Global warnig and ..sharks

"Pietro Sommavilla" <judoka1961@yahoo.com> wrote in
news:1119097536.660066.48320@o13g2000cwo.googlegro ups.com:

> Are only the harmeless sharks moving north 'cause the global warming ?

Probably not, but I don't think there are any dangerous sharks in or near
British waters. Actually very few sharks are dangerous, there are even
scientists studying the Great White while swimming without any protection.
The few shark attacks that do occur seems to be mistakes.

> Are the swimmers (while in the waters) able to discern the species of
> sharks ?

They should be able to recognize the basking shark:
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Galler...askingshark.ht
ml
At least when it is feeding it is *very* distinct from a predator.

Thomas Palm wrote:
> "Pietro Sommavilla" <judoka1961@yahoo.com> wrote in
> news:1119097536.660066.48320@o13g2000cwo.googlegro ups.com:
>
> > Are only the harmeless sharks moving north 'cause the global warming ?
>
> Probably not, but I don't think there are any dangerous sharks in or near
> British waters. Actually very few sharks are dangerous, there are even
> scientists studying the Great White while swimming without any protection.

Yeah, I know, the Great Whites never ate humans, only that it was
extremely rare.


> The few shark attacks that do occur seems to be mistakes.

Yep ! Scientists think that in the few attacks that do occur,
swimmer/surfers are mistaken for seal lions, their ..favorite meal.

> > Are the swimmers (while in the waters) able to discern the species of
> > sharks ?
>
> They should be able to recognize the basking shark:
> http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Galler...askingshark.ht
> ml
> At least when it is feeding it is *very* distinct from a predator.


Ok guys, I give up.
:(

http://www.sharkattacks.com/

Don't worry, they will go away as soon as the UK freeze solid due to the
gulf stream shutting down.

On 18 Jun 2005 10:08:56 -0700, "Pietro Sommavilla"
<judoka1961@yahoo.com> wrote:
>Ok guys, I give up.
>:(
>
>http://www.sharkattacks.com/

It seems clear from all evidence, including from that site, that there
is a strong correlation indeed, between being of Anglo-Saxon
family/social upbringing, and suffering shark attacks. So, if English
is not your first language, statistically, you should be relatively
safe.

Afaik, sharks of the type that have been known to attack humans,
already do come quite far up north, regardless of global warming,
certainly to the shores of Norway. But you never hear about a
Norwegian there being attacked by these animals, whereas in
America they appear to be attacking Americans quite frequently.

"Thomas Palm" <Thomas.Palm@chello.removethis.se> wrote in message
news:Xns9679AA6F88211ThomasPalmchellose@212.83.64. 229...

> Probably not, but I don't think there are any dangerous sharks in or near
> British waters. Actually very few sharks are dangerous, there are even
> scientists studying the Great White while swimming without any protection.
> The few shark attacks that do occur seems to be mistakes.

Only a fool would swim with a Great White without protection. Obviously
some scientists are fools.

Almost all sharks are potentially dangerous, especially if you piss them off
or when they're really hungry. When you're missing an arm, are you going to
comfort yourself by declaring that it was probably a mistake?

Greg Mossman
True Sharkbite Victim and Tsunami Survivor

"Torsten Brinch" <iaotb@inet.uni2.dk> wrote in message
news:50m8b1pful1122dujbtbqqfkr9s83b54j9@4ax.com...

> Afaik, sharks of the type that have been known to attack humans,
> already do come quite far up north, regardless of global warming,
> certainly to the shores of Norway. But you never hear about a
> Norwegian there being attacked by these animals, whereas in
> America they appear to be attacking Americans quite frequently.

That's because Americans taste better. Sharks don't like popsicles.

"Thomas Palm" <Thomas.Palm@chello.removethis.se> wrote in message
news:Xns9679E7F51680AThomasPalmchellose@212.83.64. 229...

> "If sharks liked to eat people, people wouldn't be swimming in the
> ocean". I don't remember who said it, but it's a nice summary. You can
> read the behavior of sharks, and people who have lived through swimming
> hundreds of times with Great Whites prove it.

It just proves that Great Whites aren't always hungry. After all, fish swim
in the ocean too and sharks like to eat fish. How many fish do you see
walking around on land?

> Sharks are not normally man eating, not even the Great White. One of
> South Africa's most popular beaches is located only a few km from one of
> the world's largest concentration of Great Whites. I doubt most of the
> people there even know about it, because those sharks stay away from the
> beach, instead circling an island that is a large seal colony.

That just proves that Great Whites prefer seal flesh to human flesh. You
had better hope the seals stick around, 'cause once they're all eaten, the
sharks will turn on you next.

Do they have all those shark nets off the beaches just for looks, then?

>> Remoras go for the balls. That's what makes them especially
>> dangerous.
>
> ???? Remoras stick wherever they can, preferably close to the mouth. They
> don't really hurt sharks or other animals they stick to, they just eat
> food scraps. Humans just have very soft skin. I know a guy who had one
> suck on to the side of his neck, and he was *not* happy.

I've never been sucked by a remora. Given that they go for the balls, I'm
not sure whether that's a good thing or not.

> I've been close to both, and the remora is the only one who has been
> 'aggressive' trying to sneak up under my belly. Of course, I haven't
> actually tried to poke any shark, that is just begging for trouble. If
> you keep the distance so do they.

I've had sharks come straight at me. They don't always keep their distance.
And poking them might be begging for trouble, but how else are you gonna
know what they feel like?

"Greg Mossman" <mossman@qnet.com> wrote in
news:11b93g6h5o7vrb7@corp.supernews.com:

> "Thomas Palm" <Thomas.Palm@chello.removethis.se> wrote in message

>> Sharks are not normally man eating, not even the Great White. One of
>> South Africa's most popular beaches is located only a few km from one
>> of the world's largest concentration of Great Whites. I doubt most of
>> the people there even know about it, because those sharks stay away
>> from the beach, instead circling an island that is a large seal
>> colony.
>
> That just proves that Great Whites prefer seal flesh to human flesh.
> You had better hope the seals stick around, 'cause once they're all
> eaten, the sharks will turn on you next.

If the seals run out the sharks are likely to move. They aren't even
outside that island more than part of the year when the seals are there.
I'm not sure if anyone knows where they go the rest of the year. We just
aren't a natural food for sharks.

> Do they have all those shark nets off the beaches just for looks,
> then?

More or less, yes. It's to comfort the swimmers. Just like the anti-shark
substance given to US sailors during WW II, which later showed that if it
had any effect at all it was to weakly attract sharks. The price of those
nets are atrocious,though. They don't just catch sharks but anything
large enough that swims past.

Most species of sharks are threatened by now, so the question really
isn't if sharks are dangerous to us, but if we are so dangerous to them
that we are going to wipe them all out. We are the monsters, not them.
(Especially peple who eat shark fin soup. Killing an entire shark just
for the fins is outrageous).

>>> Remoras go for the balls. That's what makes them especially
>>> dangerous.
>>
>> ???? Remoras stick wherever they can, preferably close to the mouth.
>> They don't really hurt sharks or other animals they stick to, they
>> just eat food scraps. Humans just have very soft skin. I know a guy
>> who had one suck on to the side of his neck, and he was *not* happy.
>
> I've never been sucked by a remora. Given that they go for the balls,
> I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or not.

Except that they don't go for the balls. You seem to believe in a lot of
myths.

>> I've been close to both, and the remora is the only one who has been
>> 'aggressive' trying to sneak up under my belly. Of course, I haven't
>> actually tried to poke any shark, that is just begging for trouble.
>> If you keep the distance so do they.
>
> I've had sharks come straight at me. They don't always keep their
> distance. And poking them might be begging for trouble, but how else
> are you gonna know what they feel like?

Why would you need to? Are you the kind of guy who walks up to strange
women squeezing their breasts too "just to know what they feels like"?
Places like Sea World have petting pools if you are really despecrate.
I can well understand why you should stay away from sharks, though. You
just don't seem to have the common sense necessary to be around
potentially dangerous animals.

"Thomas Palm" <Thomas.Palm@chello.removethis.se> wrote in message
news:Xns967A229C2001ThomasPalmchellose@212.83.64.2 29...

> If the seals run out the sharks are likely to move. They aren't even
> outside that island more than part of the year when the seals are there.
> I'm not sure if anyone knows where they go the rest of the year. We just
> aren't a natural food for sharks.

Sure we are. Look at all the plane and ship wrecks where sharks ate all the
survivors. If the survivors weren't viewed as food, then were the sharks
just maliciously playing with them like a cat plays with a mouse, or eating
them out of spite and revenge because they hate humans for eating their
fins?

> More or less, yes. It's to comfort the swimmers. Just like the anti-shark
> substance given to US sailors during WW II, which later showed that if it
> had any effect at all it was to weakly attract sharks. The price of those
> nets are atrocious,though. They don't just catch sharks but anything
> large enough that swims past.

But they do catch sharks. Sharks that would otherwise feast on the
swimmers.

"CAPE TOWN, South Africa - A British surfer attacked by a great white shark
described Wednesday how he kicked and lashed out wildly to free his leg from
the shark's jaws, which sliced his flesh 'like a knife through butter.'"

"Chris Sullivan was surfing with friends Monday when the 13-foot shark
attacked. . . . The attack at Nordhoek on a stunning stretch of beach about
12 miles from Cape Town occurred at the same point where a bodyboarder was
killed 18 months ago. A great white bit off the leg of a teenage surfer one
year ago nearby, and a 77-year-old swimmer was eaten by a great white in
nearby Fish Hoek last October.

http://www.macon.com/mld/macon/news/world/11269120.htm

Sounds lovely.

> Most species of sharks are threatened by now, so the question really
> isn't if sharks are dangerous to us, but if we are so dangerous to them
> that we are going to wipe them all out. We are the monsters, not them.
> (Especially peple who eat shark fin soup. Killing an entire shark just
> for the fins is outrageous).

I'm with you there. I hate to even see wontons suffer needlessly. Sharks
should only be butchered out of revenge, like my hero Leo DiCaprio did in
The Beach before the tsunami washed everything away. And Jaws. I was happy
when they finally took him down, the bastard.

>> I've never been sucked by a remora. Given that they go for the balls,
>> I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or not.
>
> Except that they don't go for the balls. You seem to believe in a lot of
> myths.

Most myths are based in truth. I've witnessed such behavior with my own
eyes and I know others, or at least other, who have(has) suffered the same
fate. Just because they avoid your balls doesn't mean they don't go for the
balls in general. It just says something about your hygiene. You must have
washed off the fishy smell.

> Why would you need to? Are you the kind of guy who walks up to strange
> women squeezing their breasts too "just to know what they feels like"?
> Places like Sea World have petting pools if you are really despecrate.
> I can well understand why you should stay away from sharks, though. You
> just don't seem to have the common sense necessary to be around
> potentially dangerous animals.

I already know what the breasts of strange women feel like, but there are a
lot of shark species that I have yet to poke, including a whale shark
(though I got damn close), a Great White (I'd do this one from a cage), and
a few others. There's (usually) no law that says that the fishies can only
been seen and occasionally heard. To properly appreciate the underwater
environment, it's necessary to caress and fondle your way through a dive,
interacting in a physical and spiritual manner with the creatures you poke.
The loving suction of an octopus's or an anemone's tentacles, the hard yet
yielding surface of a jellyfish's head that can only be described as
"turgid", the delicate sliminess of a moray, or the rough and randy texture
of a vicious man-eating shark . . it's all good.

"Grumman-581" <grumman###@gmail.com> wrote in news:iV9te.85116$xm3.68845
@attbi_s21:

> "Thomas Palm" wrote in message
> news:Xns967A679C9A40AThomasPalmchellose@212.83.64. 229...
>> But, of course, sharks don't feast on swimmers,
>> net or no net.
>
> Does it really matter whether it is a feast or just a snack when you're
> missing a leg and probably going to bleed to death?

It matters because if sharks liked to eat humans people wouldn't be
swimming in the sea. Early on shark attacks would have been so common that
the few who tried would soon have perished since we are totally helpless
against a shark in the water. Only the fact that sharks don't normally eat
people has made it possible for people to get into the habit of swimming,
so paradoxically, it is the lack of shark attacks that has led to the shark
nets being put up.

People occassionally get bitten by dogs too, but how many do you think
would have dogs if they liked to eat people whenever they got a chance?