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Tracking Great Whites By Satellite
e-gold points to this article about tracking Great White sharks by satellite, writing: "Interesting, I'm glad the impulse isn't just to kill them anymore, it's nice to see something is out there that still considers people as nothing more than a small meal, IMO it puts things into perspective. Besides, life isn't a risk-free proposition, even if they track some of the sharks they're unlikely to track them all." In fact, the article says that Australian law carries fines and jail time for killing Great Whites -- even in self-defense.
The article would give someone the impression that the sharks would be adequately tracked to allow warnings in various coastal areas.
. html As yet, no one really knows for sure why the number of attacks are up so sharply. There are numerous, very plausible, theories. But, nobody's really sure.
Similar past research has already shown that these sharks often cover very large geographic areas in short periods of time. A positions report, placing the shark 500 miles away from a beach is useless after a day or two.
By time the shark surfaces for the next position report he will be munching on someone. Even worse, that next position report will come in at the point where he grabs the poor person.
I admit that this is a small step toward some better form of protection but, anyone relying on this for their shark warnings is likely to get bitten.
Shark attacks are up not only in Australia but, worldwide. There has been a sharp increase in the number of attacks in Florida and California as well as Australia in the past year. One of the most recent attacks can be found here http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/07/08/shark.bite/index