Right: a shark attack closes another beach. Tourism industry representatives argue that tourist numbers will drop unless something is seen to be done about the shark "menace".
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Arguments against a shark cull along the Western Australian coast
1. The extent of the threat of shark attack is generally exaggerated
According to the Australian Shark Attack File (ASAF), sharks have killed 52 people in the past 50 years (1.04 per year) in Australian waters. Figures range from zero to three in a year. Though acknowledging that any death is an individual tragedy, marine neuroecologist, Ryan Kempster, of the University of Western Australia has gone on to claim, 'the number of attacks is negligible when you consider the vast and increasing number of swimmers entering our coastal waters every year'.
The current level of shark attacks is outside the norm. In reference to two fatal shark attacks in 2004-05, Dr. Rory McAuley, shark research scientist with the Western Australian Department of Fisheries, noted that it is not unprecedented to have a sudden rise in attacks, however, he claimed, 'Those isolated incidents don't represent a trend'.
Ryan Kempster has further stated, 'To put things in perspective, on average there are two to three deaths per year from bee stings in Australia; yet we don't see people suggesting there should be a cull of bees.'
A similar point was made in a background piece published in Australian Geographic on September 5, 2011. The piece stated, 'compared to deaths from smoking, road accidents, lightning strikes or even other animal attacks, the risk is minute...'
Agathe Lefranc, a scientist with a French group, the Association for the Study and Conservation of Salachians (APECS), a family of species that includes sharks and rays has stated, 'The attention from shark attacks is completely overblown.'
Matt Collis, of the International Fund for Animal Welfare Oceania office has stated, 'Each year thousands of swimmers take to our beaches, with this number increasing every year as population and tourism increases. But there is no evidence to suggest shark attacks are increasing; we simply see yearly variation in the number of attacks.'
The same point has also been made Professor Shaun Collin from the University of Western Australia who has claimed, 'There is no data to suggest that shark numbers are increasing off WA's coastline and shark attacks in Australia have remained relatively constant over time, occurring at a rate of approximately one per year for the last 50 years.'
2. An apparent increase in shark attacks is actually the result of changed human behaviour
It has been claimed that the apparent increase in shark attacks is not the result of an increase in the number of sharks so much as a change in the way humans are using the oceans.
John West, the co-ordinator of the Australian Shark Attack File at the Taronga Conservation Society Australia, has stated that since 2001 there have been an average of 15 shark attacks a year, with fatalities averaging 1.4 a year. Last year, there were 12 shark attacks and four deaths.
West has analysed the statistics to determine trends in unprovoked shark attacks since 1900, particularly over the past two decades. He claims the most significant variable been the change in the way people use the ocean.
John West has stated, 'The rise in Australian shark attacks, from an average of 6.5 incidents per year from 1990 to 2000 to 15 incidents per year over the past decade, coincides with an increasing human population, more people visiting beaches, a rise in the popularity of water-based fitness and recreational activities and people accessing previously isolated coastal areas.'
It has been stated that relative to the increasing number of people swimming and otherwise using the waters off the Western Australian coast, there has in fact been a relative decline in the number of attacks.
Marine neuroecologist, Ryan Kempster, of the University of Western Australia has stated, 'Thousands more swimmers take to our beaches every year as the Western Australian population and tourism continue to rise. We might expect a corresponding rise in shark attacks. However, numbers of fatal shark attacks remain relatively constant and within the expected yearly variation. Therefore, the number of fatal attacks in Western Australia, per capita, is actually declining.'
3. The Great White is a vulnerable species
The number of Great White sharks has been in decline and the species has been officially classified as 'vulnerable'. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has stated, 'Despite the high profile media attention the Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias) receives, relatively little is known about its biology. It appears to be fairly uncommon compared to other widely distributed species, being most frequently reported from South Africa, Australia, California and the northeast United States.'
The IUCN has further stated, 'Nowhere is the Great White Shark abundant and productive enough to sustain long-term directed fisheries; the majority of annual captures worldwide being made incidentally through commercial fisheries operating longlines, setlines, gillnets, trawls, fish-traps and other gear.' The Union also notes, 'This species is unquestionably vulnerable to directed exploitation such as sports fisheries, the curio trade, the oriental shark-fin trade and even the public aquarium trade. The overall, long-term impact of these causes of mortality upon regional populations, coupled to those caused through indirect fishery captures or protective beach meshing, is probably detrimental.' Data from beach meshing programmes in New South Wales and Queensland show a gradual and irregular decline in shark numbers since the 1960s.
The Great White Shark is currently protected in the Australian exclusive economic zone and Australian state waters. It is also protected in South Africa, Namibia, Israel, Malta and the United States (California and Florida states, with directed fisheries prohibited off all coasts). Protective laws are strict, but loopholes and inadequate enforcement cause problems.
Conservationists stress that were Great Whites to disappear from the oceans' ecosystems this would be likely to have a detrimental effect on marine ecology.
Marine neuroecologist, Ryan Kempster, of the University of Western Australia has stated, 'Most sharks serve as top predators of the marine food pyramid, playing a critical role in our ocean ecosystems. Directly or indirectly, they regulate the natural balance of these ecosystems, and are an integral part of them.
Removing sharks from our ocean ecosystems is very likely to be ecologically and economically devastating.'
4. Shark attacks are sensationalised by the media
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature has noted, 'The Great White Shark has long been a focus for negative media attention, generated by its sometimes lethal interactions with humans. As a consequence of this typically exaggerated threat to human safety and an almost legendary 'Big Fish' status, the species is targeted as a source for sports-fishing, commercial drumline trophy-hunting (for jaws, teeth and even entire specimens preserved), sporadic human consumption or merely as the piscine whipping-boy of individuals pandering to shark attack paranoia.'
Conservationists have further noted that 'shark attack paranoia' has greatly increased since the 'JAWS' media phenomenon of the mid 1970s, following the Peter Benchley novel and the release of the Steven Spielberg film. This has not only been to the detriment of the Great White Shark, but also has encouraged the targeting of other, less high-profile species.
Christopher Neff, a PhD candidate at the University of Sydney, who is conducting the first doctoral study of policy responses following shark-bite incidents in Australia, South Africa and the United States claims that exaggerated Hollywood representations of shark behaviour have fuelled public fear.
Neff claims the 'rogue shark' theory began with a British Medical Journal article in 1899, which addressed a series of unexplained shark bites. The article caught the attention of the shark researcher and Sydney surgeon Victor Coppleson, who developed the rogue shark theory in the 1940s and 50s.
Although discredited by science the theory has found its way into the popular consciousness, having been dramatically propelled by Peter Benchley's novel and Spielberg's original film and its sequels.
Marine neuroecologist, Ryan Kempster, of the University of Western Australia has stated, 'Sharks are constantly misrepresented in the media as vengeful, deliberate predators of humans. It is, of course, nonsense. We must not allow this negative fictional image to form the basis of state or national policy.'
A similar point was made by Graham Lloyd, the environmental editor for The Australian in an opinion piece published on January 20, 2012. Lloyd wrote, 'The truth is the predatory behaviour of the ocean's most feared creatures is the subject more of half-truths and conjecture than scientific understanding.
Less uncertain is the public appetite for tales of danger from the deep. And a run of shark attacks over Christmas has made this summer of fear no exception.'
5. It is possible to reduce the risk of shark attack without culling
The Australian Shark Attack File recommends a range of swimmer behaviours which should reduce the risk of shark attack. These are: Swim at beaches that are patrolled by surf life savers. Do not swim, dive or surf where dangerous sharks are known to congregate. Always swim, dive or surf with other people. Do not swim in dirty or turbid water. Avoid swimming well offshore, near deep channels, at river mouths or along drop-offs to deeper water. If schooling fish start to behave erratically or congregate in large numbers, leave the water. Do not swim with pets and domestic animals. Look carefully before jumping into the water from a boat or wharf. Do not swim at dusk or at night. Do not swim near people fishing or spear fishing. If a shark is sighted in the area leave the water as quickly and calmly as possible.
Matt Collis of the International Fund for Animal Welfare Oceania office has stated, 'If you are concerned about the risk of shark attacks then follow the precautions recommended by the ASAF. Most attacks occur under very specific conditions related to when and where you swim and what activities you are undertaking whilst in the water. Simply being aware of these conditions and acting appropriately will dramatically reduce the already very small risk of being attacked.'
Mr Collis has further noted, 'The focus should be on encouraging the use of non-lethal shark protection measures such as spotter planes and patrol boats.'
Professor Shaun Collin from the University of Western Australia has also called for non-lethal shark protection measures such as spotter planes and patrol boats to improve coastal authorities' ability to identify large sharks so the marine animals could be avoided. In response to such requests, the Western Australian premier has said the government was looking at extending summertime aerial shark patrols around Rottnest Island and to other parts of the state's southwest.