From National Geographic:

The Shark Men are headed back to the waters where they have successfully caught and tagged almost a dozen sharks; Guadalupe Island. Dr. Domeier almost has enough data to support his theory about great whites mating at the island. But still needs a few more blood samples, his primary target; adult females. No matter how familiar the waters are nothing goes off without a hitch for this team.

The latest episode “As Big As A Boat” premieres this Sunday (05/01) at 10pm ET/PT on the National Geographic Channel.

San Francisco’s City Insider is reporting that San Francisco’s Mayor Ed Lee opposes a proposed ban on shark fin soup. Lee went on to tell the City Insider that he eats the delicacy “at weddings or at special occasions.”

Mayor Lee said that he supports educating fishermen rather than imposing an outright ban on shark fins. Lee told the City Insider that “an enlightened method” could be achieved without being “anti-cultural.”

West Palm Beach’s News Channel 5 is reporting that a spear-fisherman was on the calf by a shark off of Riviera Beach. Anthony Segrich had speared a fish and was in the process of bringing it to the surface when the shark bit him. According to his friends, they believe the shark bit Segrich while trying to grab the speared fish. Sengrich friends helped get him out of the water and applied a tourniquet to his leg before he was taken via ambulance to a nearby hospital.

At the time of the News Channel 5 report, Segrich was listed and stable condition. Doctors expect him to retain full-use of his leg after he recovers.

The Miami Herald is reporting that the shark involved was a 12′ bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas).

Heritage Auctions recently released a promotional video for the prehistoric Megalodon shark jaw that is now up for auction. The replica shark jaw contains 182 genuine fossilized C. megalodon shark teeth.

While the video makes the statement that the Megalodon species grew to 70′ (21m) in length, the actual length of now-extinct species is still a subject of debate. However, estimates of the length of the shark typically range from 40′-60′ (12m-18m).

Additionally, the genus of the species has also been called into question by some paleontologists. One school of thought includes the species in the Carcharodon genus (the same genus as the great white shark), while the other school of thought creates a unique genus, Carcharocles, for the species. The Carcharocles genus is also part of separate family, Otodontidae, according to an elasmo-research.org article.

Bids on the Megalodon shark jaw can be made online at the Heritage Auctions website.

A bill to ban shark fin trade is moving through Oregon Legislature.

BusinessWeek is reporting that Oregon lawmakers are considering a ban on the trade of shark fins, which are often used in shark fin soup. A bill that would ban the trade of shark fins has already been unanimously passed by a House committee. Now, the bill will head to the floor for a vote.

Similar bans on the trade of shark fin are also under consideration in California and Washington. Hawaii has already recently adopted a shark fin ban.

From National Geographic…

As their expedition off the coast of Malibu, California, continues, the Shark Men suspect that juvenile great whites are using the area as a kind of nursery, with its warmer and shallower waters providing the young sharks with a perfect place to grow and prepare for adulthood. The crew wants to catch more females since they have different migration patterns from the males and are the key to locating and eventually protecting shark birthing sites.

The latest episode of “Shark Men” premieres this Sunday (4/24) at 10pm on the National Geographic Channel.

It looks like Andy Samberg will once again be “On a Boat” in the near future.

Entertainment Weekly is reporting that Saturday Night Live’s Andy Samberg (also of The Lonely Island fame) has been named Shark Week’s “Chief Shark Officer” and will be hosting this year’s week of shark-related programming on The Discovery Channel. Samberg told Entertainment Weekly that he was “overjoyed” to be working on Shark Week.

The article goes on to mention that this year’s Shark Week will feature 7 all-new episodes. One of the new episodes, tentatively titled “Shark Invasion” will focus on great white sharks reportedly swimming in close proximity to beaches in South Africa, Australia, and the U.S. The episode will also address the question as to why there are so few attacks, in spite of the sharks’ presence in shared waters with beachgoers.

According to a report from MSNBC, Dr. Michael Domeier has voluntarily stopped the use of the Smart Position or Temperature Transmitting (SPOT) tags seen in National Geographic’s “Shark Men.” Domeier is quoted as saying that he has “stopped using such tags because of issues related to fin damage.”

Domeier went on to explain that the plastic bolts used in the tagging practice seen on “Shark Men” can result in deformation of the tagged shark’s dorsal fin, due to the fact that the plastic bolts are relatively permanent and do not degrade. The use of metal bolts that eventually rust away was not reasonable option, according to Domeier, because the bolts can rust unevenly and cause severe damage to the affected shark’s dorsal fin.

Domeier is working on a plan to resolve the issues with the SPOT tagging procedures, but the resolution is taking longer than expected, according to the MSNBC report. The article added that Domeier has turned down the opportunity to join the next season of “Shark Men” due to his work on developing this improved tagging technology and a current book project.

Along the same lines as the PSAs mentioned in the previous post, the Pew Environment Group and The Bahamas National Trust (BNT) have also released the above PSA, which features plenty of underwater shark footage and touches on both the economic value of shark tourism in The Bahamas and the environmental value of sharks to the marine ecosystem.

The Bahamas National Trust (BNT) has recently released a series of PSAs in collaboration with the Pew Environment Group with the goal of promoting the protection of sharks within all of The Bahamas’ Exclusive Economic Zone, which an encompasses approximately 630,000 square kilometers of ocean.

According to the PSA above, shark-related tourism brings in 78 million dollars (presumably BSD) to the Bahamian economy. The PSA also stresses the importance of sharks within the marine ecosystem.

A second similarly-themed PSA, also featuring Bahamian children, focuses on the shark trade and global statistics regarding shark populations.