Possible great white shark attack off Carlsbad no cause for alarm

Reports of a possible attack by a juvenile white shark on a swimmer off Carlsbad have surfaced on the Internet but should not be cause for alarm.

The incident occurred last Tuesday afternoon off Terramar Beach. Bethany Edmund was swimming about 300 feet from shore in the surfing lineup, trying to shoot photos. A large fish jumped, and moments later she felt a sharp pain in her right foot and thought she had kicked the reef.

"About 30 seconds later I felt the same sharp pain and, this time, I began to swim away from the area," Edmund said in a report posted on the Shark Research Committee website. "About a minute later while I was swimming from the area I was hit on the upper right thigh and propelled about one foot out of the water. This is when I realized what was happening and began to bodysurf toward shore.

"The first wave I caught I felt something in the area of my calf pulling me back and down under water. ... I ignored what had just occurred and caught another wave to the beach. This time I felt the same sharp pain in my left calf, but this time I was dragged under water and shaken for 4-5 seconds. During this struggle I accidentally kicked the shark and it released me."

There was no profuse bleeding, only small puncture wounds. Area beaches were not closed. Ralph Collier of the Shark Research Committee used these bite marks to determine it was a white shark measuring 5 to 6 feet. 

It should be pointed out that juvenile white sharks do utilize Southern California waters in the summer, sharing the same environment with thousands of swimmers and surfers. They feed primarily on small fish and rays, and when they get bigger they migrate out of the region and begin preying on seals and sea lions.

There is an ongoing tagging program involving juvenile white sharks in Southland waters. The Monterey Bay Aquarium staff recently captured a 5-foot white shark off Malibu and has the predator on exhibit.

Attacks such as this are extremely rare, and experts will cite that a far greater danger, statistically, lies on the freeways and roads leading to the beach.

Adult great white sharks do not frequent Southern California coastal waters, but they are occasional visitors. This became sadly evident in April 2008, when a 66-year-old swimmer was fatally attacked off Solana Beach.

But that too was a very rare event. 

-- Pete Thomas

Photo: Great white shark prowls the waters near Guadalupe Island off Baja California. Credit: Al Seib/Los Angeles Times

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Shark Week appears to be overly sensational this year -- good or bad?

It's "Shark Week" and Discovery Channel has put together a lineup of shows sure to inform and, it might seem to some, inspire fear at a time when conservationists are trying to dispel the myth that sharks are out for blood.

The program opened Sunday with the 1916 story that inspired the making of "Jaws," involving the first multiple shark attack in American history, off New Jersey beaches.

Here's the remaining lineup (all shows begin at 9 p.m. PDT):

Tonight: "Deadly Waters," with attack survivor Lee Stroud on a mission to find the world's deadliest shark waters; and a 10 p.m. encore called "Day of the Shark," involving a great white that plows through a diving cage, trapping the divers inside.

Tuesday: "Sharkbite Summer," focusing on a spate of attacks in 2001 and revisiting the sites where the attacks occurred, featuring interviews with victims, doctors and shark experts.

Wednesday: "Great White Appetite," which will explore the predator's eating habits at various white shark haunts around the world.

Thursday: "Shark After Dark," which explores the nocturnal habits of sharks using various equipment and a team of divers that travels to various hunting grounds of white sharks, tiger sharks and six-gill sharks.

An intriguing schedule, but judging from the show descriptions they appear to be light on research and heavy on sensational events. Better for ratings, I guess.

-- Pete Thomas

Photo: A great white shark. Credit: David Fleetham / Discovery Channel

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Sharks swim into spotlight at Aquarium of the Pacific

At a time when days are getting warmer and more people are venturing into the ocean, sharks are swimming silently into the spotlight.

The remarkable predators, which are so notorious yet so misunderstood -- and sadly embattled because of overfishing --will be featured at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach during what is billed as "Shark Summer."

The waterfront facility has added new species of sharks and rays and will offer an array of programs, including a lecture series that begins Thursday night with Chris Lowe, who runs the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach, dispelling myths and misconceptions. That talk, from one of Outposts' favorite shark sources, is from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The cost is $8 or $4 for members, and free for students with valid ID. To RSVP, call (562) 590-3100.

Shark Summer officially begins Friday and runs through Sept. 7. On Sunday nights, the aquarium will remain open until 10 p.m. On Sundays in July, it will feature free Discovery Channel "Shark Week" screenings on the front lawn. On July 17, a "Feed a  Shark" program begins. It will enable members of the public an opportunity to feed sharks from a platform above the Tropical Reef Habitat exhibit.

There's much more, and it's hoped that people will come away with an appreciation of all sharks, large and small. Among my favorite aquarium residents is the sand tiger shark pictured below. Despite their fearsome appearance, these sharks pose little or no threat to humans and feed mostly on small fish, rays, other sharks and crustaceans.

-- Pete Thomas

 Upper photo: Bonnethead shark. Credit: Andrew Reitsma

Lower photo: Sand tiger shark. Credit: Robin Riggs

Zihuatanejo surfers hope last May's deadly shark-attack spree was a fluke

Last May was a deadly and precarious month for surfers visiting the sun-drenched beaches north of Zihuatanejo in the Mexican state of Guerrero.

Bull sharks, for some reason, gathered in large numbers. They were believed responsible for killing two surfers. A third surfer, Bruce Grimes, was more fortunate. The estimated nine-foot shark that raked his arm and hand (pictured, at right) after bumping his surfboard in an apparent attempt to knock him from it, did not pursue Grimes as he paddled toward shore.

The attacks, which occurred within a three-week period, generated "Jaws"-like mania and led to the erection of lifeguard towers and establishment of a shark patrol along a stretch of coastline that seasonally lures hundreds of surfers from Southern California and elsewhere.

Now it's May once more and some might be wondering whether the phenomenon will be repeated.

Australia's spate of shark attacks takes center stage in and around Sydney

At a time when alleged shark sightings are on the rise off Southern California -- it happens every spring -- swimmers and surfers appear to have far more reason to be concerned in Australia and particularly off New South Wales, which includes Sydney.

There have been 52 reported attacks on humans since 2000. Eight occurred in waters off Sydney or nearby, creating a mini-"Jaws"-like scenario but doing little to keep surfers out of the water, especially during the Australian summer.

A story in Friday's edition of the Daily Telegraph cited figures released last week by state officials reviewing a beach netting program designed to keep sharks at bay. Thankfully, rather than fueling hysteria, the panel concluded that the increased number of attacks -- they've soared 28% since the 1970s -- was simply because more people were venturing into the water.

(Since 1791, there have been 222 shark attacks logged in New South Wales waters, about one-third resulting in fatalities.)

The panel lacked data to calculate a possible increase in the actual threat of an attack.

But NSW faces a dilemma nonetheless. There has been a long-standing campaign against coastal nets because they imperil not only sharks but whales, dolphins and sea birds. Unfortunately for sharks, the state will consider using baited hooks beneath floating drums to try to minimize the threat of shark attacks. This is done in Queensland and South Africa.

Fortunately, off Southern California, where, according to the Shark Research Committee, there have been 13 shark attacks since 2000 (including the lone fatal assault on a swimmer last April off Solana Beach), there is no netting program and no talk of baited hooks.

As should be the case everywhere, swimmers and surfers must assume risk whenever and wherever they enter the sharks' realm.

-- Pete Thomas

Photo: David Fleetham / Discovery Channel

Great white sharks: Are they becoming a scary nuisance off Southern California?

If a lot of angry citizens knew what I know, they might suggest an appropriate retreat for AIG executives exacting million-dollar bonuses from bailout money: a long-distance swimming race with no lifelines, originating two miles off Newport Beach.

Here's what I know: This is the season for increased shark sightings off Southern California. More people are venturing into the ocean and juvenile white sharks -- before they become great white sharks -- utilize local waters as a nursery area during the spring.

The fatal attack on a swimmer off Solana Beach last April remains fresh in the minds of some. And two fishermen last week saw what they estimated to be an 18-foot shark, five feet wide, swimming with the confidence of an apex predator two miles beyond Newport Beach.

Steven Lockhart and Aaron Hix reported the sighting to Ralph S. Collier, who runs the Shark Research Committee, which keeps track of attacks and witness accounts off the Pacific Coast of North America.

There's more:

Shark kills French surfer off New Caledonia

A 19-year-old French surfer was killed by a shark today as he surfed off New Caledonia in the southwest Pacific.

According to local police, the surfer's arm was torn off and his leg bitten as he tried to board a boat with his friend.

The surfer, who was studying in the New Caledonia capital, Noumea, died shortly after being transported to shore. It is not known what type of shark was responsible.

--Pete Thomas

Photo: Great white shark swims near caged divers off south Australia. Credit: Andrew Fox

Shark attacks off Sydney, Australia, yet another source of worry

As if Australians don't have enough worries with the deadly wildfires in one part of the country and flooding in another.

Now they're enduring shark attacks in unlikely places.

The incident today involving a surfer at Bondi Beach was the first reported attack at the iconic tourism and surfing paradise since 1929, and it occurred less than two days after another attack in nearby Sydney Harbor.

Neither attack was fatal. The surfer, identified by the Sydney Morning Herald only as Glen, was helped ashore with his left hand dangling.

He was bitten at dusk and remains hospitalized in serious condition. He was helped to shore by another surfer, James McIntosh, who used his board leash as a tourniquet to slow the bleeding.

Great whites are developing taste for humans, Australian shark hunter claims

Should the protection of great white sharks be lifted?

Of course not, but some might make such a claim after the next fatal attack off California. And if there is a spate of attacks, or sightings, watch out.

In Australia, where increased sightings off Queensland and the fatal chomping two weeks ago of a Perth snorkeler have generated "Jaws"-like hysteria, one man is claiming that overfishing and protection of sharks has become "a recipe for disaster."

Shark hunter Vic Hislop told the The Mercury, an Australian newspaper, that he was certain the great white that killed the snorkeler off Rockingham Beach was the same shark that killed another snorkeler just north of Perth in 2005.

Hislop, author of the book "Sharkman," said: "Everything I wrote in my book 12 years ago is coming true 100% of the time."

Claiming sharks have run low on natural food because of overfishing, Hislop says the predators are developing a taste for humans, and he is calling for lifting the protections of great whites.

That's unlikely to happen, but Hislop is entitled to his opinion.

Interestingly, what's happening in Australia brings to mind a fairly recent phenomenon in Hawaii, where state wildlife experts, responding to a spate of attacks, killed dozens of tiger sharks and turned a blind eye while citizens hunted dozens more from various islands.

-- Pete Thomas

Photo: The late legendary shark hunter Frank Mundus, right, in 1986 with fellow charter boat skipper Donnie Braddick and a great white. Mundus was thought by many to have been the model for Captain Quint in the movie "Jaws." Credit: Newsday

Shark attacks: 2008 figures could indicate troubling trend for West Coast

Here's something to ponder as you plan your next surfing trip: There were five unprovoked shark attacks along the West Coast, slightly more than double the number for 2007. All involved great white sharks, but only one attack -- that on swimmer David Martin off Solana Beach in April -- was fatal.

The others involved surfers (two) and kayakers (two) and occurred off Huntington Beach, Santa Catalina Island, Santa Barbara and Tomales Bay in Northern California. This is according to the Shark Research Committee, which keeps track of attacks occurring along the West Coast.

Martin reportedly became the third confirmed fatal shark-attack victim during the 21st century. The 2008 figures bring to 42 the total number of authenticated shark attacks along the West Coast during the first eight years of the century -- more than five times the 20th century annual average.

It might be simply because more people venturing into the ocean. It could also be that more white sharks are milling off Southern California, perhaps taking advantage of an exploding population of California sea lions. Or it could be that both factors are in play.

Not included were attacks occurring elsewhere in the United States or internationally, notably three bull shark attacks -- two of them fatal -- on surfers off Zihuatanejo, Mexico, last spring.

I was present during that bizarre, Jaws-like scare. Hopefully, there will be no repeat in 2009. Here's also hoping that fewer white sharks off the West Coast will mistake people for prey.

--Pete Thomas

Photo (top): A sign is posted at Fletcher Cove Park in Solana Beach a day after David Martin was fatally attacked. Credit: Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times. Photo (bottom): A sign cautions beachgoers just south of Zihuatanejo, Mexico, after three shark attacks, two of them fatal. Credit: Pete Thomas / Los Angeles Times