can sharks lean to recognise spearos?

[smee]

Seems strange but I've speared this spot for over 3 years and never had any problems with sharks. I'd usally bump into a couple during a dive but if anything they would clear the area as soon as they saw me. Over the last few weeks however their behavour has definately changed. It started with the odd one snatching fish of my float. I just thought oh well, I had to get taxed sometime and moved futher down the reef. Last week I shot a small GT only to have it snatched of my spear tip then yesterday I was in the water for less then 10 min when I noticed a large black tip reefy just hanging around me. I swam further up the reef but he followed me. I tried swiming towards it and trying to chase it off but it would just swim off and reappear a couple of minutes later. I changed directions a few times but it just kept hanging around for over 40min. I knew there would be bugger all chance of catching anything decent while it was hanging around so i called it a day.I didn't have any bleeding fish on my float and there where a couple of surfers in the water but it was totally uninterested in them. the only explination I could think off is that it has learnt to recognise spear fishers and associate them with an easy feed. either that or someone has poured some shark sex potion on my dive gear . Like I said this is the first time that I've seen this behaviour, normally they swim off or circle once before swimming off. do they have a mating season or something and are just naturally more aggressive this time of the year or will I likely be hounded for my fish at this spot from now on?

 

[naiad]

I don't know about sharks in particular, but fish will certainly learn from experience, and if there is a chance of a free meal, they will return in the hope of getting more. I trained my 3 big goldfish to eat from my hand, and now they will always nibble my hand thinking I have food for them. Before they were timid and wary when I put my hand in the water, now they are almost impossible to stop. Pushing them away has no effect. The only thing that will distract them is if they already have food.

I have seen threads on various shark repellents, don't know how effective they are.

Lucia

 

[naiad]

My smallest pet fish, a carp/goldfish hybrid, is now convinced that my hand is the food. If I hold out some food for it, it will nibble my hand next to the food, and find the food by random nibbling. It is perfectly capable of finding food on the surface, in fact better than the other fish, so I don't think there is something wrong with it.

One good reason to avoid feeding sharks, and other wild animals.

 

[Martin...]

try just poking the shark with the tip of the spear when they get near you. it could piss them off to bite, but mostly they just swim away. if your useing a wetsuit make sure it's cleaned well, no fish blood all over you. lol that wouldn't be good.
.safe diving.

 

[apnea_beast]

give the buggers a poke

 

[daveduvet]

Could it be possible you were swimming around where the shark had young? I had this experience when snorkelling around black tips in thailand. They are very protective. How far away did you swim and it follow?

 

[ocean_314]

yes all fish learn to where there is free lunch. You are now a meal ticket to the sharks.

 

[Shadowkiller]

1. Sharks don't do maternal care, rather the juvis get eaten by the adults if they aren't careful.

2. There are some reefs around here where the local territorial sharks (Grey Nurse aka Raggytooths aka Sand Tigers) treat the sound of a speargun going off as a dinnerbell. They are usually quite placid, but get agro when the "tchick" sound is heard, even if no fish is speared.