Vimeo user Alessio Federici recently posted the video above featuring some excellent dive footage from Sipadan, Malaysia. About three minutes into the video there is some white tip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus) footage. White tip reef sharks typically grow to just about over 5′ in length, although in rare cases they may reach close to 7′ in length. The species typically feeds on bottom-dwelling prey such including crustaceans and cephalopods. They are generally not considered dangerous to humans unless they are harassed.

In addition to the shark footage there is some excellent footage of sea turtles, clown fish, cuttlefish, and morays.

The video, which was filmed in July of 2010, was shot using the Canon 5D Mark II’s video mode.

SyFy appears to have a new entry in its lineup of shark-related B-movies. Swamp Shark looks to follow in the footstep of a other SyFy “greats” like Sharktopus and DinoShark. The plot of Swamp Shark seems to revolve around a mutated shark spoiling “Gator Fest” by eating all the gators and several bathers. Despite warnings about the “swamp shark,” Mayor Vaughn…oops, I mean Sheriff Watson tries to avoid a panic by ignoring the problem in order not to lose potential revenue from the festival. Hmm, the plot sounds vaguely familiar.

Swamp Shark features film veterans Robert Davi and Kristy Swanson. Those who grew up in the 80s might recognize Davi as The Goonies villain, Jake Fratelli, and Die Hard’s Special Agent Johnson (who was of no relation to Die Hard’s other Special Agent Johnson).

Swanson is no stranger to the horror genre with films like Mr. Boogedy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Deadly Friend on her resume. Swanson’s character in Deadly Friend is behind the infamous “basketball scene” which also features the actress who played Mama Fratelli in The Goonies. Of course, none of this really has anything to do with sharks.

Swamp Shark will premiere next summer (2011) on SyFy.

According to CBS, surfer Kris Kerr snapped a photograph of a shark just before it “charged” him (CBS actually uses the word “attacked” him in the text description of the video. According to Kerr, he quickly shot the image and then punched the shark in the nose. Kerr was photographing his friend Ethan Wilson surfing when he spotted the shark swimming toward him, according to The Sky Valley Chronicle.

The video above from NatGeoTV.com presents a theory that a killer whale from the L.A. Pod of orcas might have used tonic immobility during a 1997 attack on a great white shark at the Farallones. The theory suggests that the orca (identified as “CA2”) potentially rammed the unsuspecting white shark, stunning it. While the shark was still disoriented the orca could have either grabbed the great white while it was on its back or flipped it over. The orca could have then held the shark upside down in its jaws, keeping it in a state of tonic immobility until the shark drowned.

While there is no hard evidence or clear-cut video footage of orcas inducing tonic on sharks in the NatGeo feature, the video does include video evidence of killer whales attacking stingrays in New Zealand using a similar technique. As seen in the footage, the killer whales approach the rays upside and grab them with their mouths, then right themselves, so that the rays are upside-down and effectively immobilized. Researchers hypothesize that if orcas have learned to use this technique on rays, then it’s not far-fetched to assume they could use a similar technique on sharks.

On a side note, some of the underwater footage of the “great white shark” in this clip features a shark that is clearly not a white shark. While I admittedly am not great at identifying certain species of sharks, I’m guessing the footage features either a lemon shark or a bull shark. Anybody care to enlighten me on the species seen at around 3 minutes in?

Thanks to DeepSeaNews.com for the video find.

Underwater videographers Ron and Valerie Taylor have been filming sharks for nearly 50 years primarily for documentaries, according to CNN.com. However, a sequence that they filmed for the horror movie “Jaws” might be one of their most recognized pieces of film. The Taylors discuss shooting the sequence in the video above.

While the fictitious shark featured in “Jaws” was supposed to be upwards of 25′ in length, the Taylors were used to filming great white sharks that were about half that length. To compensate for the size difference a miniaturized cage with a “small” man were used for filming the sequences in the movie that involved a real white shark (other scenes used the infamous mechanical shark “Bruce”). Ron Taylor goes on to discuss how the real white shark actually became entangled in the prop cage, which resulted in the shark panicking and essentially dismantling the cage, which gave off the appearance in the sequence used in “Jaws” that the shark was purposely attacking the cage.

While the Taylors are committed to conservation efforts for sharks these days, Ron Taylor admits that some of their work might have contributed to the negative stereotypes that exist among the general public when it comes to sharks. He says that “Jaws” was so effective and “well done” that people started believing that the fictitious tale was indicative of real shark behavior. Taylor goes on to say that some documentaries perpetuate these stereotypes due to the fact that a lot of documentary footage featuring human and shark interactions, involves baiting the sharks.

The Taylors are proponents of “no-take zones” in which fishing for all species of sharks would be prohibited to allow for sharks to reproduce and maintain sustainable numbers. Valerie Taylor believes that “good imagery” can help change perceptions about these protected marine environments and likens them to land-based national parks.

The full interview with the Taylors will air on CNN’s Talk Asia. For more information check out the article at CNN.com.

In a case of fiction turns into reality, NECN.com is reporting that the presence of a large “dorsal fin” drew crowds in Somerset, Massachusetts last week at Fox Hill Cove. However, all the attention turned out to be unwarranted when the fin was discovered to be nothing more than a weighted piece of Styrofoam painted to look like a shark’s fin. Onlookers became suspicious after the “fin” seemed to remain in the same spot for a long period of time.

Numerous shark sightings in Massachusetts waters have gained media attention over the past few months, for one reason or another. This seems to be the first case of a phony shark fin making the media rounds this year, though.

Somerset Police are looking for the person or persons behind the hoax. If the pranksters are identified, they may face disorderly conduct charges.

According to Sky News a rescue helicopter crew filmed the video of above in a stretch of coastal area off of Teewah, Queensland. The Sky News article identifies the species as tiger sharks and reports that over a hundred sharks were spotted in the area when the video was shot. The sharks were encircling fish along the coast, according to the helicopter crew.

Thanks to Shark Diver’s Underwater Thrills Blog for the heads-up on this video.

WARNING: The video below depicts actual events involving a boy biting the head off of a small live shark apparently for entertainment purposes. Some viewers will likely find this video to be very disturbing. Viewer discretion advised.

UPDATE:The shark video has now been pulled down. Thanks to those who flagged the video!

UPDATE:This video (and the sea gull video) are in violation of YouTube’s Terms of Service which prohibit videos depicting animal abuse. If you wish to report the video, view it at YouTube.com and click on the “Flag” icon and select “Violent of repulsive content > animal abuse”. The gull video has already been pulled down due to Terms of Service violations.

YouTube user xtyleradx posted the following video above, which appears to document the decapitation of a small live shark by a boy who bites the live animal’s head off. Based on the laughter in the background, this seems to have been done for amusement and entertainment purposes. The decapitated shark can still be seen moving after the boy has bitten his head off. The video is listed with the title “Shark Attack” on YouTube, but based on the events in the video, it seems like “Shark Attacked” would be a more appropriate title.

The same YouTube user has also posted a video documenting the decapitation of a live gull, apparently also for entertainment purposes, in recent weeks. Gulls are federally protected in the United States.

One should stress that these videos are not simply humans hunting animals for food. These are videos of people killing animals for the sake of entertainment. While you often hear that serial killers and violent criminals get their start killing animals, some psychological studies published in recent years have argued that this type of behavior is not necessarily indicative of a pattern of violence that will escalate to include violence towards humans. That is to say, that not all people who abuse animals will go on to become violent criminals. Regardless, I think it’s safe to say that the behavior documented in these videos is certainly enough to raise a red flag.

According Christy Henderson of Buzz’s Marina (Ridge, Maryland) a second bull shark was netted a few miles up-river from where last week’s first reported bull shark was found in the Potomac River. According to the interview with Henderson in the video above, the second shark was found in a fisherman’s net later in the day on August 31 (the same day the first bull shark was found).

Henderson told NatGeo News that the second shark, which was measured at 8’3″, was found in a net owned by Thomas Crowder in Tall Timbers, Maryland.

Bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) are one of the most well-known of shark species that are able to tolerate freshwater environments. Due to the bull shark’s freshwater tolerance, it is not entirely uncommon for bull sharks to be found in rivers and estuaries.

NBC Washington is reporting that an 8′ (2.4m) long bull shark was caught on August 31 in the Potomac River. According to the report, Willy Dean was fishing in Maryland’s St. Mary’s County in hopes of netting cownose rays for a biologist from Solomons Island, MD. Dean inadvertently netted the bull shark, which put up “quite a fight,” according to the fisherman. Dean says he will likely have the shark’s head “mounted” and is currently keeping the carcass in his freezer, according to the report.

Photos of the shark carcass are posted at NBC Washington.