Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs posted two shark tagging videos to their YouTube Channel earlier today. The video above was shot in July 2010 and features Greg Skomal (Senior Biologist) and Dan McKernan (Assistant Director) of Massachusetts’ Division of Marine Fisheries discussing the tagging program, which last year yielded new information about Atlantic great white shark migration patterns.

At least 8 great white sharks were tagged in Massachusetts water this summer (2010). Researchers hope to gain more insight into habitat preferences and migratory patterns from the data that will be recorded as a result of this year’s shark tagging.

In addition to the white shark tagging video, MassEEA also posted a video seen above, which was filmed into 2005 documents the tagging of basking sharks in Cape Cod Bay. The video features some nice surface footage of multiple basking sharks in the bay.

According to a press release at Trade Only Today, all 13 locations of Loggerhead Club & Marina have registered with the Shark-Free Marinas Initiative.

SFMI is a voluntary program that works with fishermen and businesses to establish protocols to protect threatened shark species. By registering with SFMI, a marina pledges that sharks may not be landed for any purpose, and the display and/or slaughter of caught sharks at registered marinas is strictly prohibited.

Loggerhead Club & Marina is Florida’s largest owner of public marinas. Ray Graziotto, president and COO, hopes to set an example for others in the industry “to promote a practical solution to shark overfishing and reduce shark mortality,” according to the press release.

Kudos to Loggerhead Club & Marina for doing their part to help protect threatened shark species!

Great hammerhead sharks apparently don’t have a good concept of etiquette when it comes to fishing. The fishermen in the video above were attempting to land a tarpon near Boca Raton, Florida, when a great hammerhead showed up and seized their catch.

This isn’t the first time a video like this has shown up on YouTube, and it likely won’t be the last. To the credit of these guys, at least they didn’t almost stick their hands in the shark’s mouth. However, it does seem at one point that one of the guy’s on the boat thought it might be a good idea to grab onto the shark’s dorsal fin in an apparent attempt to discourage the great hammerhead from eating the tarpon. Aside from the notion that grabbing any shark’s dorsal fin is probably not a good idea, the technique seemed fairly ineffective anyway.

Initially, reports identified a barracuda as the species responsible for a Florida kayaker's injuries. However, the injuries were later determined to be inconsistent with a barracuda attack.

Multiple media outlets are reporting that a Florida woman was injured while kayaking over the weekend when a fish jumped out of the water and struck her in the upper-torso area. Initial reports stated that Karri Larson was kayaking with a friend near Big Pine Key when a barracuda jumped out of the water and bit her in the chest. However, multiple marine wildlife scientists have since claimed that Larson’s injuries are inconsistent with a barracuda attack. Larson suffered a punctured lung and possibly broken ribs as the result of a puncture wound caused by the jumping fish, which is now listed as an unidentified species.

Just a quick reminder that Disney’s “Oceans” hits the home video market tomorrow on DVD and Blu-ray! “Oceans” features some fantastic underwater footage of a wide variety of marine life, including various shark species. Additionally, Disneynature has announced that they will donate $0.50 to The Nature Conservancy’s Adopt a Coral Reef program for each copy of “Oceans” purchased through October 25, 2010.

Stay tuned for full review of the movie and bonus features in the next few weeks.

In conjunction with the upcoming North American release of Disney’s “Oceans” (on DVD and Blu-ray October 19), Disneynature hosted a virtual roundtable discussion with Dr. Sylvia Earle that I was fortunate enough to be a part of.

Dr. Earle, who worked as a consultant on “Oceans,” has logged over 7,000 hours of underwater time and has authored over 125 publications on marine science and technology. She was the first recipient of Time magazine’s “hero for the planet” in 1998, and won the TED prize in 2009.

I had the opportunity to ask Dr. Earle for her perspective on the declining number of shark populations in the world’s oceans.

There is no doubt that sharks, especially large species, are greatly depleted. The best numbers come from a 2003 study that reviewed 50 years of global data and concluded that about 90 per cent are gone. Those of us who have been diving in places such as the Galapagos, Cocos, Gulf of Mexico, Seychelles, Hawaii, the Bahamas, Bermuda and elsewhere since the 1960s where sharks were once very abundant can attest to the greatly diminished numbers. Sharks reproduce slowly and live a long time, making them especially vulnerable to overfishing.
-Dr. Sylvia Earle

Additionally, Dr. Earle was asked for her opinion on the greatest threat to the world’s oceans today.

Obvious threats include what we are putting into the sea (millions of tons of pollutants) and what we are taking out (millions of tons of ocean wildlife), as well as profound disturbance to natural shoreline systems — mangroves, marshes, sea grass meadows, kelp forests, coral reefs and even healthy, natural sandy beaches. But far and away the biggest problem is ignorance, something that OCEANS helps to solve. When people understand how important the ocean is to their lives, and how much damage we are causing, they can respond with action. If people don’t know, they can’t care . . .-Dr. Sylvia Earle

In addition to the issues above, Dr. Earle discussed other topics such as memories of her first dive, advice for children who want to explore ocean-based careers, and what species she has yet to personally encounter but would like to dive with (she mentioned giant squid and narwhals in her response).

Many thanks to Dr. Earle for sharing her insight!

Cananda’s Greenland Shark and Elasmobranch Education and Research Group (GEERG) recently posted a video featuring the successful tagging of a Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus) to their YouTube channel. The tagging process seen in the video involves diving in 10 ºC (50 ºF) water with very little visibility, off of Baie-Comeau, Québec.

The Greenland shark is a coldwater species that can inhabit subarctic and arctic waters as cold as -2 ºC, according to Canadian Shark Research Laboratory. It is believed to be the only shark species that can inhabit these water. The average length of adult Greenland sharks is 11 to 16′ (3.5-5m), with the largest Greenland shark on record being measured at 21′ (6.4m). The species is also known to inhabit extreme depths.

The video above recently founds its way on YouTube via SOSShark. The description claims that an underwater video camera housing was found at the bottom of the sea by divers near Malta. The footage shown in the video was supposedly recovered from the camera. Oddly enough, the recovered footage has been edited with multiple quick cuts that make a Michael Bay action sequence seem smooth.

A frame-by-frame analysis reveals some shots of a shark seemingly biting a wetsuit-clad diver with plenty of “blood” in the water. Oddly enough, in some of the frames of the “attack” in which the diver can be seen, the blood is originating from off-camera. One must also give credit to the cameraman for being a true professional and continuing to film the attack, rather than to help the diver out.

The concerned individual(s) who posted the video concluded it with a message seeking information about the diver and the cameraman. While the thought of acquiring a free underwater video rig by claiming to be the cameraman might seem tempting, I’m guessing that the creators of this video might be wise to such attempts, so I’m going to go ahead and advise against it.

While I’m not sure what the motivation is behind these types of videos, they seem to pop up from time to time. I guess the hope is that the video will go viral and generate some ad. revenue. I’ve yet to see that really happen with one of these types of videos, but I have a feeling that if it does, it’s going take a better attempt than the video shown above.

Are great white sharks flocking to UK waters? The Sun would like you to think so.

The Sun recently posted a story titled “UK coast awash with killer sharks,” which claims that great white sharks are “flocking” to the coast of the United Kingdom. The article cites “fishing guru” Steve Mills as its source for this enlightening tale. Mills claims that great white sharks have been pushed to the UK waters by a shortage of food sources.

As if the ridiculous nature of the headline is not enough, the story goes on to refer to white sharks as all of the following:

• ruthless beasts
• savage killers
• white death
• monsters

The article goes on to talk about how anglers are now bidding to become the first fisherman to catch a white shark in the UK. Apparently, white sharks are not a protected species in the UK. However, great white shark enthusiasts can likely rest easy about this, as there have been zero confirmed white shark sightings in UK waters. While the lack of any unconfirmed sightings does not completely rule out the possibility of the presence of white sharks in the area, it does make the prospects of catching one seem pretty slim.

WPTV 5 is reporting that Guy Harvey, marine artist and biologist, is heading up an expedition to the Bahamas with a mission of “recording the beauty of sharks.” In addition to Harvey, Jim Abernathy, and artist Wyland, will also be involved in the effort. The group hopes to use shark imagery to encourage people to promote shark conservation.

In other Guy Harvey related news, the University of Florida is reporting that the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation along with Hell’s Bay Boatworks Inc. are donating a research boat and trailer (valued at $50,000) to the university’s shark research program. The boat will be adorned with shark-themed artwork by Harvey.