Recent Rants

Many of the hammerhead sharks that are butchered to feed Asian demand for shark-fin soup start their lives in American waters, a new forensic study shows.

Hit-and-run attacks by sharks can be solved with a new technique that identifies the culprits by the unique chomp they put on their victims, according to a University of Florida researcher and shark expert.

These incredible pictures demonstrate how orca whales use a 'karate chop' to stun and then finish off killer sharks. In a rare battle of beasts these images show how several populations of skilled killer whales around the world have learned how to overcome huge sharks, that most animals give a wide berth.

It's one of evolution's most eccentric creations: a head shaped like a hammer. Now, a study suggests that the hammerhead shark may have evolved its oddly shaped snout to boost the animal's vision and hunting prowess.

Forget the giant surf and flock of ratings-chasing rippers who've been shredding our beloved breaks this past week. This year, instead of the heartwarming tale of a local freckle-faced prodigy's career-jump-starting win, the real story of the O'Neill Cold Water Classic has nothing to do with competition at all.

People are fascinated with great white sharks for one reason: They can eat you.

If you track shark attacks, you know that every year or two, somebody gets munched off the Bay Area coast. The most likely time is now, November and December, when migrations of man-eaters to the Gulf of the Farallones peak for the year as they follow breeding elephant seals, harbor seals and sea lions.

On November 5, 2009 Eric Geiselman was surfing at Lagunas just North of Santa Cruz. The following report was posted on the web site Super Spectacular Adventuires by Geiselman; “I don't even know how to describe it. Everything happened so quickly! I was surfing with my brother Evan and Taylor Brothers at this wave called Lagoonas. The waves were sh..ty and it was raining. I wasn't even that motivated to go out.

Windsurfers, fishing boats and cargo ships aren't the only traffic in San Francisco Bay. Great white sharks are there sometimes, too.

A diver has captured a photograph of a great white shark approaching his camera with a toothy grin like that of Bruce, the terror of the 2003 film Finding Nemo.

A kayaker is lucky to be alive after being attacked by a four-metre great white shark in the ocean off Victoria's southwest coast. Rhys Gadsden was out for a morning paddle off Portland on Friday when he says a great white shark appeared from the deep and wrapped its jaws around his sea kayak, leaving giant puncture marks.

On October 24, 2009 Scott Barton and his companion, Emily Sondergaard, were surfing San Onofre State Beach at Trail 5. It was 5:30 PM and they had been on the water 45 minutes. They were about 20 yards from shore in water 4 feet deep with an estimated temperature of 68 degrees Fahrenheit and visibility of 3 – 4 feet. The ocean was calm with a clear sky and an estimated air temperature of 75 degrees Fahrenheit. No marine mammals were observed in the area.

Witnesses say a 54-year-old surfer made it to shore on his own after a shark attack off Maui. The unidentified man was treated and released for bites to his upper right thigh and lower right ankle after the Monday morning attack at Kalama Beach Park.

Maui County spokeswoman Mahina Martin says a 6- to 8-foot sand shark was believed to be the culprit. The beach was closed until sunset after the attack.

When you swim with the sharks, be prepared to get bitten. That's a warning one worker at a sea life centre might be thinking he should have listened to.

The 23-year-old suffered multiple wounds after he was 'ambushed' by an angel shark while diving in its tank. He was left nursing between 15 and 20 lacerations on an arm, each roughly 1cm long.

Sharks are the stars of this mini-film festival that dives deep into the underwater world of the bay and beyond. Films by local and international filmmakers include:

Two great white sharks have been spotted near Santa Cruz County beaches.

Shark researcher Sean Van Sommeran spotted a 16-foot shark off of Manresa State Beach on Friday. That was a day after Ryan Dunlap, of Capitola, videotaped a shark at the Seacliff State Beach pier.