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Researchers come face to face with huge great white shark
Two shark researchers who came face to face with what could be one of the largest great whites ever recorded are using their encounter as an opportunity to push for legislation that would protect sharks in Hawaii.
Ocean Ramsey, a shark researcher and conservationist, told The Associated Press that she encountered the 20-foot (6-meter) shark Tuesday near a dead sperm whale off Oahu.
The event was documented and shared on social media by her fiancé and business partner Juan Oliphant.
The Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources said it was aware of photos of the great white and that tiger sharks also have been feeding on the whale.
Oliphant, who photographed the now-viral images, said it's unclear if the shark is the famed Deep Blue, believed to be the largest great white ever recorded.
"She looks the part right now," Oliphant said about the shark spotted Tuesday. "Maybe even more exciting that there is another massive, you know, super-size great white shark out there. Because their populations are so dwindling."
Ramsey, who operates Oahu-based One Ocean Diving and Research with Oliphant, said she has been pushing for several years for a bill that would ban the killing of sharks and rays in Hawaii, and hopes this year the measure will become law.
[...] Ramsey said extensive training and time spent studying shark behavior has kept her team and customers safe. She teaches people about how to act and, more importantly, not act when they encounter a shark in the water.
Ramsey and her team observe behavior, identify and tag sharks and share that data with researchers as well as state and federal officials. She said she previously swam with the huge shark on research trips to Guadalupe Island, Mexico.
[...] Ramsey said it's impressive that the great white has survived a "gauntlet of human death traps."
"I don't know how old she is," Ramsey said. "But for her to survive through so many longline fisheries and. you know, gill nets and team nets and fishermen who might just kill her because they think that she is a monster ... it's very special."
Explore further: Dead great white shark found on Cape Cod beach
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Nuke on Monday January 21 2019, @09:01PM (2 children)
Perhaps you think my comment was stupid but there was in fact a serious question in there. Which is : what do these things eat and why do they not eat a human being even when it would be easy to do so?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by arslan on Monday January 21 2019, @09:27PM
Maybe they eat when they're hungry, not just because there is a buffet line like obesity Joe at the buffet line. The lady probably knows her thing and not to lead herself or her customers into the water where sharks are looking for a feeding.
That particular great white probably stuffed itself full from the dead sperm whale blubber nearby and couldn't be bothered to swallow a bony hot blonde coming over to give it some post feed stroking.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by PartTimeZombie on Monday January 21 2019, @10:29PM
I wasn't getting at you specifically, but sharks eat whatever doesn't eat them.
Most sharks don't eat people because humans are not really a recognized prey, (or, of course they're not big enough) but of course a surfer in a wetsuit looks a lot like a seal, so they do get bitten every now and then.
My point is that for almost as long as life has existed, sharks have done well.
The fact they probably won't survive much longer is not only awful, it could well have knock-on effects we can't yet see coming.