where do you draw the line with sharks

[Marwan]

i am trying to get your thoughts on where you draw the safety/crazy line when you see sharks during spearfishing you could also add any safety precautions you take such as wearin a shark shied, bang stick etc..

[scottie3030]

id have to get out, wouldnt wana have to flying head butt any of those mothers!

[island_sands]

Marwan I dont spear (yet) but in my experience with sharks, if they become interested in your bait and you cannot keep them at bay I would exit the water. If it were a small reef shark you could probably fend it off but there again i have seen them come in gatherings and start a frenzy...

Miles would probably be one of the best guys to ask, as he deals with the big stuff all the time

[podge]

I’ve just bought a shark shield from the states and it has given me a bit more peace of mind, so if a shark were just swimming by I’d stay in however if it showed any sign of aggression I’d be out in a heartbeat.

[Marwan]

i have a shark shield myself, it gives me some piece of mind, though it zaps my buddies and sometimes me, lately, i keep it on me but turned off, if i see a shark (the viz is generally very good out here), i will switch it on and exit..
I know that switching it off kind of beats the purpose, but im cofortable that way..given that in years of spearfishing i had very few encouters

[stuckinsurrey]

Originally Posted by Marwan

i have a shark shield myself, it gives me some piece of mind, though it zaps my buddies and sometimes me....

Hi Marwan,

Didnt realise that it could zap people in the water aswell, is it if you touch it or is it just a case of being close to it. I spear with podge so was hoping to stick nice and close to him and gain from its protective aura! Maybe not now!
So i guess i'll be leaping out as soon as i saw one, think it would make me so nervous anyway I wouldnt enjoy the trip.

[Marwan]

it zaps only if you touch it, but the chances are high if your buddy is close because the antenna is a bout a meter long. it sometimes zaps me if i make certain movements, but it does give you piece of mind.. but thats why i keep it off, so that we could enjoy the dive and if we do actually see a shark, switch it on... of course there could be instances where we will not be so loucky as to see it first... but like i said , in my area the chances arent that high

[podge]

Originally Posted by stuckinsurrey

Hi Marwan,

Didnt realise that it could zap people in the water aswell, is it if you touch it or is it just a case of being close to it. I spear with podge so was hoping to stick nice and close to him and gain from its protective aura! Maybe not now!
So i guess i'll be leaping out as soon as i saw one, think it would make me so nervous anyway I wouldnt enjoy the trip.

Jim don’t be so soft a bit of electric will keep you on your toes.

[Marwan]

just remember to switch it off or you'll be the one on the toes mate

[Tompa]

If the shark is nice and all and bought me dinner i'd propably give it a god night kiss but that is as far as i go on the first date!!

[Craig Thailand]

I would get out if it was a dangerous species and a dangerous size, if it was small 4 or 5 foot i would shoot it in the head.

This is not me, but just to give you an idea of what i am talking about. The best defence is a good offence. BTW do those shark shields work? I think if it wanted to take a bite out of you that shield would do nothing to stop it, if it was just checking you out then it would work though. The thing is that most always sharks will come to check you out before they take that 'taster bite' they are very smart and i guess want to see if we are even edible before they take a nip out of us. Have you had any close shaves with sharks since you had the shield??

[Marwan]

no i never came into contact with sharks after i bought the shield so i cant speak for its effectiveness from y own perspective, there have been reviews on this forum though, some good, others unfortunately not soo good.. i dont think i would like to shoot a shark, unless its the absolute last option before getting eaten, at that poit in time, it really wont matter, which species or size, itll be the last resort..so its pretty much taking a chance and come what may

[Craig Thailand]

Spearing is all about shooting big fish that taste good and sharks fit both the requirments for a valid kill in my book. I am hoping to get me a few black tips this year, there are to many of them on the west coast here in Thailand, one or seven wont go a miss. I love watching sharks they arey amazing animals but if i get the chance to spear one and have the BBQ of a life time, then "it is on like donkey kong".

[Oldsarge]

I don't shoot lions, I don't shoot wolves, I don't shoot grizzlies and it isn't just because the trophy tags are completely out of my budget, either. John Taylor, the guru of large British African calibers, would only shoot lions if they were eating up the locals. Otherwise, if he encountered one that wasn't aggressive he'd nod a polite greeting and call out "Good hunting, brother!" I feel that way about all the apex predators, and that includes sharks and billfish. "We be of one blood, you and I." Sooooo, I'd just get out of the water!

[miles]

Hiya

Marwaan, firstly, i'm probably even more scared of large sharks that what you are!!

Shark encounters vary in how urgently you need to get out of the water. Things such as size and specie of shark and viz. play an important role. Sharks that are considered man-eaters, the Great White Shark, Tiger, Mako and Bull Sharks are the most notorious. If you encounter one of these, especially a large shark (2.5m+), your best bet is to get out IMMEDIATELY.

With smaller sharks, many spearo's continue to spear fish with the sharks in attendance. Even though sharks are small, they're still capable of causing you to lose a limb, so rather get out of the water if you feel that the sharks are getting agitated/excited.

In the clean deep water, we sometimes encounter small Mako's (2-2.5m). Since the water is extremely clean, i have no problem spearing tuna when there are mako's around. How-ever, should the water be dirty, i'd leave the area immediately.

My GREATEST fear is to encounter a GWS in dirty water!! Fortunately, i've only encountered them in very clean water, possibly becuase i now very rarely dive in dirty water. One incident i wish to recall: we were diving on a wreck in 8-10m water when i saw a 2.5-3m shark cruising about 2m off the bottom. I dove down, trying to see if there were any fish following what i thought to be a Zambezi shark. Minutes earlier one of my mates had seen a large Zambezi and just warned us not to let our fish struggle too much, because once the Zambezi starts taking fish from your spear, its pretty much impossible to continue spearing as the shark would go into a feeding frezy and simply take every fish you manage to shoot.

As i dove down, i angled towards the shark, gliding quite close, but not looking directly at the shark. I was more interested in what fish was following or underneath the shark. When i got below the shark, i looked up and saw the white belly and immediately recognized it: GREAT WHITE!! Slowly swam back to the surface, where both the guys in the water see's the shark. The one guy decides to jab the shark in an attempt to scare it off, but when he see's its a GWS and not a Zambezi, he decides not too!! On goes the powerheads and the boat is called.

How-ever, this shark had other idea's. The water was very clean, 15-20m viz. and we were in 8-10m water. He kept dis-appearing from view, only to appear behind you!! That was the first time i witnessed a GWS trying to sneak up to a diver. Once you spotted him, he'd simply turn and dis-appear, only to re-appear seconds later from behind you. Really scary stuff!! Can't even begin to imagine how that would've ended had the water been dirty!!

Another incident was when a 4m+ GWS surfaced in the middle of 4 spearo's in the water. Agian, we had exceptionally clean viz., 15-20m, and the shark approached us with-out any of the four divers seeing him!! Unbelievable well camoflauged.

Bottom line: sharks are part of spearing. Respect them. Don't dive in sharky area's in dirty water or with fish on a body stringer. When a shark appears, remain calm and stand your ground. If you must leave the water, do so slowly and with calm movements. Always keep your gun pointed to the shark and always keep your eyes on the shark. Remember, a average spearo with a 1m gun and long bladed fins in over 4m long in the water, so you'll look quite big to a shark.

Hope that helps!!!

Regards
miles