Delmarvanow.com is reporting that the 31st annual Ocean City Shark Tournament will give “more recognition” to fishermen who release their catches, in order to promote sustainable shark fishing. In addition to the increased rewards in the catch-and-release division, participants in the tournament will also be required to use circle hooks to reduce the chance of life-threatening injuries to the sharks, according to the report.

According to Mark Sampson, one of the tournament’s founders, fishermen will also be collecting data to assist researchers with various shark-related studies.

Check out the full story at delmarvanow.com for more details.

From National Geographic:

This time the Shark Men aren’t searching for sharks they’re tracking the giant Humboldt squid. Little is known about the elusive monster that can grow as long as a school bus. Joined by three squid experts, the Shark Men scour the Sea of Cortez by spotter plane and boat in the hopes of finding a giant squid. After days of finding only a juvenile Humboldt, Captain Brett manages to catch a fully mature Humboldt, but what the cameras catch is even more spectacular.

National Geographic Channel’s “Shark Men” airs Saturday at 10pm ET/PT.

A promotional video for “Dark Tide,” a new horror/suspense movie starring Halle Berry, was recently posted by Vimeo user misterbay. The story is centered around a dive instructor (played by Berry) who has a near-fatal encounter with a great white shark, according to IMDB. The movie also stars Olivier Martinez. An official release date has not been announced for the film.

Based on the promotional video and the plot description, it looks like great white sharks will take on an antagonistic role in the film and will be at least partly responsible, along with the other perils of being “lost” at sea, for the “horror/suspense” element.

The BBC is reporting that multiple sightings of an oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus) have been reported to Cornwall harbor officials. Two people on separate boats reported seeing the species about 1 mile from the shore. However, a spokesperson for the harbormaster’s office said that the identity of the species had not been “100% confirmed.”

Richard Pierce, chairman of the Shark Trust, issued the following statement about the reported sightings:

It is always exciting and interesting to get sighting reports of what may be new species to our waters. Elements of the description we have heard are consistent with Oceanic Whitetips, although to date there have been no confirmed reports of Oceanics in UK waters.

The BBC notes that oceanic whitetip sharks are typically not found further north than Portugal.

In related news, The Mirror, The Sun, The Telegraph, and Herald Sun feature stories about a “terrifying” attack by a “killer” shark, which involved a shark ramming a fisherman’s boat in a manner reminiscent of “Jaws.” The description of the shark involved in the incident matched the description of an oceanic whitetip shark.

WPTV.com reports that a Florida dive instructor is expected to fully recover after being bitten in the leg by a blacktip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus). According to the report, Daniel Webb of Jupiter, Florida was diving at about 70′ with a dive student when the shark bit on his leg and did not immediately let go. In fact, Webb told WPTV that he struggled with the reef shark for a few seconds before he was able to shake it off. Webb said the shark was acting “jumpy” and “weird” before it bit him.

Webb’s injuries required stitches and apparently staples based on an image that can be seen at WPTV.com. Despite his injuries, Webb told WPTV that he does not blame the shark for the incident. Dr. Daniel Kapp, Webb’s surgeon, said that he expects a full recovery from Webb over a two month period. Webb plans to return to the diving after his recovery and said, “All the creatures down there, even the sharks, are still just amazing creatures to watch.”

For more information, check out the full story at WPTV.com.

The 2011 edition of Discovery Channel’s Shark Week, hosted by Andy Samberg, is featuring a video contest, in which contestants can submit videos showing how they “celebrate” Shark Week. The submission period for videos is from June 13 to July 1. After the submission period ends, 16 videos will be chosen by Discovery Channel for a bracket-style head-to-head “Shark Week Tournament.” The videos will be voted on by online viewers over a 3-day “squabble.” The video with the higher percentage of votes will then move on to the next round. The top-two videos will be aired a commercials during Shark Week, with one video ultimately being crowned the winner.

For more information and full contest details, visit the Shark Week Video Contest website.

From National Geographic:

The Shark Men continue the search for a great white named Amy who they believe is about to give birth. The team will search by air and sea, hoping for the biggest accomplishment of their entire scientific mission. The Sea of Cortez seems to be a perfect habitat for a great white shark nursery, though it’s full of man-made dangers. It is a high-traffic area for use of long lines and gill nets, and though sharks aren’t the target, they often get caught in the crossfire.

National Geographic Channel’s “Shark Men” returns with a new episode on its new night this Saturday (June 11) at 10pm ET/PT.

YouTube user ruste13, recently posted the above video, which shows a pair of dogs “rounding up” several shark near the shore. At one point, one of the dogs decides to take a dive and, according to the narrator, bite one of the sharks. While the dogs seem to be having a pretty good time, it looks like the sharks dispersed after the dog went for a dive.

According to NBC San Diego a diver was physically unscathed after being bitten by what is believed to be a sevengill shark (Notorynchus cepedianus). Justin Schlaefli was spearfishing off La Jolla when the incident took place.

Schlaefi said the shark bit his calf three times. He believes the shark was after a calico fish on his stringer. After punching the shark, Schlaefi said it swam toward one of his diving companions, who attempted to shoot it with his spear gun.

While his wetsuit did sustain puncture marks from the bites, Schlaefi himself did not sustain any physical injuries.

Sand tiger sharks are among the protected species that regulations prohibit removing from Delware waters.

According to a Delmarvanow.com changes to Delaware’s shark fishing regulations are set to go into effect on June 11, 2011 in attempt to discourage the targeting of protected species. The new regulations state:

It shall be unlawful for any hook and line fisherman to remove from the water sandbar shark, or any other species of shark when prohibited from harvest under §3541.

Delmarvanow.com quoted fisheries administrator for Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Fish and Wildlife Division, Craig Shirey, as saying, “if you have to get out there in the water with the shark to let it go, then maybe it will discourage people from fishing for them.” DNREC fisheries scientist, Scott Newin, said that the current regulations need to be defined more clearly and also noted that the public needed to be better educated about how to properly handle hooked sharks to minimize injuries to the animals.

Violations of the new shark fishing regulations would carry fines of $25-$100. For more information check out Delaware’s 3541 Atlantic Sharks regulations.