Thursday, October 27, 2011

A World without Sharks?

Douglas' contribution to this year's wallpaper challenge - click for detail! Depicted among others: Sickle, Brenda, Tipless and Long John

Sharks evoke the true meaning of the word ‘awe’.

They instill a sense of wonder, admiration, reverence… and a bit of fear. Few other aquatic animals, except perhaps great whales, can evoke such emotions. But beyond ‘selfish’ love of nature for its own sake, self-interested man surely must appreciate that without sharks, ecosystems collapse, collapse fully and completely, and they do not rebound. Unlike terrestrial national parks, predator reintroductions are not possible with sharks. There is no successful captive breeding program.
Once they are gone, they are gone for good.


Awesome!
Once again, this is excellent pro-Shark media by Douglas David Seifert, one of the world’s top shark-watchers and award-winning shark photographers and I may add, passionate Shark conservationist and dear friend.
Having participated in literally thousands of Shark dives, Douglas understands Sharks like few others and what he has written here is a testament to his love of the animals but also very much to his meticulous research and erudition.

This article needs to be savored like a good glass of Bordeaux.
Lean back, relax and learn about Shark taxonomy, biology and life history, about food webs and trophic cascades - but above all, about the threats facing Shark populations and the absolute need to preserve them.
Enjoy and be amazed!

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