BBC News is reporting that Florence, a 6′ (1.8m) nurse shark, is successfully recovering from what is believed to be the first out of water surgical procedure of its kind.

Florence, who appeared ill at her previous home at Weymouth Sea Life Park (UK) was found to have a rusty fishhook embedded in her. After being anesthetized and removed from her tank, surgery was performed while seawater was continuously pumped through her gills. During her recovery, she was treated with antibiotics and fed via a tube. Ten days after the surgery, Florence was able to eat on her own and has since fully-recovered. Florence went on display at her new home, National Sea Life Centre in Birmingham (UK), yesterday.

Check BBC News for some video footage of the procedure.

National Geographic recently posted a new video on their YouTube channel set to ABC4Explore‘s The Great White Shark Song.

Unlike the original video (WARNING: Explicit lyrics), which predominantly featured footage from South Africa, the new video features a lot of footage from what appears to be Isla de Guadalupe (I see a few familiar sharks in the video). ABC4 (Andy Brandy Casagrande IV) is seen throughout the video strumming his guitar in open water with multiple white sharks, which I’m sure will make a lot of dive operators cringe. I’m not sure who he was diving with out there, but needless to say, “Don’t try this at home, kids.” (and by “home” I mean, Isla de Guadalupe). The new video also features toned down lyrics (no “F bombs” in this version).

According to an article at Wired.com, scientists have identified a new species of ghostshark, which is actually classified in the chimera family. The newly identified species, Hydrolagus melanophasma, was described by Doug Long (California Academy of Sciences) as, “a big weird looking freaky thing.” The species also has an organ extending from its forehead called a tentaculum. The tentaculum was described as a “club with spike,” which some presume is used in the mating process. While the species was recently identified, it was "discovered" long before in the sense that specimens of the species existed at the Scripps Oceanographic Institute and simply had not been identified. To read the entire article and see a photo of Hydrolagus melanophasma, head on over to Wired.com

A state medical examiner from North Carolina is seeking the opinion of George Burgess in the death of Richard Sneed. Sneed was reported missing on September 13 after he did not return from a late night swim. His body was found on the shore of Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, according to NBC-2. The autopsy report listed shark attack as the cause of death for Sneed. However, News Channel WTKR, the medical examiner has requested Burgess’ opinion on the cause of death. Burgess expressed that it might be difficult to determine whether the shark bites Sneed sustained were the cause of death or had occurred post mortem, due to the fact that Sneed’s body had been in the water for several days.

The loss of Richard Sneed is a tragedy regardless of the cause of death. My condolences and sympathy go out to the friends and family of Mr. Sneed.

According to the Fraser Coast Chronicle, a psychological thriller, entitled "The Reef," will begin filming in Hervey Bay. The plot of the film is centered around a group of friends, who are "stalked by a relentless 15-foot great white shark" after their boat capsizes while sailing at The Great Barrier Reef. The film will feature actual great white shark footage shot off the coast of South Australia.

The movie is reportedly "based on a true story" which doesn’t really mean much, when it comes to the horror genre. Other horror/thriller pictures such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Strangers, and the upcoming The Fourth Kind have made the "based on a true story" claim without really having much of their story-lines based in reality, in the least.

Based on the teaser trailer and the fact that the film is being marketed as a thriller, with a "relentless" white shark, it’s probably safe to assume that the movie won’t be helping the image of the often misrepresented shark species, although I don’t expect that this film will get the kind of exposure that a film like Jaws does. In the end, it’s just a movie, and those who are able to tell the difference between fact and fiction probably won’t be swayed by it, either way.

According to the Cape Cod Times, no aerial sightings of great white sharks have been reported in Chatham waters since September 8. While no sightings have been reported, the appearance of injured or dead seals are the only apparent of the white sharks presence in Cape Cod waters according to Chatham harbor master, Stuart Smith.

According to the PETA press release, PETA’s Pro-Shark Banner to Fly Over Cape Cod, the organization will be flying a banner over Lighthouse Beach in Chatham, Massachusetts today. Strangely, the banner, which will read "Dangerous Predator in Water–YOU! Go Veg!" suspiciously reads more like a pro-vegetarian message than it does a pro-shark one. Perhaps, PETA is trying to take a cue from Finding Nemo, and the message itself is actually intended for the sharks to encourage them to switch to a vegetarian diet, which could result in a healthier lifestyle for the sharks. That would certainly be a "pro-shark" message.

All kidding aside, the PETA press release states that the message is part of campaign "raise awareness of the plight of sea animals who are killed for food." The press release goes on to discuss the detrimental effects of overfishing on marine species, including sharks. While I certainly support efforts to raise awareness about responsible conservation efforts, I’m not sure that pro-vegetarian grandstanding, really constitutes pro-shark efforts, per se.

While the concept of, "If everybody (and every animal) was a vegetarian, no marine animal would ever be killed for food,” is not lost on me, I don’t really see this as a realistic solution to overfishing or shark conservation efforts, at all. I’m also not convinced that the shock value of over-the-top, attention-grabbing efforts (such as pointing the finger at anyone within the visibility range of a banner, and calling him/her a "dangerous predator") actually do anything to help a cause. Sometimes, it seems like certain campaigns are intentionally offensive, in order to simply draw attention. While drawing attention is typically the goal of these types of campaigns, if the general public is offended by a campaign, the underlying message of it is going to be lost. That’s just my two cents, though, and you can’t even buy a gumball with two cents any more.

WCBV-TV’s article, Diver Narrowly Escapes Shark off Cape Cod, along with an accompanying video segment, in which the anchor describes the event as "so frightening," report on an incident in which a diver was in the water recovering a satellite tag, while a great white shark was spotted swimming toward the diver from "a quarter-mile away." by spotter pilot. Without the ability to read a shark’s mind, it would be hard to say just what the diver "narrowly escaped," if anything. While it’s certainly possible that the shark could have had predatory intentions, there isn’t really any way of knowing one way or the other.

The shark sightings near Chatham, and the tagging events are exciting news, on their own. There is no need to drum up headlines that imply would-be attacks. The same story could have been reported based simply on the facts…

A diver was in the water, when a spotter pilot noticed one of the sharks moving swiftly in the direction of the diver. As a precautionary measure the diver was promptly alerted and exited the water without incident.

The story itself is reported fairly objectively in the article. It’s the headline that comes off as a bit over-the-top. I guess a headline of "Diver Safely Exits Water After Shark Warning" simply doesn’t draw as much attention as a headline about "narrowly escaping" a shark.

According the AP, three more great white sharks were tagged yesterday (09/08/09) off of Monomoy Island near Chatham, Massachusetts. This brings the total number of white sharks tagged to five, in the past week (two great white sharks were tagged in the area on Saturday). Several Chatham beaches continued to remain closed due to the presence of the great white sharks in the area.

CBS news also reported on this story, but they apparently could not resist the temptation to play up the "Jaws" angle, as seen in the video segment below.

From a shark research standpoint, the tagging of five white sharks in the Atlantic is exciting news. Hopefully, the data acquired as a result of the taggings will lead to more insight into migratory behaviors of Atlantic-bound great white sharks.

Variety reports that actress Halle Berry is in talks to play a dive instructor who survives a near-fatal great white shark attack in the upcoming film, "Dark Tide." The article does not mention whether the shark angle is a central part of the plot or not. No word on whether or not a gigantic, fake, rubberized, mechanical shark will be used in the film, which, in turn, could then be used as a pop-culture reference in any news story involving the mention of sharks.