Yeah yeah, you're thinking, Australia has sharks. However, down my way, there hasn't been a fatal shark attack in living memory, despite many places in Australia having many, particularly of late. Even recently, a young mother got taken and, whilst she survived, she woke to an amputated arm.
And what does the internet say?
'It's the shark's home, don't go in the water'.
Tell that to surfers. Tell that to me.
Recently, a large whale carcass washed up at a popular surf spot down here - the photos in this post are of that carcass, taken by a friend of mine and used with their permission. Needless to say, they shut the beach down, worried about sharks coming to feed off the blubber.
Did that stop surfers?
Nope.
For non ocean people, it's hard to explain just how addictive it is. Perhaps it's as important for humans as it is for sharks. The mammalian dive reflex, for example, harks back to an ancestral DNA that lowers our heart rate when we dive (or even put our face in a sink of cold water).
It was no suprise that someone surfing got nudged by a shark a few days later, captured on the surf cam - watch here. Everyone exited the water pretty fast when that happened. Still, many went back in that day. Perhaps they were hoping that sharks preferred blubber over rubber.
Did I go surfing? Yep. In fact, my first surf in three months. To be fair it was three headlands over, but still. The ocean is everything to me.
People are calling for a cull. It's a fraught subject, because sharks play an important role in the sea. Without them, humans suffer. But then we've not done our end of the bargain - we've overfished, and contributed toward shark behaviour. There's more sharks hungry, and we're the fish now, not just a curiousity.
There's a great doco just out on sharks and surfing in South Australia - it's short, but it details what it is like to surf in shark infested waters. It's a great little doco if you have twenty minutes.
Needless to say, I'd be far too scared to surf in most parts of Australia, and am hoping that sharks don't change their habits down here on the south west cost of Victoria.
This post was in response to the Ocean Lovers community question of the week, which asks if you've ever been scared of the ocean or if something has happened that has scared you.
To be fair, I often get scared out there - seals popping up (is it a shark??), seaweed drifting underneath (is it a shark?), shadows in the water (is it a shark??) - but that fear evens out with the buzz and comfort I get from being in the water.
If I get eaten, so be it.
With Love,
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Can relate with loving the ocean part, although I can't call myself a surfer, since on the rare ocasions I get my surfboard wet the goal is trying to stand up... blame me for deciding to learn to surf 30 years later than I should! :) But do scubadive and we have to respect the locals (aka fishes big and small), after all we're the ones entering shark's home! Fingers cross you never have a close shark encounter!
Oh yes and you have the whole underwater world to fly in! How awesome - we only see the surface. But you get it - you know what it's like to love the ocean and be wary at same time..
Absolutely. And if you never tried scuba diving, go for it! You have stunning places there in Australia! ;)
I have done free diving which I loved, in Bali.. a whole new perspective of the ocean!
Some of my best dives were there! 😁
The analogy here would be ticks. The ticks are really bad this year. Every day I find them on me or my stuff. Lyme disease to start, plus the 13 co-infections.. .. Lyme disease is not something to mess with, let me tell you. It can really wreck your life and there's not a real cure for most people if it goes unrecognized for too long, like in my case.
I know people who have either cemented over their backyard or just don't go outside. Well, that's not an option here. But I'm out there almost every day, for hours...
Oh man yeah they've really impacted your health, I know. I think they know more about it now but it'd easily go undetected if no one recognised the signs. They must drive you mad. We do get ticks here, and Lyme's, but I believe it's more prevalent where you are. I hate ticks..
This is a story that is both fascinating and frightening. Nature is magnificent, but it also holds a power and dangers that we must respect. The photos of the whale are impressive and remind us just how fascinating the ocean and the creatures that live there are. Thank you for sharing this experience and these exceptional images with us
"we got to cull the sharks! They are a danger and risk."
Stop overfishing and he sharks will have something to eat.
"But but but the sharks are dangerous"
But but but but grow your food.