Hunt On For Shark As Human Remains Found

[Quoth The Raven]

Remains of a surfer taken by a great white shark off an Adelaide beach were found on Friday as authorities ordered the killer found and destroyed.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=12246

My question: is it right to go out and kill a shark because it's eaten someone? Bearing in mind that sharks bite people by accident and then usually let them go, is hunting this one down and killing it actually protecting public safety, or just an excuse for people to re-assert themselves as the top of the food chain?

 

[retrorich]

How could they identify the shark that did the killing? Aren't there likely to be other sharks in the area? Would it be more a matter of killing any sharks they spot?

 

[Jaymes]

I don't know a whole lot about sharks. Are they likely to try and take another human if they've already taken one? And really... if someone is stupid enough to be swimming at times when sharks are active, does the shark deserve punishment?

And your link isn't working for me, Lady_Lazarus... it's taking me to Altavisa, for some odd reason.

 

[Circle_One]

I don't know a whole lot about sharks. Are they likely to try and take another human if they've already taken one? And really... if someone is stupid enough to be swimming at times when sharks are active, does the shark deserve punishment?

I don't have much insight into the inner working of the minds of sharks, however, I'm not too sure whether, upon sight, a shark is able to fully distinguish between a human, and it's supper. They don't intentionally go after humans, they don't know it's a human, they simply think "Mmmm...lunch." So in retrospect, (in my opinion anyway) just as Jensa said, if people are dumb enough to be swimming in a place with active sharks, then how could that be the sharks fault? As far as I know, there are always shark warnings around beaches, is there not? So who's really to blame if the surfer disregarded this?

Don't get me wrong, I think it's terrible that this person died, but I don't see avenging one death by taking another justified. And as Retorich said, how will they be able to catch that exact shark? They will more than likely be hunting blindly for any Great White in the area.

 

[fromthe heart]

I don't have much insight into the inner working of the minds of sharks, however, I'm not too sure whether, upon sight, a shark is able to fully distinguish between a human, and it's supper. They don't intentionally go after humans, they don't know it's a human, they simply think "Mmmm...lunch." So in retrospect, (in my opinion anyway) just as Jensa said, if people are dumb enough to be swimming in a place with active sharks, then how could that be the sharks fault? As far as I know, there are always shark warnings around beaches, is there not? So who's really to blame if the surfer disregarded this?

Don't get me wrong, I think it's terrible that this person died, but I don't see avenging one death by taking another justified. And as Retorich said, how will they be able to catch that exact shark? They will more than likely be hunting blindly for any Great White in the area.

I have to agree...it's terrible that that person got ate up by a shark...but they respond to blood don't they and motion...I know I'd never go swimming with sharks being active...I really don't think they can blame the shark unless it jumped onto a vessel like in JAWS? Then how WILL they know the right one...send CSI? I don't know all the details but at this point I think I'm on the side of the shark until I see where it had intent to just kill for the heck of it. I don't mean to make light of this situation because someone is hurting over this somewhere...but honestly how would they tell they got the right shark?

 

[Druidus]

The shark saw a human, and the shark said, "Mmm, a snack!". For this, the shark is evil? Most animals won't kill and eat humans, because we taste pretty bad. In fact, only a few species actually stalk humans on purpose. (I believe the polar bear, black mamba, alligator/crocadile species, and The Almighty Wig-Wearing Banana are included) The shark should be let go. What difference does it make if they kill the shark? Will it bring back the surfer? No, all they will obtain is a sick and perverse measure of satisfaction.

 

[painted wolf]

sounds like an excuse to have a shark hunt, just what an endangered species needs. Great Whites feed on sea mammals primarily and frankly we look like nice jucy seals from below. With the way we splash around we look sick or wounded. The shark takes a taste to see if we are indeed food, now a healty seal can usually survive this sort of thing, as they have a nice thick layer of fat to protect them. We do not and that 'little taste' is often fatal to us.

There is no way to identify the 'killer' shark except by autopsey. Eaven the family appartently does not want the shark killed for following its instincts.

I found this bit of the article intresting

Police initially believed they had found some of Mr Peterson's remains on Friday but tests later showed they were not human tissue.

I wonder how many sharks they will kill? Will one be chosen as the "scapegoat"?

wa:do

 

[Quoth The Raven]

There are apparently 2 that have been 'lurking' in the area (probably wearing trench coats) and they have no way of knowing which one it is. It's the second incident in the last couple of weeks, but they were unrelated ( in different states, even). The first guy got bitten on the thigh by a bronze whaler and then spat out...he died of blood loss. As far as I'm aware there's no-one out there hunting for that one.
As Druidus said, sharks don't hunt people...they tend to bite them (because they don't have hands to feel with) then go "EUGH!!!", spit them out and go find a seals bum to lick so they can get the taste out of their mouths. Generally the not so tasty snack dies of blood loss if they die at all.
Unlike large predatory mamals, sharks don't kill one person and then think to themselves,'that was an easy meal...I think I'll have another.' Killing a shark as a matter of 'public safety' because it's taken a person is a ridiculous exercise in propaganda, designed to appease the tourists who are stupid enough to watch Jaws and think it's real life and therefore avoid the beaches.
If the 'authorities' were really so concerned about stopping this sort of thing happening in the future they'd spend the money to net the beaches and they'd stay away of their own accord, rather than go out and play eenie meenie minie moe with 2 sharks to pick the guilty party.

 

[painted wolf]

unfortunatly nets kill more sharks than eenie mienie moe...

wa:do

 

[Dr. Nosophoros]

Sharks are sharks, they are neither good nor evil - they just are what they are. We human animals just need to know how to avoid a superior hunter (if our egos can handle it) on their own turf. Though I think the death (s) are tragic, it's life. Maybe run them off if possible, but destroying another creature for being exactly what they are is perverse and unnatural IMO, there is a purity in animals honesty of self that is beautiful and seldom found in their human counterparts.

 

[Quoth The Raven]

unfortunatly nets kill more sharks than eenie mienie moe...

wa:do

We have 2 sorts of nets here...the 51cm mesh that everything gets caught in and is basically a waste of time anyway because they're not a complete enclosure, and a smaller mesh that doesn't catch anything. Unfortunately they haven't worked out how to use the smaller mesh setup (it's a complete enclosure)on large beaches that are located directly on the open ocean.
If authorities would get their act together and start paying to find ways to get stuff like this implemented, there'd be a lot of things not killed unnecessarilly.

 

[Bastet]

I was watching the news last night, and the victim's parents were saying they didn't want the shark hunted, and it wasn't what their son would have wanted either. They showed an aerial shot of the beach where it happened, and it was totally deserted of swimmers, despite the fact that it was a 35+ degree day yesterday (that's 95+ F). They as much as admitted that the helicopters etc. flying around looking for the shark wouldn't find anything, because it would be long gone by now -- they were only doing it so that the tourists etc. would think that they were doing something and that the beach was "safe". People don't seem to realise that they take the same risk on every other beach on every other day...whether there's been a recent shark attack there or not. Last time I looked, humans didn't own the ocean. Makes me mad.