The Marine Safety Group corrects Rodale's SCUBA Diving Magazine's "Shark Feeding Facts"
The Rodale's editorial written by Dave Taylor entitled "Media Hysteria Leads to Shark Feeding Ban Despite the Facts" in September 2001 includes factual errors and distortions in such number and magnitude to compel us to publicly comment on that document in the public interest - both to set the record straight and to somewhat stem the flood of disinformation currently promulgated by those who oppose (and wish to reverse) the recent Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission decision to ban the feeding of marine wildlife by divers in Florida waters.
Such distortions do a disservice to the public, the cause of marine conservation, and the sport diving community beyond the world of shark feeding.
Below, we address a number of key points raised in Mr. Taylor's editorial (the complete text of the referred document can be found at the bottom of this page):
Rodale's: In paragraph 1, Taylor states, "The FWCC chose to single out four small dive operators in South Florida in order to satisfy political and public pressure to respond to the hysteria generated by the media over a below-normal summer of shark bites in Florida and around the world."
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: Untrue. First, the proposed ban does not "single out" anyone. Under the new proposed rule, no diver - commercial or private - will be allowed to feed marine wildlife of any kind, not just sharks.
Second, Taylor's comments as to why the commission decided as they did are sheer speculation - simply part of an effort by pro-feeders to discredit the commission itself. A more reasonable interpretation of the rationale behind the commission's decision (and that stated by the commission itself) is that they finally had enough evidence of the harmful effects of marine life feeding to warrant fulfilling their mandate to protect marine resources.
Rodale's: In paragraph 2, Taylor lists five items (1-5 below) that, according to him are "the facts, in case anyone is interested (sic):" Below, we examine these "facts" one by one:
1. Taylor: "The two shark species fed by Florida's dive tour operators (Nurse and Caribbean Reef) have not been implicated in any attacks. Nurse sharks don't even have teeth."
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: This is assertion is completely false. Shark attack data collected by the International Shark Attack File (University of Florida) reveal that of 28 species ranked, the Caribbean Reef shark ranks third (in a 3-way tie with bull sharks and blacktips) in terms of species of sharks implicated in attacks on divers, a rank that places reef sharks well ahead of such feared species as hammerheads and makos. Further, we have collected documentation of numerous cases of divers and swimmers being bitten by nurse sharks in Florida waters.
2. Taylor: "The closest attack to any Florida shark-feeding operator is 100 miles. Are South Florida's sharks being fed by professional divers sending e-mails to the bulls and blacktips in Volusia County to attack surfers and children?"
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: Distance, in and of itself, does not rule out the possibility that attacks over 100 miles away from a feeding site were from fed sharks. Individual bull and nurse sharks are known (according to the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service) to be capable of traveling several hundred miles in a lifetime, while blacktips are known to move over a thousand. Although it may be somewhat unlikely that a fed shark would bite someone a hundred miles away, it is definitely possible.
3. Taylor: "Want to know why Jesse Arbogast was attacked? Put on a mask and take a look under water: The anglers are causing predatory behavior, not the scavenging behavior of controlled underwater shark feeds."
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: All available information on this high-profile case was carefully scrutinized by Florida's leading shark attack expert (George Burgess, International Shark Attack File, University of Florida), and local authorities, all of whom correctly concluded that given the information available, no one could ever know for sure why this particular attack occurred. The comments made by Taylor, who has NO scientific or law enforcement credentials whatsoever, as to the cause of this tragic attack are nothing more than speculation designed to shift press focus away from the shark feeding issue.
4. Taylor: "Florida's leading elasmobranch scientist, Dr. Erich Ritter, testified at the FWCC meeting that hand-feeding sharks did not cause them to associate the human body with food."
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: We know of no basis or standard used by the scientific community itself to judge such matters under which Ritter, by any stretch of the imagination, could be considered "Florida's leading elasmobranch scientist". In fact, a good number of others (such as Dr. Sam Gruber of the University of Miami and Dr. Bob Hueter of Mote Marine Lab) could far more reasonably make such a claim because they (UNLIKE RITTER) are:
A. Full-time scientific staff of a leading Florida research/educational institution
B. Published researchers with many peer-reviewed scientific papers on shark biology/behavior.
5. Taylor: "in the words of John Stewart, Legislative Coordinator for the dive industry's trade organization, after the vote: ". . . a travesty. It's irresponsible and dangerous to constituents for a government agency to cast aside the best available data in favor of fear and face saving."
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: While we certainly appreciate that Mr. Stewart - whose forte is dive travel marketing rather than science - is as free as anyone else to express his personal opinion, we fail to see why his comments are worth citing here, or why they should be given any special weight. When it comes to determining what is (or is not) "best available (scientific) data", we should rely most heavily upon the professional evaluations of legitimate scientists, NOT SALESMEN.
Rodale's: In paragraph 3, Taylor states, "...In the absence of evidence that these dives do any harm to the environment, to sharks or to the safety of humans, the efforts to ban them are tantamount to blocking the gates at Sea World. Just because we don't like something, doesn't mean it should be banned. Doing so is anti-democratic and probably unconstitutional.
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: First, we totally disagree with Taylor's unsubstantiated personal opinion that there is an "absence of evidence that these (feeding) dives do any harm" to the environment, sharks, or public safety. From the decision reached on September 6, 2001, it is clear that the FFWCC, after two years of review of available evidence, now believes there is more than sufficient evidence of "harm" to ban these activities. Also, the simple fact that many nationally prominent marine conservation non-profits (most of which have professional marine scientists on staff or as advisors) have gone on record in favor of the ban indicates that they also have concluded that there is sufficient evidence of "harm".
Second, Taylor has things backwards here. Where is the "evidence" that feeding dives do not cause environmental harm? By long-established precedent in environmental law, the burden of proof properly lies with the entity proposing to modify the environment, rather than with the public who must live with the results of such impact. That's exactly what environmental impact statements are all about. Unfortunately, the pro-feeding coalition has been unwilling to admit or accept that responsibility.
Rodale's: In paragraph 4, Taylor states: "In the case of planned shark feeding dives performed by reputable operators, the data from the past 20 years of this practice are clear: The practice does not alter the long-term behavior of sharks, the health of marine eco-systems or increase the risk of attacks on swimmers, surfers or divers."
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: Taylor's unsubstantiated comments here are directly contrary to hard data and the expressed professional conclusions of respected Florida shark experts and leading national/state wildlife management agencies, to wit:
George Burgess (University of Florida): "Sharks fed on the dives are not behaving normally. They have never gathered in large groups before now… You are changing the dynamics of the shark population - turning the sharks into performing animals, and that has resulted in ecological disruption. These [sharks] become like underwater circus animals…their behavior has been modified, as has the ecology of the area".
Dr. Sam Gruber, Professor, and University of Miami: "Shark feeding dives are altering shark behavior in a non-positive way."
U.S. National Park Service: "Unnatural conditions occur if supplemental food is provided to wild animals. This practice changes the natural distribution and behavior of fed species and the way in which their populations are regulated. Any attempt to manipulate the natural life cycles…such as fish feeding, would be contrary to the mission and values of the National Park Service."
State of Hawaii: "Fish feeding has been shown (EXPERIMENTALLY) to change the species composition in areas where the practice is done regularly, and fish become more aggressive, raising concerns about safety."
Rodale's: In paragraph 5, Taylor states: "The precedent established last week by the FWCC, if left unchallenged, can be used by other government entities to extend their regulatory control over diving, making sharks and divers the ultimate losers in this media-induced "summer of the shark."
MARINE SAFETY GROUP: Wrong. It is only a small, profit-motivated group presently profiting from commercial exploitation of Florida's marine wildlife who will be the "losers" when shark feeding is banned. The beachgoing pubic "wins" because they no longer will have to worry about "spillover" dangers from nearby shark feeding operations. The sport diving community "wins" by regaining the opportunity for all divers to safely observe and explore ocean wild places and wildlife. Most of all, the sharks "win" because they get to go back to just being sharks, instead of manipulated stunt performers.
Click here for Dave Taylor's "Dive Industry Alert"
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