all the encouragement Mark needed to get us out on the ocean.

Our goal? Swim with whatever the sea offered.


First up, a group of friendly Common Bottlenose dolphins – many with calves so young, it looked like they had just been born within the past few weeks. Time and time again, we dropped off the boat and dove down into their world, with the freedom to enter it for as long as our lungs would allow. The dolphins proudly showed us their new additions as they playfully dove between us.

Then, we met the sharks. Our first stop? The Raggies’ hood to see how the youngsters were doing finding mates. Free-diving to Raggies Cave was peaceful and easy though only days earlier it had required me to strap a heavy cylinder on my back. And the Ragged Tooth Sharks – a particularly skittish bunch – never let air guzzlers get too close. However, without the noise and disruption of tanks, the Raggies were quite hospitable and hung out closely to us. Being on their terms made them comfortable enough to share their personal space and I got the opportunity to get in tight with my new friends.

Next up was the Blacktip pack who just admitted several new members to their club: the Dusky sharks. The blacktips were so close that I frequently bumped into them while ascending or descending – much to their dismay. But it was the Duskies that I found absolutely enchanting. They are the type of sharks that stay in the outskirts of a crowd, never confident enough to check you out eye to eye. With your back turned, they would slowly enter your private space lurking over one of your shoulders only to dart away as soon as you turned and locked your eyes with theirs. However, on this particular day without any tank, I met a very different shark. These duskies were fearless and quite curious. They would circle me a few times slowly decreasing the radius of their circles until finally, they would swim right up to my nose, stop a few inches from my face and hang there until we were able to mentally connect and exchange salutations.



I was already high with excitement as we started to head back into shore. Little did I know the days’ highlight was still in store for me.

This time of year, the humpbacks come through Aliwal, on their way down from Mozambique after giving birth to take their calves to Antarctica with them. They pick up an escort here to make the long journey with them and in return for protection, the escort is given the chance to mate with the indebted female. The whales had been thick the last several days, but on a mission, so it is difficult to get a chance to enjoy anything more than a slap of the tail and an occasional breach.

I figured today was no different, so when Mark cried whale, I dove into the water assuming I might see a quick flash of a white belly. It was a hectic mad dash in the water as Mark kept yelling directions to us. As I lifted my head, I could see a pod of whales just beyond my reach and at some point, decided I was never going to catch them. That is when Mark enthusiastically shouted for me to dive – the whales were headed straight towards me.

Forgetting everything I was taught, I dove down and peered into the blue. Suddenly two whales materialized just a few meters in front of me. As I swam forward, a third whale entered my peripheral vision and I realized this was mom and a calf. It was an absolutely gorgeous sight – a mother humpback and her baby peacefully gliding past me. Knowing the mother would be nervous if I was too close, I stood my ground and just enjoyed from a distance. My heart stopped as I experienced an encounter I had only dreamed of. I could have never imagined this was possible. A whale shark, maybe. A whale? No way.


I must have glanced down to get my bearings because as I looked up, I found myself literally inches away from a huge eye and barnacles. Imagine my surprise to realize that I was about to bump head first into a humpback whale. I had not seen the escort and suddenly, he was right next to me letting me know that I could look but not touch. I immediately realized I was way too close to such a powerful creature and began backing up as quickly as I could remembering the stories I had heard about their powerful fins. By the time the whale’s pectoral fin came near me, I was far enough away to be out of danger, but close enough to get a strong, warning swipe across my fin. Wishing I could have shared the moment with someone, I turned to find Paul had materialized behind me, catching the swipe on camera. (Not that I needed it… the experience itself was seared into my mind. I will never forget it for as long as I live.)


Jubilant, I broke the surface and basked in the spectacular glory of the sea with Paul. Freediving that day, combined with Mother Nature, just gave me the most amazing gift I will ever receive.

I may never put a tank on again…

The Raggies Return!!!

I recently crossed the Botswana border back into South Africa and got a new visa! I am fully legit until the beginning of November now. It was like Christmas morning for me.

As with any plans in Africa, everything has changed once again. Now I am headed off to stay near Aliwal Shoal (Durban) with Mark and Gail Addison in preparation for the Shark Angels premier on July 31st.

I am moving part-time to the Durban area as well… While I love Capetown, the brutal cold rains and overcast skies that are their winter are absolutely killing me. Here I sit, tanned and warm from days in Botswana and I simply cannot face going home. Plus, who are we kidding… a chance to hang out with and live with some of my favorite people (including their darling daughter who is 6 going on 36 named Ella), how can I possibly head back to Capetown now?

When Mark told me that the Raggies are back in full force, with numbers that are not to be believed, I was so excited. More than 1oo were in Cathedral, piled three and four sharks deep After years of staying away, the Ragged Tooth Sharks are finally back! (We call them Sand Tigers in the states.)

Before heading off to Sodwana, we did an amazing (and quite unusual) night dive with the Raggies. Usually skittish, at night, they literally brush up against you, seemingly desperate for contact. I couldn’t believe the change in behavior versus the dive I had done a few days prior, when I couldn’t get within five feet without them slapping their tails like a shot and bolting off. Raggies are one of my favorite sharks, graceful and misunderstood, with a mouth full of vicious looking, snaggled teeth, they are definitely more bark than bite. A little like a Shark Angel, I think…

So our first dive with the Raggies was a stunning experience. Imagine 100 - 200 aggregating like the hammerheads of Cocos. I was thrilled. Mark said he has never seen so many together - and after years of concern, they have returned in healthy full force. Today, I felt like I witnessed a little natural miracle, which came at such a perfect time, as I was haunted by a story from Shawn about the 12 longliners that are being chased off every dive site in Cocos. Seeing the sharks in such full force gave me the shot in the arm I needed to continue charging forward to save the sharks. Sometimes it seems like such a daunting task...