There
are many different types
of sharks
in Australia.
Australian sharks are at least as infamous as the sharks in the
rest of the world.
These animals are particularly frightening for the
human minds because unlike crocodiles
that kill their prey before eating it, a shark will eat you alive.
Scary stories and horror movies haven’t helped the paranoia amongst
humans, but statistically shark attacks are so rare that they always
make international news headlines.
Types of Sharks in Australia. Poster by
AllPosters.
Australian Shark Attacks
Sharks have killed only 60 people in Australia during the past 50
years, but per each killed person we have killed about 23,000 tonnes of
sharks and rays! Australian sharks are now protected but shark
populations are decreasing everywhere in the world and we know very
little about the consequences because sharks are in the top of the
ocean ecosystems’ food chain. In fact we know so little about some most
important species of sharks that we cannot even keep them alive in
captivity.
Types of Sharks in Australia. Poster by
AllPosters.
What
Do Sharks Eat and
Why Do Shark Attacks Occur?
It is not very well known why sharks attack us. With millions on people
swimming in Australian waters every day and only about one fatal shark
attack per year, we are surely not the favourite food of sharks. Sharks
are known to like seal
meat and some scientists believe that fatal shark attacks happen when
they mistake us for seals. Others argue that sharks would have brains
big enough to distinguish us from seals and suppose it may be a
combination of reasons which varies from case to case. Sometimes they
may be protecting their territory, other times they may be curious and
check us out as a possible snack. They may also get motivated by our
reaction which is very similar to this of seals, and decide to try how
we taste. Would they really like our meat, fatal shark attacks on
humans would be much more frequent.
Types of Sharks in Australia. Poster by
AllPosters.
Types of Sharks in Australia - Bull Shark Attacks
There are hundreds of species of sharks in the world, but only three
species of Australian sharks are life threatening to us humans: Bull
Shark, Tiger Shark, and White Pointer. Bull Sharks (Carcharhinus
leucas)
are found in Australian northern warmer waters, and Bull Shark attacks
have caused many fatalities. They are one of the more aggressive of
Australian sharks, often protecting their territory when they attack,
and the reason why they have caused so many fatal shark attacks is that
they can tolerate fresh water and come very close to the coast to
shallow waters and even enter river mouths.
Types of Sharks in Australia. Poster by
AllPosters.
Shark Attack Stories - Tiger Shark Attacks
Tiger Shark (Galeocerdo cuvier),
named for its stripes similar to a tiger pattern, is one of the largest
of Australian sharks and it is found both in tropical and temperate
waters. Like Bull Shark, it is an aggressive shark and it comes close
to the coast to shallow waters. Tiger Shark is responsible for a large
amount of
human fatalities.
I
always remember the memorial sign in the port of Townsville. It's for
Linda and Murphy who were taken by a tiger shark in July 1983 off the
coast of Townsville. They were working out on the Great Barrier Reef
when their trawler sank. Together with a third worker, Ray, they made a
raft of some pieces of foam and started floating towards Lodestone reef
where other trawlers were working. They were about 5km from the reef
the following day when a Tiger Shark attacked. Murphy was taken by the
leg and pulled under the water. When he came to the surface his leg was
broken off. Once there’s blood in the water, a shark won't leave, so
Murphy said to Linda and Ray: “It looks like that’s it – you take off
because he’ll be back for the rest of me”. He swam towards the shark
and was instantly taken. Meanwhile, Linda and Ray were swimming away
from the shark as quick as they could, and continued floating on the
raft when hours later the shark was back. It grabbed Linda with no
warning and took off for hours again. Ray started desperately paddling
on his piece of foam and just before he reached the reef the shark was
back to get him too. Other trailers on the reef saw him battling and
Ray was rescued in the last minute. There have since been numerous
tiger shark attacks in Australia, the latest being Zac Young who was
killed by a three metre tiger shark in the waters off Coffs Harbour on
30. November 2013 (as of January 2014).
Types of Sharks in Australia. Poster by
AllPosters.
Shark Attack Stories - Great White Shark Attacks
White Pointer (Carcharodon carcharias),
called the Great White Shark in America and Blue Pointer in South
Africa, is the most infamous of Australian sharks. It is the largest of
predatory sharks in the world, and as opposed to the Tiger Shark and
Bull Shark, it is found in colder waters around southern coasts of
Australia. Despite having the reputation of “killing machine” (thanks
to the Steven Spielberg's movie “Jaws” more than any attacks), the
White Pointer
does not target humans as a prey. While it is responsible for many
human fatalities, most often it seems to approach us to test-bite us,
just as it likes to test-bite other unfamiliar objects, being a curious
animal. Once there is blood in the water, things may change, but it is
a known fact in any case that we are not suitable food for the White
Pointer whose digestion is too slow for the ratio of bone to meat we
have.
Types of Sharks in Australia. Poster by
AllPosters.
Great White Shark Attacks Probably the most famous of Great White shark attacks in
Australia is that of Rodney Fox. He was attacked by a White Pointer in
1963 when he was 23 years old during a spearfishing competition in South
Australia.
During the first attack his body was bitten open leaving a scar that
starts from the shoulder and goes all the way across his back and down
to the stomach. After a battle where Fox was thrown up and down in the
water, and even wrapped his arms around the attacker to avoid its jaws,
the shark finally went to a second attack – to Fox’s marker buoy.
Thanks to the contest being under close observation, a boat was quickly
sent out and Fox was rescued. Four hundred stiches and five months
later Fox was back in the water. He started studying Great White Sharks
and became world famous as a shark victim who devoted his life to
protect the species.
Rodney Fox also
wrote a book,
Shark Man, and
was involved in filming
many shark
documentaries and films, including
the famous "Jaws".
If you
haven't seen the Jaws,
watch it - it
is one of the world's classic must-sees!
Other Types of Sharks in Australia
Other Australian sharks are not considered dangerous. Whale Shark (Rhincodon
Typus), the largest fish in the world is a filter feeder and
eats
plankton. You can go swimming with Whale Sharks in Ningaloo
Reef in Western
Australia. Other, smaller Australian sharks
include Oceanic Whitetip Carcharhinus longimanus),
Blacktip (Carcharhinus
melanopterus), Silvertip (Carcharhinus albimarginatus),
Grey
Reef Shark (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos), Lemon Shark
(Negaprion
acutidens), Mako (Isurus oxyrinchus), Reef
Whitetip (Triaenodon
obesus), Leopard Shark (Stegostoma fasciatum),
Scalloped
Hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini) and Smooth Hammerhead (Sphyrna
zygaena).
Only one of these sharks - the Oceanic Whitetip - has very rarely
attacked humans. All the other Australian sharks are harmless.
Note:
This site uses
British English, which is the English we use in Australia. You will
find words like "traveller", "harbour" and "realise", and they are all
correct in the language used in Australia.
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