The New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA) held its Annual Spring Meeting & Exhibit at the Sea Crest Beach Hotel in North Falmouth, MA with a bit of an edgy topic: White Sharks.
As Cynthia Wigren, Executive Director of the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy (AWSC), explained in the opening session, as an apex predator, white sharks play an important role in the ocean ecosystem and provide an excellent indication of the health of that ecosystem. Essentially, in any ecosystem, it is not possible to have a healthy population of apex predators unless the entire system is reasonably healthy, and all organisms making up the food chain are prospering. Thus, the health of the white shark population in New England waters is a testament to the work that water quality professionals do every day, and the fact that white sharks regularly frequent Cape Cod Bay and other waters previously impacted by human activity demonstrates the gains that have been made in recent decades. Further, it is well known that oceans generate half of the oxygen that people and other land animals breathe and absorb vast quantities of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere making healthy oceans vital to the health and survival of mankind and the planet as we know it.
Ms. Wigren went on to dispel a few of the myths and misconceptions that have dogged these creatures for years. For example, more than 1600 people were bitten by other people in New York City alone compared to just 81 people worldwide who were bitten by sharks. That means the rate of human bites in New York City was nearly 20 times the rate of shark bites worldwide! Of those bites, only four resulted in a fatality. This compares to the 17,154 tons of shark fins and 121,641 tons of shark meat that were traded worldwide in 2011 (the last for which statistics were available from the United Nations fish and agriculture organization). Clearly, sharks have much more to fear from us than we do from them! While encounters with sharks are rare, shark safety is important. Safety tips include not swimming near seals, avoid swimming at dawn and dusk, and swim and surf in groups. Those who want more information on this subject, or want to support the work of the Conservancy are encouraged to download the Sharktivity App or go to www.atlanticwhiteshark.org.
Article written by Mac Richardson, LAWPCA
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