Waters Near Cape May Prove Perilous To Sharks

March 3, 2008

Release from: Jim Waymer
Florida Today

CAPE CANAVERAL - Young hammerheads and other juvenile sharks got a de facto sanctuary when the Coast Guard closed off the ocean surrounding Kennedy Space Center after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

But as fishing and boating restrictions on those waters ease, some biologists worry the hammerheads and other predators that have been feeding and hiding there for more than six years could get, well, hammered.

"It's the most prominent near-shore feature we have. It's an important habitat for a suite of sharks," said Doug Adams, a shark biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

His studies for the first time have documented newborn scalloped hammerheads and dense schools of juvenile lemon sharks along the 3-mile-wide NASA security area that hugs the space center. The sightings began about 2001.

The discovery of Cape Canaveral's importance as a shark nursery could help shed new light on the global decline of the ocean's top predators.

Scientists are desperate to know more about the lifecycles of large sharks such as hammerheads -- one of the most vulnerable species to dying on fishing lines. By identifying crucial nursery grounds, they hope to improve federal management of large coastal sharks.

Shark fishing became widespread in the 1980s. Some shark biologists blame overfishing, in part, on the influence of Peter Benchley's best-selling novel, "Jaws," and the movie that followed for prompting a collective urge to hunt sharks.

Sharks were portrayed as cunning killers, and biologists were hard-pressed to win public support to protect them.

The National Marine Fisheries Service encouraged the commercial shark-fishing industry to create jobs. The government issued more than 2,200 shark fishing permits.

But few anticipated the market's growth potential and its impact on sharks. As studies began to show striking declines in shark populations, regulators took action.

Now, just 250 commercial boats have shark permits. Regulators allow another 300 permits for tuna and swordfish hunters to catch sharks incidentally.

A much talked about 2003 study by Nova Scotia researchers estimated scalloped hammerheads and tiger sharks may have declined by as much as 97 percent since 1970.

Fish ecologists predict the long-term loss of large sharks might upset the ecological balance.

Stingrays, a favorite prey of hammerheads, for example, could prosper, accelerating shellfish decline and causing other imbalances in the food web.

But commercial fisherman argue that their catches defy claims that sharks are disappearing. They see all the hubbub over shark declines as a red herring that could cost lives.

A shorter shark-fishing season and tougher limits on the catch already have increased the threat of shark attacks, they say.

"We don't feel that they're in trouble anymore," said Russell Hudson of Daytona Beach, a consultant to commercial fishermen.

There were 71 shark attacks worldwide last year, compared with 63 in 2006. Globally, sharks attack 70 to 100 people per year, resulting in about five to 15 deaths, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History's International Shark Attack File at the University of Florida.

Last week, a 49-year-old Austrian tourist died of a bite during a commercial scuba dive near the Bahamas.

On average, one in every three of the world's shark attacks happens in Florida.

Brevard's only fatal shark attack came in 1934. The county has had 90 shark attacks since 1882, the second highest number of shark attacks among Florida's coastal counties. Volusia County has the highest: 210 attacks, with no fatalities.

Hammerheads, prominent off the Space Coast, are considered potentially dangerous, but attacks are rare.

According to the International Shark Attack File, there have been just 38 attacks by hammerheads worldwide since 1580, resulting in one fatality (during an air-sea disaster). Seventeen of the attacks were considered "unprovoked."

Hook hazards

But sharks, especially hammerheads, are no match for any human armed with a fishing pole. And now with KSC waters open, the pressure could build on a species that had been left alone to flourish.

"The sharks that are getting into the deepest trouble seem to start with those species that have the highest mortality while on the hook," said George Burgess, a shark scientist and director of the International Shark Attack File.

Hammerheads fit into that category. Some biologists suspect as many as 90 percent of large hammerheads that get hooked die shortly after release. Smaller sharks fare much better.

Federal regulators plan to reduce quotas and bag limits and limit sport fisherman to landing only species that are easy to identify -- to prevent fishermen from confusing plentiful sharks with the most endangered ones.

The public has until March 28 to comment on the new rules.

Long-line shark fishermen fear the rules could be the death knell for their industry.

Fishermen target scalloped hammerheads for their high-priced fins, which can sell for about $30 a pound and in Asia are used in soup.

The species group together in huge numbers near the coast, making them an easy target and extremely vulnerable to overfishing by gill-netters and sport fishermen. Shrimp trawlers also net hammerheads inadvertently.

Angry locals tipped off state officers earlier this month when they saw people breaking the rules.

Their tips led to a Feb. 9 sting operation that spanned three East Florida inlets and resulted in 21 misdemeanor violations. A commercial fisherman from Georgia was cited at Port Canaveral for having 49 bonnethead sharks over the bag limit. The limit is one shark per person or two per vessel.

But current enforcement might not be enough, shark scientists say.

Survival of large coastal shark species may require periodically closing off the most important nursery habitats, such as the one off the Cape.

"One-on-one in the water, we're no match," Burgess said. "But one-on-one with us sitting on a deck with our feet dry and a Budweiser in our hand, we'll win out every time."