This is another one that shouldn’t really need explaining. The photo seen in the video above was purportedly captured by Terry Lynch, while he was observing the live ROV feed of the BP oil spill, according to http://www.bpoilspill.byteland.org/, a site which is registered in Lynch’s name. The site suggests that the oil and disperant chemicals might have caused the shark to go “berserk or crazy.” Lynch’s site then goes on to suggest the possibility that “maybe a crazed shark, sickened by pollutants, chewing upon cables or equipment is what caused the explosion of Deepwater Horizon.”

The image appears to be the result of photo-manipulation. The sharpness of the white shark that has been added to the image is noticeably higher than that of the BP feed image, likely due to the source image of the white shark having a higher resolution than the source image of the BP live feed image. Additionally, refracted rays of sunlight are clearly visible on the shark indicating that the photo was taken near the surface.

The primary motivation behind this hoax image (and YouTube video) seems to be an attempt to draw visitors to Lynch’s BP Oil Spill Animal Rescue site, which offers merchandise featuring numerous anti-BP designs, including the photo-manipulated shark image. According to the site, when items are purchased, a donation is made to the Good Shepherd Dog Animal Rescue (GSDAR), which was founded by Terry Lynch “for the benefit and rescue of homeless animals.” The GSDAR website indicates that the organization is not a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization but describes GSDAR as a “private, grassroots, on-line nonprofit corporation.”

It should be noted that there is no mention of any proceeds from the sale of merchandise on Lynch’s BP Oil Spill Animal Rescue site being earmarked for donations directly to the BP spill clean-up efforts.

Future Games of London recently released a shark-themed game for Apple’s iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. “Hungry Shark,” by the looks of it, does nothing to dispel the myth that sharks are mindless killing machines, but is this something for conservation-minded shark enthusiasts to get bent out of shape over? After all, it’s just a video game created for mindless fun. There are plenty of video games out there that depict humans/aliens/hedgehogs/etc. going around destroying everything in sight. Personally, I won’t be losing any sleep over a game in which a caricature of shark is going around eating everything in the water and the air, especially when the feeding frenzies are accompanied by comical animated text that looks like something out of the old Adam West Batman television series.

There’s a difference between video game companies (as well as advertising companies, movie studios, and other outlets of fictional entertainment) capitalizing on over-the-top shark sensationalism versus educational-based or news media outlets doing so. The difference being that the target audience typically knows they’re getting a heaping slice of fiction with the former. I doubt that playing Hungry Shark will result in somebody believing that a real shark is going to fly out the water, eat a pelican in mid-air, knock a person out of a boat in the process, and then eat the person. Then again, sometimes I give people too much credit.