South Africa -

Shark Research

6 mins 38 secs

December 1996

INTRODUCTION

Australia began using shark nets off its coasts before South Africa. But South Africa is the most advanced country in the world in shark research with its unique Shark Institute spearheading the drive for information.

Founded in 1964, institute's aim was to find a means of protecting humans from shark attacks. Now, fourteen percent of the Natal coast is equipped with shark nets - at a cost of 10 million rand a year.

The South Africans have just netted six beaches in Hong Kong. But Australia and other countries with a shark problem are showing interest in a new development - electromagnetic waves. The shark, with their well developed warning system move back from the invisible waves as if they've had an electric shock. At the moment the machines are only being marketed to divers, but a more compact version that can be used by swimmers and surfers is being developed.

TEXT

01.00 PICTURES START

01.02

Every morning shortly before 5am the same ritual begins. The team from the Shark Research Institute goes up the coast to inspect the shark nets. Off Durban, in the Indian Ocean, there are over 400 shark nets, protecting the most popular beaches. Forty kilometres of the Natal coast are protected from the hundreds of sharks which flourish in these waters.

free

01:40

The nets are hauled up. When they are holed, the nets are exchanged. But other kinds of fish get caught in the nets. The nets pose a particular problem for dolphins. Often the team comes too late to save them. Only a few manage to escape. Over 1'400 sharks are caught  in the nets every year.

02:16

Original sound

Geremy Cliff, director Natal Sharks Board

We have for many years wanted to come up with some form of shark protection, which does not have to kill shark.s. And for the last 5 or 6 years we've been working extensively on an electrical shark repellent. Our initial research has come up with the device you see here. Theis is one of the early prototypes. It's relatively large and for this reason we're only marketing it for scuba divers at the moment.  It's too large to be worn by a swimmer or a surfer. What we hope to do is with the money from the sales of the pod to divers we can carry on with our research and development and thereby come up with a device which will hopefully protect surfers from shark attack.

02:57

During the school holidays in 1957 five people were killed by sharks. Tourism departments around Durban got together. Today more than 100 shark attacks are reported every year world wide - of these 10 are fatal.

03:13

Len Jones is one of the few people  who often makes the acquaintance of sharks. He's a harpoon fishing enthusiast, and over 30 years in the sport he's brought home numerous trophies. Mostly sharks are found on the end of his harpoon - except once.

03:42

original sound

Len Jones, harpoon fisherman

It was a great white. He rushed around trying to tear the fish loose stabbing me in the process with his teeth. You know they have 5, 7 rows of teeth and when they bite hard , like this one was doing on the fish the first row stick forward at about a 45 degree angle. And when he was stabbing me I actually got 5 holes in my buttock from him.

04:08

He's lucky it's only five. It could be a lot more. The teeth in some sharks mesh together like electric saws.

04:27

At the Shark Institute the dead sharks are examined. They'd got caught in the nets and drowned. They need to be constantly swimming to get the necessary oxygen intake. Off the South African coast 100 of 368 species of sharks in the world can be found.

04:52

The shark hasn't evolved much over the last millions of years. But despite that man still knows little about this fish. At the Shark Institute however, data about sharks has been collected since 1964. A quarter of the sharks weight is made up by two huge livers. Depending on the species sharks produce been two and 40 offspring a year.

05:13

The age of the shark can be determined from the whirls. An Austrian scientist is involved in this research.

05:19 original sound in OFF

05:23 original sound in ON

Sabine Wintner, scientist Natal Sharks Board

Other people wanted to be pilots - as a kid I always wanted to be a shark biologist. Probably I watched too many Jacques Cousteau films when I was young. It is a fascinating animal. I'm trying to find out at which age they are sexually mature, how long they live, how fast or slow they grow , that is the yearly growth rate.

05:40

Near the southern most corner of Africa additional research into the big white shark is being carried out. Fish are stamped on and thrown overboard. The sharks smell the blood from up to a kilometre away - and that's with a dilution of one part to a million. The sharks can detect the fishbait on the buoy from a great distance. South Africa is the only country in the world where the white shark is protected. While the shark is feeding it's marked. This way it's possible later on to determine the age of the shark and its movements.

06.22

original sound

Dion Sadie, scientist, University of Stellenbosch

It will be a 5 year research project. During the first 2 years we're going to do mainly behavioural work. Then towards the end of the second year we're going to start trying different anaesthetics. First on the other shark species, to see if they work. And then we're going to develop a way of anaesthetising or tranquillizing the sharks so that we can draw them close to the boat without harming them and draw blood from them. And then we're going to use the blood to study the endocrine cycle and reproduction cycle as such. And then also look at the accumulation of toxic substances in their blood.

07:02

Sharks fascinate not only scientists but also tourists. They want to see the big White right in front of their eyes - with only a wire cage between them. Sharks snap when they feel threatened or when they're going after food. Often they see swimmers as seals and surfers as turtles. Scientists say it's only Hollywood which gives the sharks bad intentions. But those with weak nerves better to keep their distance.

Ends

Duration: 6:38

reporter: Marion Mayer-Hohdahl

Camera Efpé Seneka

cut: Herman Theron

AKM Symphonic Poems KPM 128 CD - Richard Harvey

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