7 fatal shark attacks in the last 3 years along the coast of Western Australia prompted the State Government to introduce the policy of setting baited drum lines off 7 beaches in WA in January. Since then, more than 170 sharks have been caught. Drum lines and shark nets have been off the coast of Queensland for years. More info on this method here: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-05/shark-baiting-explained/5300414
To me, this is not logical. After a murder happens, governments don't order random people on the street to be put to death to reduce the chance of it happening again. Instead, local authorities might advise people to be more careful and look out for that murderer. If a person is identified as a killer, then a warrant for his arrest is issued. Well, I think it should be the same with sharks. It is not fair to go out killing sharks in the hopes of preventing shark attacks, especially when most species of sharks are already in danger of extinction, thanks to overfishing. And it probably doesn't even work. None of the sharks caught on the drum lines were great whites, which were the species suspected of carrying out the attacks. Of course, shark attacks are a terrible thing to happen. But everyone who enters the ocean should know that shark attacks are a risk, because you are in their environment. There are precautions that can be taken, such as not swimming at dawn and dusk, when sharks are hunting, or staying away from areas like river mouths where attacks are more common.
Watch this video on the WA shark cull by Madison Stewart: http://vimeo.com/94363725
Being at the top of the food chain, sharks are important for our ecosystem. I just watched a documentary yesterday on a population explosion of Humboldt squid in the northern coastal pacific, which is in turn affecting salmon fisheries, because the squid are attacking the fish. One of the reasons thought to have caused the increased numbers of squid is the removal of sharks that prey on the squid, through overfishing. What goes around comes around....
Humans are upsetting ecosystems and caused extinction of species after species.... when are people going to wake up?
To me, this is not logical. After a murder happens, governments don't order random people on the street to be put to death to reduce the chance of it happening again. Instead, local authorities might advise people to be more careful and look out for that murderer. If a person is identified as a killer, then a warrant for his arrest is issued. Well, I think it should be the same with sharks. It is not fair to go out killing sharks in the hopes of preventing shark attacks, especially when most species of sharks are already in danger of extinction, thanks to overfishing. And it probably doesn't even work. None of the sharks caught on the drum lines were great whites, which were the species suspected of carrying out the attacks. Of course, shark attacks are a terrible thing to happen. But everyone who enters the ocean should know that shark attacks are a risk, because you are in their environment. There are precautions that can be taken, such as not swimming at dawn and dusk, when sharks are hunting, or staying away from areas like river mouths where attacks are more common.
Watch this video on the WA shark cull by Madison Stewart: http://vimeo.com/94363725
Being at the top of the food chain, sharks are important for our ecosystem. I just watched a documentary yesterday on a population explosion of Humboldt squid in the northern coastal pacific, which is in turn affecting salmon fisheries, because the squid are attacking the fish. One of the reasons thought to have caused the increased numbers of squid is the removal of sharks that prey on the squid, through overfishing. What goes around comes around....
Humans are upsetting ecosystems and caused extinction of species after species.... when are people going to wake up?
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