Abundance of sharks off P.E.I. not unusual, scientists, fishermen agree
Some people are fascinated by sharks, but to others, they're just a 'pain'
Video of a blue shark taken off Morell, P.E.I., last week is racking up views and comments from the public as well as scientists, with some even wondering how dangerous the sharks could be.
Blue sharks are common in Atlantic Canada, but there is a lot that isn't known about the fish's population in the region, scientists say.
Sharks have always been here.— Lorne Bonnell
"You always want to be careful," said Mark Fowler, a biologist with the Population Ecology Division at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, of how close to get to the sharks.
"So long as you're not doing anything that's going to motivate their hunger pangs, right?"
Blue sharks are not known for attacking humans, but any kind of shark could be attracted by bait boxes or blood in the water, Fowler said.
'Quite a powerful experience'
Sean Landsman is a PhD candidate and researcher at UPEI in fisheries ecology — and a self-described "fish nerd."
He's so crazy about sharks, he and his wife booked a trip to Rhode Island, N.J., to swim with blue sharks in the ocean for their first wedding anniversary in July.
"One of the most incredible experiences either of us have ever had," he said.
"Some of us are completely enamoured with their beauty, with their power. It's quite a powerful experience to get in the water with them."
Landsman is also an experienced underwater photographer, so he took his video camera with him.
"Shark diving is a huge tourism activity in the Caribbean, and South Africa — cage diving with great white sharks," he noted. "Depending on what happens with the state of shark populations here in Atlantic Canada, we could potentially see that as a tourist activity, too."
Diving with tuna?
Diving with tuna is already available to P.E.I. tourists — PEI Tuna Charters offers a Swimming and Diving with Giants excursion off North Lake, P.E.I. — and Landsman said it's something he's eager to try.
But captain Jeff MacNeill hasn't allowed any customers to swim with tuna this season because he believes there are too many sharks present, and believes those sharks are dangerous.
"The water is alive with sharks this summer," he said. "No way, I wouldn't let anybody in the water with a shark."
Tuna fishermen are accustomed to seeing plenty of sharks — blue, mako, porbeagle and others — in the deep offshore waters, said Lorne Bonnell, who also fishes off North Lake.
"Sharks have always been here," he said.
Mark Fowler at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography agrees.
"They were there all the time. They are just capturing it on vid," he said.
"Guys know they'll get some attention if they post this kind of thing."
'It was a pain'
Sharks often take the bait meant for tuna, fishermen say, and to remove hooks from their mouths, fishermen occasionally have to bring the sharks aboard their boats — something that happened to Bonnell this Thursday.
He estimates the blue shark he brought aboard his boat was about 68 kilograms — or 150 pounds — and between six and seven feet long.
"I took pictures for the kids," Bonnell said, adding, "it was a pain" because the shark wrecked a couple of hooks and lines, costing Bonnell an estimated $100.
It's not unusual, he said — last year, he hooked six or seven blue and mako sharks. Fishermen usually release them back into the water, he added, as there's little market for the meat.
'I couldn't believe it'
The same thing happened this week to Tim L'Esperance, who fishes from Naufrage harbour on P.E.I.'s North Shore.
"The thing was humongous," he said of the shark, which he believes was a porbeagle, and at least 10 feet long and about 180 kilograms [400 pounds].
"I couldn't believe it."
L'Esperance is also accustomed to seeing and hooking sharks, but figures this is the largest porbeagle he's ever hooked.
The crew of the Two Will Do fought the shark until it was tired enough to bring alongside the boat and remove the hook — about 45 minutes, L'Esperance said.
Would he ever get in the water with a shark? "That's not my bag!" L'Esperance said with a laugh.
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