SHARK NETS the real killers of the sea?

Back in the late 1950s, ’s popular east was rocked to the core when no fewer than five people were bitten by in a matter of days. Mass ensued and holidaymakers fled, leaving resort towns deserted and financially ruined. In response to the public outcry, nets were installed along much of the KwaZulu- Natal coastline, where many remain to this day. Shark bite figures plummeted and everyone was happy… except, of course, for the sharks and the multitude of other animals that are killed every year. Photojournalist and marine biologist Thomas P. Peschak investigated the true cost of lethal bather-protection methods and asks, ‘Are shark nets really still necessary?’ 

TEXT & PHOTOGRAPHS THOMAS P. PESCHAK/

www.africageographic.com 39 40 AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC • May 2009 THIS SPREAD Populations of great ham- merhead sharks are declining worldwide and South Africa is no exception. Shark nets have been recording fewer catches of the species, which suggests a reduc- tion in their numbers.

PREVIOUS SPREAD Unlike many ocean-users, surfers are generally well educated about sharks and the minimal risks they pose. In this photograph, shark-diving expert Mark Addison of BlueWilderness tests the reaction of a blacktip to a surfboard.

PAGE 38 Despite enjoying protected status in South Africa since 1991, great white sharks continue to be caught legally in the shark nets under an exemption.

www.africageographic.com 43 was also bitten by a shark while stand- ing on a shallow sandbank, and suc- THEY [THE SHARK NETS] ACT AS cumbed to his injuries. Three days later, Vernon Berry was killed by a shark in waist-deep water off Margate. GILL NETS, DESIGNED TO CATCH, Just before New Year, 14-year-old Julia Painting was repeatedly bitten. She sur- suffocate and kill as many sharks vived, but lost an arm in the incident. A few days later, Deryck Prinsloo suf- as possible fered a shark bite at and subsequently died. Mass panic ensued and soon many South Coast resorts stood empty. With the summer season ruined, hoteliers desperately needed a shark-free Easter season. Unfortunately, their prayers went unanswered. On 3 April 1958, Nicholas Francois Badenhorst was snorkelling at Port Edward when he was bitten by a shark. Two days later, a shark killed 28-year- old Fay Bester, a mother of four, in Richards Bay • January 1958. The popular knee-deep water at . Hysteria South African holiday resort again spread through the resorts, turn- N of Margate wakes to the rum- ing them into ghost towns. In the bling sound of explosions. months that followed, many businesses U Those residents agile enough descended into financial ruin and to scramble onto balconies and roof- bankruptcy. • 6 tops are greeted by the sight of the six- In the wake of what is today referred • metre-high steely grey bow of SAS to as ‘’, the hard-hit • Scottburgh Vrystaat slicing through a glassy sum- South Coast association • mer sea. Captain Terry-Lloyd steers the demanded that the shark threat be dealt • frigate to run parallel to the shore and with immediately. Aside from the at 09h24 orders the release of depth depth-charge approach, many coastal • Uvongo charges. Fifteen-metre cascades of sea- municipalities responded by taking • Margate water erupt into the air and the shock inspiration from a precedent set off • Port Edward waves of the underwater explosions are Durban’s beaches seven years earlier HIBISCUS COAST felt many kilometres away. and installed shark nets at many of the Half an hour and 48 one-hundred- affected beaches. Multiple 200-metre- INDIAN pound depth charges later, thousands long nets were set parallel to the coast OCEAN of , their swim bladders ripped in 10 to 14 metres of water, approxi- apart by the blast, flounder on the sur- mately 400 metres from the shore. face. A gunnery squad armed with Many people falsely believed that the ABOVE Fifty years ago, the only good high-powered rifles takes up position nets were a protective barrier that pre- shark was a dead one. Times may have on the bow and fires on any fish larger vented sharks from reaching swimming changed, but sharks continue to instil than a metre that is still alive. By now, beaches. In fact, they act as gill nets, fear in many people. almost all of Margate’s year-round resi- designed to catch, suffocate and kill as dents are watching the spectacle, while many sharks as possible, the rationale OPPOSITE Marine protected areas, like holidaymakers pack furiously to join being that reducing the number of Aliwal Shoal off South Africa’s east thousands of others fleeing inland in sharks in the sea will also reduce the coast, afford some shark species respite bumper-to-bumper traffic. likelihood of them coming into contact from commercial and recreational fish- In a few short weeks between the dusk with bathers and other ocean users. ing activities. Despite Aliwal Shoal’s of 1957 and dawn of 1958, the Indian Almost immediately after they were status, though, shark nets are situated Ocean off the KwaZulu-Natal coast installed, the nets began to trap large within its boundaries. south of Durban was transformed from numbers of sharks, prompting many a summer playground for beach-ball- other KwaZulu-Natal coastal towns to toting and sand-castle-building tourists deploy them as well. Between 1960 and into a sea of fear and death. Just before 1970, the total length of shark nets 17h00 on 18 December 1957, 16-year- increased from two to 31 kilometres at old amateur lifesaver Robert Wherley 39 locations. By 1989, nets were in place was bodysurfing off Karridene when a at 64 beaches between Port Edward and shark bit one of his legs. Two days later, Richards Bay, spanning some 45 kilo- at Uvongo, 15-year-old Allan Green metres. They have been so efficient 

44 AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC • May 2009 at killing large numbers of sharks that, extent, those of sharks not considered apart from three non-fatal incidents, dangerous to people. CAUGHT! there have been no shark bites at beach- The period between 1999 and 2004 The figures below show catches of es with shark nets since then. saw the reduction of the length of each nine of the most commonly caught species net installation by 30 per cent. In addi- from 1978 to 2008. Depending on the spe- lmost 50 years to the day after tion (owing to socio-economic reasons), cies, between one and 65 per cent of the the first shark bite that herald- some nets were removed completely animals were released alive. A ed Black December, I am driv- and, by December 2003, the total length ing down the same coastal road that of nets was 28 kilometres, nearly 40 per Carcharodon carcharias became clogged with the cars of pan- cent down on the 1989 high. The NSB 1 063 icked holidaymakers all those years also began to remove the nets ahead of ago. I have come to the South Coast the in June and July every on a photojournalistic quest to invest- year, which resulted in major catch igate the environmental cost of almost reductions of the and sharks Galeocerdo cuvier four decades of shark nets, and to that follow the shoals. 1 528 determine whether they still have a role to play in a modern, conservation- n 2007, the NSB began substituting conscious society. drumlines for some of its nets on Data from the Natal Sharks Board Ithe Hibiscus Coast (Port Edward to Zambezi shark Carcharhinus leucas (NSB), the organisation tasked with Hibberdene), with the long-term view 1 249 managing and servicing the nets, show of possibly replacing all the nets along that between 1978 and 2008 approx- the KwaZulu-Natal coast. Drumlines are imately 33 684 large sharks were caught, similar to longlines and are equipped of which 12.5 per cent were released with baited hooks to catch sharks. They shark Rhincodon typus alive. In addition to catching what the are far more selective than nets, redu- 26 NSB terms ‘dangerous’ species, such as cing the of marine mammals great white, tiger and Zambezi sharks, and sea to almost zero. The num- the nets also killed thousands of black- bers of ‘dangerous’ sharks caught by tips, ragged-tooths and other species drumlines are similar to those snared by Ragged-tooth shark Carcharias taurus that have never bitten people or only nets, but the effect on other shark spe- 5 441 been implicated in very minor injuries. cies is dramatically different. Drumline Despite their name, shark nets don’t mortalities of blacktip, spinner and only catch sharks; in fact, these gill ragged-tooth sharks are lower, whereas nets are second only to dynamite as those of small dusky sharks are much Blacktip shark Carcharhinus limbatus the most unselective fishing method higher. The trend in dusky sharks is 3 088 known. They ensnare and drown a worrying as the species’ late age of wide range of animals, from medium- maturity (20-plus years) and low repro- sized game fish to 15-metre-long ductive rate render it vulnerable to even humpback . Since 2004, the nets limited fishing impacts. On the other Scalloped, smooth and catch on average 237 rays, 58 turtles, hand, the lower catches of blacktips and sharks Sphyrna lewini, S. zygaena and 53 dolphins and five whales every year. raggies, both important ecotourism S. mokarran These figures used to be higher but, species, are encouraging. 6 610 bowing to public in the 1990s, In spite of certain environmental ben- the NSB began to implement measures efits, there are concerns about the to reduce the catches of marine mam- deployment of drumlines. Sectors of the mals and sea turtles and, to a lesser surfing community fear that the bait, Carcharhinus obscurus usually pieces of fish, will actually attract 6 790 DESPITE THEIR more sharks inshore. There is also a worry that smaller sharks thrashing on NAME, SHARK the hooks (they have more mobility and survive longer than when caught in nets) Manta ray Manta birostris NETS DON’T ONLY will attract larger sharks. The jury is still 1 580 out on the likelihood of either of these CATCH SHARKS; in scenarios, but dye tests to measure how far the scent of bait travels and video fact, these gill nets surveys of drumline catches should pro- OPPOSITE, TOP Sheldon Dudley, a senior vide answers to these questions. scientist at the Natal Sharks Board, puts are second only to It is the tiger-shark dive operators the fish caught in the nets to scientific use. dynamite as the at Aliwal Shoal, however, who are most concerned, fearing that the drumlines OPPOSITE, BOTTOM Shark biologist most unselective fish- will increase the mortalities of tiger Geremy Cliff heads up the research divi- sharks. In recent years, the number sion at the Natal Sharks Board. His scient- ing method known of tiger sharks caught in nets has  ific expertise lies in the field of shark bites.

46 AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC • May 2009 www.africageographic.com 47 climbed, a trend exhibited exclusively sharks are particularly valuable alive as village, estimated at 3 500 sharks. It is designated role in the marine ecosystem. ABOVE Sea turtles are an unfortunate by this species. This phenomenon SHARKS ARE AN each one has been calculated to earn just 0.0006 per cent of the global shark Sharks are the lords of the oceans, bycatch of shark nets, but are almost could be explained by the fact that about R600 000 (US$63 500) in revenue catch of 100 million per year. occupying the apex of the marine food completely unaffected by the use of tiger shark numbers are increasing, IMPORTANT every year. Any threats to this species The nets, however, had been in place chain, and their removal by shark nets drumlines. possibly because they are taking over posed by drumlines must therefore be almost 30 years before any reliable or other fishing methods is felt through- vacant niches left by Zambezi sharks taken extremely seriously. catch statistics became available. This out the ecosystem. We have only just TOP Tiger- operators whose populations have been dramati- ECONOMIC MAIN- is unfortunate as catches always peaked begun to learn of the nature of such fear that newly installed drumlines will cally reduced. recent study by the NSB revealed immediately after installation, when effects, but one study in the Caribbean result in a higher catch of tiger sharks It is also possible that changes in their STAY ALONG THE that between 1978 and 2003, the nets fished near-virgin shark popu- reveals that healthy shark populations and threaten their livelihoods. behaviour or in the ocean are attracting A only four of the most commonly lations. For example, the total shark are vital for the survival of coral reefs. tiger sharks inshore, bringing them into KWAZULU-NATAL caught shark species – the Zambezi, catch in the Durban nets in the first Without sharks to control predatory ABOVE, LEFT Conservationists install contact with the nets more frequently. blacktip, scalloped and great hammer- year was 552 sharks; by the second it fish, populations of species such as grou- a temporary exhibition of photographs In addition to these environmental fac- COASTLINE; head sharks – showed a decline in catch had dropped to 182. It would appear pers and large snappers increase. These, of sharks and other marine animals tors, tiger sharks are supreme scavengers rates, which suggests diminishing popu- that shark populations were most in turn, reduce the populations of small- killed by shark nets to raise awareness and may be tempted by the increased the shark-diving lations. Together, the net reductions affected early on, when nobody was er - and seaweed-grazing . of their impacts. Each photograph car- number of dusky sharks caught on and temporary removals during the sar- taking scientific note. Without these herbivorous fish, sea- ries an estimate of the number of each drumlines. An experimental line set up industry at Aliwal dine run have halved the total shark We do know, however, that the nets weeds and algae take over, smothering species lost during a 25-year period. before the Hibiscus Coast introductions catch from an average of 1 200 animals were probably responsible for the local- the corals and destroying an ecosystem caught a significantly more tiger sharks Shoal alone is a year during the 1990s to 600 per ised extinction of some populations of that is not only essential for food pro- than the nets did. annum in this decade. Zambezi sharks. While the shark-net duction and mitigation of coastal ero- Sharks are an important economic worth at least This is a fairly small amount com- catches of the present day are unlikely sion, but also harbours a treasure trove mainstay along this coastline; the pared to the South African commercial to result in the extinction of a shark of novel medicinal compounds. shark-diving industry at Aliwal Shoal R18-million (nearly inshore line fishery, which lands at least species, they may be preventing some By keeping predators of commercially alone is worth at least R18-million 5 000 sharks every year, or the annual populations from recovering to levels important species in check, sharks can (nearly US$2-million) per annum. Tiger US$2-million) catch of one Mozambican fishing where they can adequately fulfil their be essential for healthy (To page 52) 

48 AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC • May 2009 www.africageographic.com 49 50 AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC • May 2009 fisheries too. The reduction of sharks in to 6.7 billion people, there were only state to those of the great whales in the were removed, the NSB believes it would into non-lethal means of ensuring swim- WHO, THOUGH, Chesapeake Bay in the US, for example, 58 shark bites, of which just four were mid-1900s after centuries of intensive only be a matter of time before some mer safety, like stronger and more wide- led to the collapse of the scallop fishery fatal. In comparison, 253 000 people hunting. Effective conservation cam- shark species would rebound and the ranging electronic repellents, and novel IS GOING TO as ray numbers increased in the absence died by . paigns to end , supported by a number of shark bites increase. In the technologies like . Shark spotters, of their principal predators. Research on South Africa is one of a handful of wide cross-section of people who climate of fear, just one inci- used so successfully in the Cape, could HAVE THE DRIVE, the role of sharks in South African countries in the world that continues to believed whales to be intelligent and dent in the wake of net removals also provide the public with a degree waters is still in its infancy, yet it would kill sharks in the name of bather safety. friendly animals, were largely respons- would guarantee more bad publicity of comfort in the absence of nets. be foolish to assume that they are ex- For a nation with an otherwise sound ible for bringing most species back from for sharks and reinforce the belief that Ultimately, though, whether or not COMMITMENT empt from such effects. conservation ethic and currently pursu- the brink. For sharks to survive, far control measures are necessary. South Africa continues to kill sharks in ing lofty marine conservation goals, the more people will need to know and care the name of bather safety is not up to AND DESIRE TO otwithstanding the myriad shark nets are utterly out of place. about the role that they play in the ducating the public about the the NSB, municipalities or resort own- environmental costs associated Countries with a much higher incidence oceans. Who, though, is going to have true risks of bites and the import- ers; it’s up to the general public. It is PROTECT AN Nwith shark nets, I believe that of shark bites have never felt the need the drive, commitment and desire to E ance of sharks in the ecosystem is we who will determine the future of their gravest impact today is not on to resort to shark nets or other lethal protect an animal that they are con- hugely important. Until a time when South Africa’s sharks, and decide animal that they sharks, but on the human psyche. control measures. Last year, the US bore vinced is going to eat them the mo- the majority of the population is more whether these shores will be infected Simply put, they perpetuate the myth the brunt of 70 per cent of all shark ment they venture into the sea? open-minded about the issue, it would by marine ecosystems in decay or are convinced is that only an ocean free of sharks is safe attacks worldwide, yet nets are not, and The shark nets were first installed, to probably be unwise to remove nets caressed by healthy seas full of life.  to swim in. As long as the nets and have never been, in use there. great public applause, at a time when from heavily utilised beaches at Durban going to eat them drumlines remain in place, generation Fishing fleets kill in excess of 100 mil- science knew significantly less about and Amanzimtoti. However, the nets Thomas P. Peschak is the chief photographer after generation of beachgoers will con- lion sharks every year and the popula- sharks and the real risks of spending and drumlines at more remote locations of the Save our Seas Foundation. He wishes the moment they tinue to fear sharks. Are sharks really so tions of many species, such as the time in the ocean. Yet even in these more and those close to shark ecotourism to thank the Founder of SOSF for funding dangerous that we have to kill them oceanic whitetip, once amongst the enlightened times, one of the first ques- hotspots, such as Park Rynie near Aliwal the research and photography for this article. venture into the before they kill us? Statistically, the risk most common of sharks, have declined tions still asked of lifeguards by visitors Shoal, could be dismantled immediately. He also acknowledges the insights and time of being bitten by one is tiny – in 2008, by almost 90 per cent. Today, shark to KwaZulu-Natal beaches is whether NGOs, government and the private given by many of the key role players on sea? with the world population soaring populations are probably in a similar there are shark nets in place. If the nets sector must unite to put more resources both sides of the shark-net debate. SOS Save our Seas Foundation (SOSF) is a non-profit organisation that imple- ments and supports scientific research and educational projects focused on the marine environment. SOSF aims to learn more about the role that marine species, particularly sharks and rays, play in maintaining a healthy ecosystem. It hopes to educate the public about the need to save our seas, especially the consequences of removing sharks and rays from the world’s oceans, to support natural marine resource preservation and to conserve the marine realm. For more information on SOSF and the shark-net debate, go to www.saveourseas.com

LEFT The psychological impact of shark nets is as significant as their effect on marine life, for they perpetuate the notion that only an ocean free of sharks is safe for humans to enjoy.

PREVIOUS SPREAD Recent studies have shown that healthy shark populations are essential for coral reefs to thrive. Without them, reefs can be transformed into algae-dominated ecosystems.

52 AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC • May 2009 www.africageographic.com 53