If ever there was a time to consider a kite leash...
Body dragging through burley!

New slalom course

topline said..

....
The east coast has drum lined for decades. And also shark nets, how many hundreds or thousands of sharks have been killed in that process, I don't see or hear of much protest over there. Maybe because they don't have many shark attacks (maybe it works, people are not getting eaten and sharks are still thriving) think about it? - lets not forget that something like 70 million sharks yearly are killed worldwide for fin soup.

....

This is a contentious issue over this side as well, the anti netting/drum line lobby is quite vocal.

There is probably a case of the majority of public being used to something that has been in place a long time, and the stats support it works.

Some stats

According to the International Shark Attack File maintained by the Florida Museum of Natural History, there were 118 shark attacks on people in 2012, 80 of which were unprovoked. Forty-two attacks were in the United States, 14 in Australia, four in South Africa and three in the small French island territory of Reunion. Of the 118 attacks, only seven were fatal: three in South Africa, two in Australia and one each in the US and Reunion. The long-term trend indicates an increasing number of shark attacks, possibly due to an increasing number of people going into the water, the museum says.
There is a "much higher risk of drowning at the beach (121 average a year - with 300 drownings around Australia in all aquatic venues) than from being bitten or killed by a shark".

* In New South Wales, 51 beaches are netted which began in 1937 and during 75 years while the nets have been in operation, there has been only one fatal attack on a netted beach.
http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/info/sharksmart/meshing

* In Queensland, drum lines are also used. The Shark Safety Program has been in place since the early 1960s. A fatal attack in January 2006 is the only fatality on a protected beach, it occurred on a North Stradbroke Island beach protected by drum lines - there have been zero fatalities on netted beaches.
* In QLD in the 2011/12 summer season there were 714 sharks caught, 281 above 2 metres in shark nets and drum lines.
www.oesr.qld.gov.au/products/tables/shark-control-program-caught-area/index.php

* In Hong Kong, after the shark-attack death of three swimmers over 10 days in 1995, the government installed shark nets on all 32 gazetted beaches. There have been zero fatalities since installation in 1995.

* in Durban, South Africa there have been no fatal shark attacks since nets were installed in the 1950s, compared with seven deaths in the preceding 10 years. By contrast, according to the Crimestats SA website, in 2013 alone there were 58 reported murders in the precincts that include Durban's main beaches.

As mentioned before, statistically there are many other things more likely to kill you than a shark.

harlie said..

topline said..

....
The east coast has drum lined for decades. And also shark nets, how many hundreds or thousands of sharks have been killed in that process, I don't see or hear of much protest over there. Maybe because they don't have many shark attacks (maybe it works, people are not getting eaten and sharks are still thriving) think about it? - lets not forget that something like 70 million sharks yearly are killed worldwide for fin soup.

....

This is a contentious issue over this side as well, the anti netting/drum line lobby is quite vocal.

There is probably a case of the majority of public being used to something that has been in place a long time, and the stats support it works.

Some stats

According to the International Shark Attack File maintained by the Florida Museum of Natural History, there were 118 shark attacks on people in 2012, 80 of which were unprovoked. Forty-two attacks were in the United States, 14 in Australia, four in South Africa and three in the small French island territory of Reunion. Of the 118 attacks, only seven were fatal: three in South Africa, two in Australia and one each in the US and Reunion. The long-term trend indicates an increasing number of shark attacks, possibly due to an increasing number of people going into the water, the museum says.
There is a "much higher risk of drowning at the beach (121 average a year - with 300 drownings around Australia in all aquatic venues) than from being bitten or killed by a shark".

* In New South Wales, 51 beaches are netted which began in 1937 and during 75 years while the nets have been in operation, there has been only one fatal attack on a netted beach.
http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/info/sharksmart/meshing

* In Queensland, drum lines are also used. The Shark Safety Program has been in place since the early 1960s. A fatal attack in January 2006 is the only fatality on a protected beach, it occurred on a North Stradbroke Island beach protected by drum lines - there have been zero fatalities on netted beaches.
* In QLD in the 2011/12 summer season there were 714 sharks caught, 281 above 2 metres in shark nets and drum lines.
www.oesr.qld.gov.au/products/tables/shark-control-program-caught-area/index.php

* In Hong Kong, after the shark-attack death of three swimmers over 10 days in 1995, the government installed shark nets on all 32 gazetted beaches. There have been zero fatalities since installation in 1995.

* in Durban, South Africa there have been no fatal shark attacks since nets were installed in the 1950s, compared with seven deaths in the preceding 10 years. By contrast, according to the Crimestats SA website, in 2013 alone there were 58 reported murders in the precincts that include Durban's main beaches.

As mentioned before, statistically there are many other things more likely to kill you than a shark.

Compelling stats, thanks Harlie

Looked up some stats myself, interestingly...

Australia is 2nd for number of shark attacks and first for fatal attacks.

And of the 9 fatal shark attacks in Australia since 2010, 7 of them have been in WA (Wedge Is, Rotto, Cott, Busselton, Dunsborough, Gracetown x 2)

Oh the joys of living in the land down under...

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shark_attack
www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/science-environment/2014/01/shark-attacks-in-australia-a-timeline/

Challenge accepted

From theconversation.com/western-australias-shark-culls-lack-bite-and-science-21371

True effectiveness cannot be assessed by simply counting the number of sharks captured and killed. Demonstrable effectiveness means a measurable decrease in shark bite incidents in response to culling activities.

Hawaii shark control programs of the 1960s and 1970s, for example, were not demonstrably effective. These programs were expensive, culled 4,668 sharks and yet failed to produce measurable decreases in shark bite incidents.The challenges of reducing shark bites at specific locations were clearly illustrated by the events at Barbers Point on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. The 1967-69 shark control program removed 33 tiger sharks at that one location alone, yet soon after the program finished a shark bite occurred at Barbers Point.

There is no scientific basis for WA's shark cull program.

Good point Puppet.

i don't see protesters carrying on over Kangaroo culls. Many thousands of Roos getting taken out every year...

The shark lovers need to get real. Human life is worth protecting.

It's in the small print people. Read your contract, it say's you will have fun in the water but with a small chance of being eaten by a large fish.
Poor old Tiger shark never hurt anyone, well all most no one. Leave them alone I say.

topline said..

Peterc150 said...


There is no scientific basis for WA's shark cull program.

Is human death not a good enough scientific basis?

Media has hyped up the "shark cull slogan once again" Remember its really a tag and release program with res-ponders on the seabed tracking the animals movements around the W.A metropolitan beaches.

Only animals over 3 meters will be removed from the populated beaches. It will be interesting to see in a few months how many animals are tagged and how many large animals are removed. You'll probably find it will be hardly any. "Not really what you would call a cull".

So lets wait and see the true information released in the near future before speculating on false assumptions.

Now off to Kalis Bro's for a Flake Burger and chips.

Nobody is disputing that sharks kill a few humans each year in Australia, and that WA has had more fatal shark attacks recently.

However, there is no scientific evidence that baited drum lines and catching/killing some sharks actually reduces shark attacks.

Some people think catching/killing sharks will reduce attacks - but there are several marine biology and shark experts saying there is no evidence to support this notion.

Bollocks. You are quoting figures associated with netting beaches in Eastern seaboard states and beaches where drum lines are used. Drum lines cannot protect a beach, they can only catch a shark that may attack someone.

WA is not netting beaches -they are only using drum lines. The evidence shows that shark attacks continue on beaches where drum lines are used, as you note happened on Stradbroke Island.

Sorry mate, not all those beaches are netted...
You are not from WA. From May/June until the end of December Great Whites are here in large numbers. They are spotted close in
On our beaches virtually everyday. This was not the case 10 years ago or 20 years ago or 30 years ago. I know because I have surfed
here during that time.


[uquote]Peterc150 said..

Bollocks. You are quoting figures associated with netting beaches in Eastern seaboard states and beaches where drum lines are used. Drum lines cannot protect a beach, they can only catch a shark that may attack someone.

WA is not netting beaches -they are only using drum lines. The evidence shows that shark attacks continue on beaches where drum lines are used, as you note happened on Stradbroke Island.

The media ban wagon at its best ,it's a chance for any would be if they could be to protest about any government decision which then becomes politicaly motivated...

What I find humorous is that a lot of people who are really for shark catching and killing are folks who support Sea Shepard and all kinds of other wild life preservation. I think you call that hypocritical don't you?

mikehunt said...
well this is what happens when you make uninformed decisions, you get a waste of money and only 2 things will come out of this

- we will learn exactly HOW many sharks are swimming around (the fear mongering will escalate)
- we will attract even MORE sharks, which will lead to more deaths of humans swimming

Mike

Totally agree.