Sea Notes

Check Out Our New Tumblr Blog!

Want to stay connected to our animals, exhibits and conservation efforts? We've moved our blog to Tumblr.

This blog will continue, but you'll find the latest updates on Tumblr. Thanks for your interest!

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Another Day at the Office: An Aquarium Employee Goes on a Mission to Tag White Sharks

By Chuck Saltsman, Senior Producer, Interpretive Media at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Photos ©Monterey Bay Aquarium, photographed by Tyson Rininger

 Ten yards in front of me, a 14-foot great white shark churns the water into a pink foam as it chews basketball-size chunks of elephant seal from a fresh kill. The sheer violence of the attack is breathtaking. The tail thrashes the ocean for purchase, levering the head back and forth in a whipsaw motion. The serrated teeth carve out another 20 pounds of seal meat. It's two in the afternoon and I'm having a great day at the office, better than most. Better than that seal to be sure.

I'm here filming the research the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Hopkins Marine Station of Stanford University are doing with white sharks. The day started at 6 a.m. and after a three-hour boat ride I was holding a 25-pound camera on a raised platform in a small skiff that rolls and bobs in a heavy swell. We're about a hundred yards offshore of the Farallon Islands, 25 miles west of San Francisco, California. In the rear of the boat are Sal Jorgensen and Scot Anderson, two scientists who spend a month here each year luring great white sharks close enough to touch, and hopefully attach a scientific tag to. The sharks are longer than the skiff and weigh a ton or more. 

Shark tagging in Northern California typically takes place in October and November, a collaboration between the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Hopkins Marine Station of Stanford University, next door to the Aquarium. Tagging focuses on three areas: the Farrallon Islands, Point Reyes and Ano Nuevo.

The objective is to learn more about the size of the white shark population in Northern California and its condition. A recent estimate put the number of white sharks in the area at less than 250. “The goal is to really understand how many there are, and whether that population is rising or falling,” says Randy Kochevar, Science Communications Officer at Hopkins Marine Station.”We have spectacular apex predators right here off our shores. But with such a small number, it doesn’t take a large perturbation in the environment to have a significant impact.” 

Life Aboard the “Dinner Plate”

Yesterday was a complete bust, and today has been slow. Sal and Scot dictate a research paper to each other and I watch the ocean, trying to stay balanced on the rocking skiff. My attention is focused about 30 feet out on the water where a grey piece of carpet resembling a seal silhouette floats. Today's faux seal is named "Scampi", maybe in hopes that a tasty name will prove inspirational. The idea is that a great white will see it floating on the surface, mistake it for a real seal and strike. If that happens the shark is lured back to the boat and  into tagging range without ever letting it bite the decoy. If it bites the decoy, the game is over since the shark will know it's been duped.

Every few minutes what I've come to think of as "the shark detector" beeps a number at us. It's detecting the electronic tags that we've attached to them. Every tagged shark transmits a different number. And there are plenty of sharks without tags as well. We are literally afloat in shark-infested waters. Great white sharks migrate around and at this time of year, our scientists estimate there might be up to a hundred sharks within a few miles of us. Which ought to be worrisome while drifting around in a tiny boat referred to as "The Dinner Plate" but that's not what worries me. What worries me is screwing up at the critical moment. 

With no warning, a huge dorsal fin and tail fin roll over on the decoy and it's a scramble on the skiff since we are surprised by the sudden activity. Scot starts furiously reeling in the decoy, Sal makes ready with the tag and I try and keep track of it all while framing up shots. The shark dives under the boat. It is huge, with a head the size of a beer keg. We lose sight of it for moment, then it surfaces at the rear. Sal lunges with the tag, the shark thrashes the water with a three-foot tail and it's gone. High fives all around.  It would be the only shark we tag on this mission, but still a success.

Natural Predation

Scot yells something about a predation. I ask what's going on. He says, "Put the camera away, I just saw a natural predation and we're heading over there." Natural predation? Ah, a shark attacked a seal. I stuff the camera back in the bag and Scot jams the throttle forward toward whitewater and circling gulls. As we approach, I grab the camera and Scott directs me to line it up with the largest piece of floating seal. I hit the record button and listen to Scot count down 3-2-1. He's been at this long enough to know that the shark is circling under the elephant seal, rising toward it. Action! The camera is steady and rolling as the shark lunges out of the water with the seal in its mouth. 

I'm lucky to be here to see it and to share it with others. 

Cetacean Circus

Visitors to the Monterey Bay Aquarium often ask, "Where are the whales in the aquarium?" We let them know how lucky we are to be right here on Monterey Bay, a hotspot for over 13 species of cetaceans -- whales and dolphins. At certain times of year they put on quite the show outside our windows.

This month is no exception. After entertaining the residents of Santa Cruz for a couple of weeks, humpback whales are now feeding off the beaches of Monterey and neighboring Seaside, Sand City and Marina. This weekend, without need for boat or binoculars, you could clearly witness the spectacle of feeding humpbacks as their huge mouths appeared without warning to engulf mouthfuls of schooling (and no doubt very surprised) fish!

It's a great way to end the humpback season and await the arrival of the gray whales on their southern migration later this month.

Meanwhile, in Hawaii humpback whales there have teamed up with some of their smaller cousins -- and who really knows what's going on. But it seems like the dolphins were having some fun: practicing some balancing skills, sliding down the whale rostrum. A regular jungle gym for dolphins, as fortuitously captured by photographer Lori Mazzuca!

Surely some of the smartest critters on the planet at work here and a pure delight for the humans who got to witness it!

Sad News: Death of a Great White Shark

We're saddened to announce that the young great white shark we released on October 25 off the coast of southern California has died. This is a very difficult day for all of us at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and for everyone who saw and cared about this animal.

Based on the shark’s behavior and overall condition prior to release, our white shark team had every confidence that he would do well back in the wild -- as was the case with five other young great whites released from the aquarium.

Unfortunately, according to data from the tracking tag he carried, the shark died shortly after he was released.

"Our Husbandry team  is unrivaled in its knowledge of young great white sharks, and I’m so proud of the passion and dedication they demonstrate each day," said aquarium Managing Director Jim Hekkers. "This is a difficult time for all of us –- and especially for the team members who devoted so much attention and care to an animal that had such a powerful impact on the attitudes of our visitors toward conservation of ocean wildlife."

While this is a setback, in the weeks to come, our white shark team will review its procedures and protocols to see if  there are any changes we should consider so we can continue to do what we do best: give our animals exceptional care and, through our living exhibits, inspire visitors from around the world to care about –- and care for -– ocean wildlife.

Right now, while we are shocked and saddened by this loss of this shark, we remain fully committed to our white shark work.

Five other great white sharks have been successfully returned to the wild after spending periods between 11 days and six-and-a-half months at the aquarium. One other animal –- a small shark that fed only once during its 11 days on exhibit –- was also transported south to Goleta for release. Four other sharks were released in Monterey Bay.

Tracking data from all five sharks confirmed they survived their release, though one of the sharks died four months later in a fisherman’s net in Baja California.

Exhibit of young great white sharks is one element of Project White Shark, our work with research colleagues to learn more about white sharks in the wild as well as to inspire visitors to become advocates for shark conservation by bringing them face to face with sharks on exhibit.

Since 2002, we've tagged and tracked 47 juvenile great white sharks off southern California. Earlier this year, we were the lead sponsor of legislation enacted in California that outlaws the shark fin trade –- a major factor in the global decline of shark populations.

In the past decade, we've allocated nearly $2 million toward studies of adult and juvenile great white sharks in the wild –- research aimed at better understanding and protecting white shark populations.

Great White Update: A Successful Release

The sixth great white shark we've exhibited is back in the wild.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium husbandry team released the shark about two miles offshore of the Goleta pier north of Santa Barbara, shortly after 1 p.m. today.

According to Manny Ezcurra, our associate curator of elasmobranchs, “The transport and release went very well. The shark swam off looking strong, and very relaxed as he swam. He circled the boat a couple of times and then we lost sight of him.”

The shark is carrying not one but two electronic tags -- a first for our research program. As with all the young great whites we've kept on exhibit, he was fitted with a tracking tag that will documents his movements in the wild for the next 180 days, then pop free and deliver the data via satellite.

Our research partner Dr. Chris Lowe with the Shark Lab at California State University, Long Beach also implanted an acoustic tag with a five-year battery life that will report in every time the shark swims past one in a growing network of coastal monitoring buoys in southern California and Baja California.

We're hoping to learn what changes –- if any -– occur in the shark's travels as he matures. This is a critical piece of information that can help wildlife agencies manage and protect young great white sharks in the waters where they spend their early years.

Counting the two tags placed on the shark released today, we and our research partners have placed 46 tracking tags and eight acoustic tags on young great whites since the program began in 2002.

We'll resume our field tagging work next summer, and hope to bring a seventh shark to Monterey for a short stay.

If you missed seeing this shark, here's a beautiful video clip shot by a visitor on Monday -- the last day the shark was on exhibit:

 

Great White: Back to the Wild

The sixth great white shark ever exhibited at the Monterey Bay Aquarium is on his way back to the wild.

The young male shark brought to Monterey on August 31 is being transported to ocean waters south of Point Conception today (October 25) by our animal care staff. He was moved out of the million-gallon Open Sea exhibit this morning and will be released offshore this afternoon.

We'll provide updates on our Facebook page, through our Twitter account and here on Sea Notes.

The decision to release the shark after 55 days on exhibit was based on recent changes in how he was navigating in the exhibit, according to Jon Hoech, director of husbandry for the aquarium.

“These decisions are always governed by our concern for the health and well-being of these animals under our care,” Jon says. “It became clear that it was time to release him.”

Like the five other great white sharks that we've kept on exhibit for periods up to six-and-a-half months, the newest shark will carry a tracking tag that will document his movements in the wild. The pop-up tag will collect information on where he travels, the depths he dives to and the water temperatures he favors for the first 180 days he’s back in the wild. The tag is scheduled to pop free in late April and transmit those data back to our research team via satellite.

We remain the only aquarium in the world ever to exhibit one of the ocean’s top predators for more than 16 days. The five other sharks were successfully returned to the wild.

This young shark, a four-foot, eight-inch male weighing 43.2 pounds, was collected outside Marina del Rey on August 18 by our husbandry staff. He was transferred to a 4-million-gallon ocean holding pen off Malibu, where he remained for almost two weeks. Our team observed him swimming comfortably and documented several feedings in the pen before he was brought to Monterey.

The shark gained nearly nine pounds and grew two inches during his 55-day stay on exhibit.

Exhibit of young great white sharks just part of our Project White Shark, a collaboration with several research partners to learn more about and better protect great white sharks in the wild as well as to occasionally bring white sharks to Monterey for exhibit. Since 2002, we and our partners have tagged and tracked 45 juvenile great white sharks off southern California.

How the California Shark Fin Bill was Passed

Every once in a while an issue comes along that unites everyone around a common goal. This year, that issue was the protection of sharks, and the goal was to end the shark fin trade here in California.

We accomplished that goal October 7, 2011 when California Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 376 into law, prohibiting the sale, trade, distribution and possession of shark fins within the state.

A Group Effort

By the time of the Governor’s signature, tens of thousands of Californians had gotten involved in the effort. Dozens of environmental non-profits, Asian-American organizations, animal welfare groups, and aquariums campaigned for the bill, joined by community groups, chefs, celebrities, and policymakers. Leonardo DiCaprio sent letters of support; scientists from all over the world helped with research papers and offers to field questions from the Governor’s office; and elementary school groups in California created websites, organized petitions and letter-writing campaigns and even visited Senate offices at the Capitol! Groups organized rallies and shark-lovers events around the state and editorials boards published stories in every major newspaper in California. Over a hundred thousand individuals sent e-mails, “Tweeted” or posted actions on their Facebook page, and made phone calls to their Assemblymember, Senator and the Governor. People of all walks of life, from architects to yoga instructors, took action for sharks and urged the Governor to sign AB 376.

All Hands On

Here at the Monterey Bay Aquarium our entire staff got involved. Volunteers talked about the bill with visitors; our exhibits team printed banners and constructed an inflatable finless shark for outreach events; and our auditorium programs included calls to action and updates on major milestones—often earning loud applause from the audience! Public relations managed media; membership sent out action alerts; Seafood Watch recruited chefs and advocates; and our policy staff coordinated the campaign, wrote letters, testified in Sacramento and advocated for sharks at every opportunity.

It’s often said that one person can make a difference, and the campaign for AB 376 is a prime example. At so many steps along the way, the balance was shifted due to the voices of only a handful of people. At one point a Sacramento colleague indicated to us that she was 52 percent to 48 percent sure the Governor would sign our bill—that’s a close call and a decision that could have easily been swayed either way by a single phone call, email, or letter to the Governor.

Indeed the global movement to end the shark fin trade began with a small group of people urging an end to the sale of shark fins in Hawaii, and that single action encouraged other individuals and groups to pursue similar efforts in Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and then the states of Washington, Oregon and now California. With AB 376 California has now made the ban on shark fins complete along the U.S. West Coast and accelerated the global movement to end this destructive trade. Because of California’s action, we are one step closer to ending the shark fin trade where it is most prevalent, in China and Hong Kong. And with individuals like those who tirelessly took action for AB 376 I’m sure we can get there.

A Better Future for Sharks

AB 376 will go into effect on January 1, 2012, after which no new fins will be allowed into the state; restaurants and shops will have until July 2013 to use up existing stock of fins, and after that, the trade in shark fins in California will be completely banned.

Sharks and the ocean will be healthier due AB 376 and the actions of California, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the efforts of all the groups and individuals that made this possible.

Our thanks to everyone out there who took action to protect sharks!

Author Zack Bradford is Ocean Policy Research Analyst at the Center for the Future of the Oceans at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Operation: Transport White Shark

An insider’s look at moving an apex predator from the ocean to the aquarium
I wake ten minutes before my alarm goes off -- and my body and mind instinctively know that I have an epic day in store. I skip my normal morning adrenaline run and drive to Malibu Pier, arriving at 7:45 a.m. sharp, knowing that the coming hours will peak my endorphins. Waiting to greet a great white shark is not an everyday occurrence, after all.

By 10:30 a.m. the land-based team is getting restless. We’ve heard that the floor of the ocean net pen, home to the white shark for the past several days, is being lifted by our boat crew and dive team. That means the white shark should be arriving soon, but there is still no “chicken in the coop.” I bite my nails as the minutes pass until finally, at 11:11 a.m., we get the call: “The shark is on board!”

Whew! Everyone flies into action. The shark’s transport trough – the vehicle that will carry him down the pier, from boat to transport truck -- is filled with salt water while the oxygen level is regularly monitored. The team walks briskly down the pier scanning the water for our boat, the Lucile, as two- to four-foot swells build on what had been a calm sea. All reports are that the swell will only grow in intensity for the next several days.

This is not welcome news.

When it’s two miles off shore, we spot the boat racing toward the pier. It’s essential that the crew time the operation when there’s a lull in the southern swells, so people and shark can safely get ashore. Fisherman and passersby gather to catch a glimpse of the action. On the far side of the pier dozens of surfers are hollering and inviting the waves to grow larger. Meanwhile the white shark team is muttering incantations to King Poseidon to pacify the great Pacific, even if only for a few moments, so they can get the shark on land.

The team senses a lull. “Here we go,” yells Joe Welsh, our associated husbandry curator who’s at the helm of the Lucile. I can feel everyone’s heart rate increase. The adrenaline is flowing and transport team coordinator Scott Reid leans over the boat while Manny Ezcurra, our lead shark curator, hands him one end of the stretcher that’s holding the shark. Manny jumps onto the landing, and takes the other end. Water is flowing out of the stretcher as the two navigate their way up a flight of wooden stairs to the mobile trough, holding protectively onto their precious package. The young male great white shark is raised in the air, reminiscent of a baby being baptized, and gingerly lowered into the trough.

“Lid Angela! Help lift the lid!”

I do what I’m told, waiting for my next order.

“The button, the button -– go hit the button at the crosswalk!”

As the team rolls trough and shark down the long wooden pier, I sprint to where it meets the Pacific Coast Highway, my mind absent of everything except getting the young shark across the street safely and quickly. I hit the button, once, twice…impatiently, five more times… in hopes of getting a quicker response from the mechanically programmed light.

“Bobby!” I yell across the highway to our transport truck driver. “Hit the button!”

“I already did!” he hollers back.

As I look behind me, I see our veterinarian, Dr. Mike Murray, and a couple of white shark biologists sprinting to catch up with the shark. They reach us, out of breath. Waiting for a green light has never felt so infinite, but at last it comes. We look left, then right, before racing across the highway; dozens of cars and even more eyes looking at this motley group pushing a wooden box across America’s most scenic highway, in the heart of Malibu in the middle of summer. I’m curious what they think of it all.

I watch our team of aquarists, curators; truck driver and veterinarian merge as a well-oiled machine. As they reach the transport vehicle, two men grab the ends of the gurney and hoist the great white shark up the large stairs in a stretcher while another opens the lid on the 3,200-gallon mobile life support transport tank (also known as the finabago) that will hold the shark for the drive north up to Monterey. The sling is pushed down into the water and the four-foot, seven-inch male shark swims in smoothly and freely, ready to explore his temporary habitat.

Now it’s essential that Dr. Mike, the aquarium’s veterinarian, is confident that the shark’s swimming pattern is consistent and relaxed before the team is cleared to drive him north. As a smile creeps across the doc’s face I hear myself take a deep breath. I’ve been unconsciously holding my breath since we crossed the highway. Dr. Mike’s face tells me everything I need to know without having to look through the finabago’s window myself.

“You want a peek?” he asks. Coolly but quickly I walk to the window and lift the heavy white lid.
As the day’s adrenaline starts to leave my body I peer into a blue pool of clear water. In a moment, I’m eye-to-eye with the king of the ocean (well, at this size, maybe a prince).

“You are safe,” I whisper. “In a few months you’ll be released back into your wild habitat. Until then you’ll inspire tens of thousands of humans to protect you and your brethren.” He circles past me, his majestic, prehistoric and predatorial eye grazing past mine.

“Thank you,” I think deeply as I close the window and head toward the car.

“Time to go home,” I hear from behind me.

The truck heads north, Bobby at the wheel, Manny and Dr. Mike aboard to monitor the shark during the six-and-a-half hour drive.

Time to go home.

Take One Final Step to Ban Shark Fin Trade

Sharks & shark conservation advocates worldwide are one step from a major victory after Tuesday's vote in the California state Senate to ban the trade in shark fins. But it's not a done deal until Gov. Jerry Brown signs AB 376 into law -- and you can make it happen.

Take a moment to send a message to Gov. Brown urging him to stand up for sharks. As lead sponsor of the bill, the Monterey Bay Aquarium has made it easy to send a Take Action email to the governor.

California would become the fourth state to enact a trade ban, following Hawaii, Washington and Oregon. And it's the largest market for shark fins outside of Asia, where demand for shark-fin soup is fueling the global killing of tens of millions of sharks each year.

It would also strengthen the hand of advocates in China who are pressing for an end to shark finning in the world's largest market for fins. And it would give new momentum to a campaign for a national ban on the shark fin trade in the United States.

That's a lot of impact for one small action that each of us can take.

Great White Shark on Exhibit!

For the sixth time since 2004, our husbandry team has successfully brought a juvenile great white shark from the wild to temporarily reside in the million-gallon Open Sea exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. He was collected by our team in a purse seine net in waters near Malibu, and arrived at the Aquarium August 31. The young shark, a four-foot, seven-inch male, weighs 43.2 pounds. 

As with the white sharks who came before, we hope he’ll be an ambassador for his species while here. We want to encourage more people to learn about the plight of sharks, and be moved to take action to protect them in the wild.

The first white shark was with us for 6 ½ months; the second, for 4 ½ months; the third, for 5 months; the fourth, for 11 days; and the fifth, for over 2 months. All were successfully returned to the wild.

Seen by millions of visitors, these animals have helped us convey their powerful beauty, and educate visitors about the threats they face in the wild. After the first white shark in 2004 drew almost a million visitors, Executive Director Julie Packard called it "the most powerful emissary for ocean conservation in our history."

We'll keep you updated through our Facebook page and this blog, so you can find out how he’s doing. Our number one concern is his health and well-being (and, of course, that of the other animals with whom he will share the water during his stay).You can also check on him yourself when you visit the Aquarium, or on our live HD web cam!