The essence of life on Earth is that everything is interconnected and truly interdependent. It is unfortunate that human beings have traditionally been arrogant, always believing in their superiority above all living creatures. This has resulted in us plundering, spoiling, killing and destroying most of nature without any concern for the consequences.
However, we are beginning to pay the price as witnessed by global warming, rising prices of food, starving nations and the economic downturn internationally. Scientists have warned that if we continue killing our sharks at the rate of over 100 million a year, and if we continue unsustainable fishing practices as we are, then many shark species will become extinct, and there will be no fish left by the year 2050. Currently over 2 billion people rely on sea food as their main source of protein.
Our aim at the Save Our Seas Shark Centre is to teach children this truth and to demonstrate this with practical activities that show this interconnectedness and delicate balance in the marine ecosystems. We teach them that sharks, and all of the oceans creatures belong to us; that humans are responsible for the plight of sharks and the state of our seas. We teach them that they are the future guardians of Earth, and all her living animals; that they can’t wait to care only when they are adults; and most of all we try to empower them with the knowledge and understanding that they can make a difference!
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Studying white shark behaviour around the boatEven though South Africa has been identified as a centre of abundance and white sharks have been protected here since 1991, white shark populations are threatened globally. The White Shark Research Programme, a Save Our Seas Shark Centre, Marine and Coastal Management and University of Cape Town collaboration, seeks to provide a thorough understanding of their ecological needs to ensure that protection and management measures are up-to-date and effective. This knowledge can be used to make a significant contribution to the global conservation of this threatened species.
Studying white shark behaviour around the boat
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Last month Dr Leonard Compagno and Lesley Rochat attended the Ocean Film Festival in San Francisco, USA. While Lesley promoted the SOSSC educational and awareness initiatives, Dr Compagno made contact with many fellow scientists. Whilst at the Moss Landing Marine Labs in Montery Bay, Dr Compagno, Dr Dave Ebert, and a student of his, discovered a new chimaera species from the Caribbean, which is also probably found off the east coast of United States. This animal is related to the St Joseph’s shark from South Africa, however it differs in coloration, body structure and measurements. It is a deep water animal probably found in depths of over 200 metres. It is surmised that it uses its crushing jaws to eat crustaceans, bottom invertebrates etc.
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Morne Hardenberg, representing the Save Our Seas Shark Centre, in Kalk Bay South Africa, was initially enjoying his second diving exp
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Sixty six grade 2 & 3 learners visited the Shark Centre on the 01 April – April Fools Day. Much fun was had by the children and Verona.
When the Grade 3 children were asked to give ways in which they could take responsibility for saving our sharks, Verona found these young learners to be real lateral thinkers. One idea was to have shark police wear uniforms and fine people; another was to put all the sharks in a huge man made lake with a fence around it to protect them.
Children love our shark song and they can be seen acting out the way grandpa shark walks with his walking stick.
Thirty grade 1 learners will visit the Centre on the 29 April. We look forward to hosting them.
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