Researchers using simple tech to stop shark attacks in South Africa By Daniel Puchert

[Nat Quinn]

Research in Mossel Bay suggests LEDs attached to the bottom of surfboards or stand-up paddles could deter sharks from attacking.

Dr Sarah Andreotti, a shark scientist at the University of Stellenbosch, told Cape Talk that the Australian researchers’ study makes perfect sense when considering how sharks attack their victims.

Andreotti explained that the study involved towing a decoy that looked like a seal or sea lion so that a Great White shark would assume it was prey.

“Great White sharks heavily depend on their vision to determine whether they would like to attack their prey,” Andreotti says.

“Instead of having a dark decoy with a bright sky in the background, the researchers attached LED lights beneath it, disrupting how the shark perceived the decoy.”

Andreotti explains that, as a result, the sharks don’t attack them, which makes perfect sense to her.

“The Great White sharks are not dumb animals and won’t attack something that can’t be food to save their energy.”

“That is the concept of people not being part of their diet. When they do bite humans, it is a mistake due to bad visibility or because there is other other food in the water.”

Therefore, brightening the seal or sea lion decoy makes the shark perceive it as something it has never eaten before.

She explains that while the paper calls for additional research before people begin strapping LEDs to their surfboards, the findings are helping to shift the blame for shark attacks from the animals to humans.

Andreotti says this is an important step forward, as sharks are being killed in countries like South Africa, Australia, and a couple of French islands to reduce the number of human shark encounters.

To help beachgoers mitigate the risk of shark attacks along South Africa’s coastlines, Shark Spotters, a shark safety and research organisation, has warned that those not fully aware of the dangers of shark attacks should not enter the ocean.

It says that White sharks are more likely to identify individuals as potential targets, so swimmers should always remain in groups.

Swimmers should also avoid entering the water when it is murky or at night because White sharks are visual hunters, as Andreotti mentioned.

According to Shark Spotters, if swimmers encounter a shark, they must attempt to remain as calm as possible, as panicked erratic movements increase a shark’s curiosity.

 

source:Researchers using simple tech to stop shark attacks in South Africa – MyBroadband

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