MSNBC is reporting that the results of the first successful satellite tracking of great hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna mokarran) followed a single shark over a 62-days journey. The great hammerhead was tagged in the waters of southern Florida as part of an effort by Neil Hammerschlag and colleagues who are tracking tropical sharks in an attempt document migration patterns.

Over the course of the great hammerhead shark’s 62-day journey, Hammerschlag told MSNBC that the shark had traveled 745 miles (as the crow flies). The shark swam from the waters of southern Florida to the coastal waters of New Jersey.

Scientific data about the great hammerhead is scarce, but this latest study will hopefully provide more insight into the migratory behavior of the species and help researchers to identify key geographic locations where the sharks migrate for feeding, mating, and giving birth.

The evidence that great hammerhead sharks are capable of traveling such large distances in a relatively short time also indicates that the species could potentially be migrating into international waters making to susceptible to illegal fishing. Hammerschlag hopes that this research will help provide information that can be used to assist with conservation efforts aimed at protecting and managing great hammerhead sharks.

Last October, the story of the rescue of Strappy the great white shark was one of the more positive shark-related news stories I’d seen in a while. Strappy had become bound by a piece of packing tape that was cutting into his flesh in front of his pectoral fins and around his gill slits. Andrew Fox of the Fox Shark Research Foundation was able to cut and remove the tape in a risky rescue attempt outside of a submersible shark diving cage.

Yesterday, Australia’s 7 News released the above video feature on Strappy’s rescue, which also focuses on the impacts of trash in the oceans.

Kudos again to Andrew Fox for his efforts to save Strappy!

The Washington Post is reporting that Panamanian customs officials have discovered nearly a half-ton (421 kg) of shark fins. The article goes on to say that the fins were cut illegally from “protected hammerhead sharks.”

The fins were discovered at Panama’s international airport and were bound for New York City having originated in Ecuador. The shark fins were being shipped in a container labeled “dried fish.”

WARNING: The video below features a fictional account of a shark attack (based off the Alex Kintner scene in “Jaws”).

TVSpotsTV recently posted this 2003 Victoria, Australia public service announcement. While the imagery is very much over-the-top and mimics a horrific shark attack scene from the movie “Jaws,” the message is strong and well-intended. The announcement attempts to emphasize that while hundreds of people die in traffic accidents on Victoria’s roads, little attention is given to those deaths, as is illustrated by the beachgoers going about their usual routine, despite the fact that a boy is being attacked.

While the point of the announcement is clearly to draw attention to a need for increased traffic safety, the advertisement also illustrates (perhaps unwittingly) how shark attacks receive more attention than a vast majority of more common tragedies, such as traffic fatalities. The intent here is not to diminish the tragic nature of shark attacks but rather to point out that lives are lost at a far greater rate due to events that are almost ignored due to them being considered “commonplace.”

There is a certain psychology associated with shark attacks that somehow makes them more newsworthy. While the loss of life is tragic, despite the circumstances behind the loss, it does seem that the general public’s attention is often directed toward certain types of tragic events more than others.

San Deigo’s CBS 8 has been pretty “sharky” in recent days, in addition to a story about Sharksuit designer Neptunic, they also recently ran a story about anchorman Craig McKee’s phobia of sharks.

McKee describes himself as “deathly afraid of sharks,” and psychiatrist Dr. Michael Lardon notes that McKee appears to have a true phobia of sharks, as opposed to just a common fear of them. McKee speculates that some of his fears may come from the movie “Jaws” and shark attack headlines that he sees “on a regular basis.” McKee’s fear of sharks is so intense that he won’t go any further than knee-deep in the water.

However, McKee found a motivator to overcome his fear of the ocean in his wife’s desire to go sea kayaking. McKee joined his wife on a sea kayaking trip this past Monday and returned unscathed. Dr Lardon recommended repeated efforts to confront these types of fears in order to overcome them.

A fellow anchorman at CBS 8 points out that since 1926, only 2 fatal shark attacks and 16 total attacks have occurred off the coast of San Diego.

San Diego’s CBS 8 recently ran a feature on “Sharksuit” manufacturer Neptunic, who have created a new lightweight fabric-like material that is resistant to cuts and punctures. The new material, called “Neptech”, is based on a chain maille design and is already being sold for government and military use. According to the CBS 8 report it may be available to the public by this time next year.

Neptunic’s Jeremiah Sullivan believes that the new material could be used to sustain a great white shark bite. Demonstrations of the material seem indicate that Neptech can minimize damage from lacerations and punctures. However, it’s unclear (from the CBS 8 report) how the new material would affect injuries caused as a result of bite force. That being said, the material certainly appears to have the potential to greatly reduce the extent of physical trauma that could be caused by a shark bite or the bite of any other large predatory animal.

The Herald Sun is reporting that a pair of fishermen from South Australia were fined a total of over $15,000 (AUS) for a December 2008 killing of a great white shark. Additionally, the fishermen, Robert John North and Peter John Vivian, were required to forfeit the $5,978 (AUS) they received from the sale of shark’s jaws and teeth. The magistrate also ruled that the men may not possess sharks or shark-fishing equipment for a period of 5 years.

Great white sharks have been protected by law in South Australia waters since 1998.

UPDATE: According to YouTube user MsAnnabelle99, the shark in the video was a 4m+ tiger shark who had been around the boat for around 10 minutes with a pod of orcas. The video was shot approximately 8 miles off of Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia.

Not much info about this video, which showed up on YouTube today from user MsAnnabelle99. The only information provided in the video description is “shark almost bites arm.”

Based on an initial view at normal speed, it’s fairly difficult to discern what is going on, aside from the presence of a large shark around a fishing boat. However, the slow-motion footage (found at the end of the video) gives a better look at what certainly looks like a great white shark partially breaching the surface in close proximity to the cameraman, and another boater who is reaching out of over the side of the boat when the white shark surfaces.

Thankfully, it appears that everybody came out of the situation unscathed, with the exception of a good scare on the part of the cameraman.

According to Australia’s Ten News, the search continues for a Port Lincoln man who was reportedly attacked by two sharks, believed to be great whites. The victim was surfacing from an abalone dive in Coffin Bay, when he was attacked by the sharks, according to the diver’s boat skipper, who witnessed the attack. The skipper was treated for shock when he returned to shore.

CNN is reporting that this latest attack marks the second dive partner that the skipper has “lost to sharks.” In 2000, the skipper’s boat overturned, and he swam 8 miles to shore, while his companion clung to the boat. In that case, the only traces of the victim that were recovered were “a shredded life vest and a battered lunchbox,” according to CNN.

The Australian is reporting that while some in the Port Lincoln area are calling for “shark culls,” after this recent attack, a friend of the victim stated that the victim was a conservationist and noted that he believed the victim would not like to “see us all going out there and killing all the great whites that we see.”

YouTube user GrantJohnsonMD has posted a video of a free-swimming great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran) being tagged off of Bimini, Bahamas. The shark is described as a 12′ female and was tagged with a with a NMFS dart tag, which will help with research purposes to better understand the species, which is listed as “endangered” on the IUCN redlist.

The video description points out that the shark was tagged while free-swimming (as opposed to a catch and release tagging) in order to reduce stress on the animal. As can be seen in the video, the shark does not seem to be fazed by the tagging process. She remains in the area after being tagged and continues to show interest in the hang bait.