Shark Diver : Shark Diving : Swimming With Sharks: eco tour

Showing posts with label eco tour. Show all posts

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Galapagos Islands anyone?

Shark Diver is excited to announce that we have partnered with Tip Top Diving and the “Nortada”, a brand new live-aboard dive vessel, to offer an unforgettable dive and eco tour experience in the Galapagos. The Galapagos islands are one of the premier Eco travel destinations in the world. You will have the opportunity to dive with Sea Lions, visit Darwin and Wolf island for a once in a lifetime chance to swim with Hammerhead – Galapagos- Dusky, Whale- and many other species of sharks,along with big schools of Tuna and tons of other sea life. You will also get to do some exciting land tours at North Seymour as well as Darwin station. This is truly going to be an unforgettable adventure. - See more at: http://www.sharkdiver.com/dive-packages/galapagos-island-adventure/?preview=true&preview_id=10263&preview_nonce=087a9022bc#sthash.76dZGfUl.dpuf

Shark Diver is excited to announce that we have partnered with Tip Top Diving and the "Nortada", a brand new live-aboard dive vessel, to offer an unforgettable dive and Eco tour experience in the Galapagos Islands, one of the premier Eco travel destinations in the world.

You will have the opportunity to dive with Sea Lions, visit Darwin and Wolf island for a once in a lifetime chance to swim with Hammerhead - Galapagos- Dusky, Whale- and many other species of sharks, along with big schools of Tuna and tons of other sea life. You will also get to do some exciting land tours at North Seymour Islands and Darwin station, where you will encounter the native birds and terrestrial animals of the Galapagos Islands.

Our expedition will take place from August 15-22 2014, which is in the middle of high season, when there are thousands of Hammerhead shark and gigantic pregnant Whale sharks swimming around the islands.

We will be diving off the "Nortada" an 85' live aboard dive vessel that offers 4 lower deck, fully air conditioned cabins with two single lower berths each, private heads, lockers and drawers. There are 2 15ft inflatable, zodiak style, tenders that will take us to the individual dive sites. For our safety, all divers will also be provided a waterproof Nautilus Lifeline radio.

Two 15 foot inflatable tenders with 4 stroke 20HP outboard engines takes fully equipped divers to and from the dive sites.
All divers are provided with a Nautilus Lifeline bi-directional VHF/DSC marine radio with GPS, dive alert and DSMB.
- See more at: http://www.sharkdiver.com/dive-packages/galapagos-island-adventure/#sthash.FkieisYV.dpuf

For more information on this exciting expedition, call us toll free at 855.987.4275 or 619.887.4275 or email us at staff@sharkdiver.com

I hope to see you in the Galapagos Islands in August!

Cheers,
Martin Graf
CEO
Shark Diver

About Shark Diver. As a global leader in commercial shark diving and conservation initiatives Shark Diver has spent the past decade engaged for sharks around the world. Our blog highlights all aspects of both of these dynamic and shifting worlds. You can reach us directly at staff@sharkdiver.com

Monday, December 21, 2009

DIVA Resort in Maldives Part of the Eco Solution

Luxury resort Diva Maldives has become a flagship supporter of the recently designated FenMaaDhiguRan, the Maldives first fully regulated, and largest, Marine Protected Area (MPA) – home to a globally significant population of whale sharks, not to mention some of the world’s finest dive sites.

The first resort located within the MPA to commit to backing the pioneering conservation project with fundraising initiatives, Diva Maldives has introduced a voluntary gratuity charge scheme enabling guests to actively contribute to the conservation of the whale sharks and their habitat.

A tropical paradise on one of the archipelago’s largest and most beautiful natural islands, with four kilometres of pristine white sand and lush tropical greenery flanked by a crystal clear lagoon, Diva Maldives enhances the picture postcard Maldivian idyll with the elusive luxury of space, and the liberty of choice. The introduction of the voluntary gratuity charge scheme underlines Diva’s commitment to protecting the whale sharks and their habitats, while helping the new MPA to generate improved business, education and employment opportunities for the local community.

Established following successful lobbying by the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme conservation charity, the MPA was officially designated by the Republic of Maldives government in July 2009. The MPA is 42km in length and, through proper regulation and educational community initiatives, will protect important habitats and species in this area from threats including overfishing, unregulated tourism and pollution, and help the local community to protect their natural resources for future generations.

Founded in 1990 and based in Mauritius, Naïade is a renowned hotel group with an undisputed reputation in the Indian Ocean. The group currently consists of nine hotels and one private island: Beau Rivage (five star deluxe), Legends (five star), Les Pavillons (five star), Tamassa (four star), Merville Beach (three star plus), Le Tropical (three star), and the private island of Ile des Deux Cocos, all in Mauritius; Hotel du Recif (three star) and Grand Hotel du Lagon (four star) in Reunion Island; and Diva (five star deluxe) in the Maldives. Each hotel has its own individual charm yet all the resorts in the portfolio share high levels of service and warm hospitality setting them apart from their competitors. www.naiade.com

Friday, December 4, 2009

Ocean Encounters - New Website

Ocean Encounters founders Fred Buyle and William Winram will take you places you never dreamed of diving. Both avid world-class breath-hold divers, they have taken it upon themselves to share their passion for the underwater world with the rest of us.

They will bring breath-hold diving courses to your door, take you on live-aboard freediving cruises and organize expeditions for the chance to breath-hold dive in the company of large marine animals.

In their many upcoming activities, you will find one that is tailored to suit your needs whether you are a complete beginner wanting to improve your comfort underwater, or a dedicated breath-hold athlete looking to fine-tune your technique for your next competition.

The more adventurous amongst you will participate to shark encounters for an opportunity to discover the natural behaviour of these amazing creatures in their own territory.

Ocean Encounters is no ordinary endeavour. In addition to organizing courses and expeditions for the public, Fred Buyle and William Winram regularly join expeditions for the purpose of scientific research on large marine animals. From tagging sharks in the wild on a silent breath-hold to documenting unique animal features through photography and video, they contribute to the advancement of ocean preservation.

Buyle and Winram are scheduled to arrive in French Polynesia on December 5, 2009 to complete the last of five HDTV documentaries for the project Ocean Quest, a series which will, without a doubt, change the world’s view on the true nature of the oceans and their creatures.

For more information on Ocean Encounters, visit http://www.oceanencounters.net.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Mexico and the Sharks of Ecotourism Frontera NorteSur

Due to the actions of one operation at Isla Guadalupe, Mexico-many within the government of Mexico are now asking if shark diving activities at this site are in anyones best interests.

The following article from Mexico's "La Jornada" details a full cage breach event (one of the worst ever caught on tape) at Isla Guadalupe, November 2007.

This video, shot by clients of the operation in question was quickly posted to You Tube where it has been viewed over 120,000 times. Presumably by Mexican environmentalists and policy makers as well.

Many in the environmentalist community and anti-shark diving lobby within Mexico are using this video and this singular event as a "raison d’être" for everything bad about cage diving within Mexico. One look at the video and you can understand why.

This video continues to overshadow the ongoing "laundry list" of positive steps taken by eco tour operators in good faith at this site. From donations of building material, boat engines, fuel, food and medicine, to the full support of Mexican lead white shark tagging and research.

It is high time those responsible for this event-step forward and take full responsibility for their actions of last November 2007. That means the following:

1. An open letter to the Mexican government posted to major newspapers and a full apology

2. A self imposed fine with funds being turned over to the new Bio-Sphere for enforcement activities

3. The removal of this video from You Tube. Its continued presence serves only to misinform and provide an incomplete look at the many thousands of hours of safe and eco minded shark diving that has been done at this pristine site.

Without steps taken now to mitigate the media and perceptional damage done to the entire white shark eco tour fleet, Isla Guadalupe and those who would see all shark diving activities at this site stopped is becoming a very real possibility:

Mexico

and the Sharks of Ecotourism Frontera NorteSur

In Baja California and other Mexican coastal states, ecotourism is promoted as an answer to declining resource-based economies and old school sun and surf-style visitation packages. Within the ecotourism sector, extreme sports activities are one variation of attractions designed to lure the dollars of affluent foreigners and Mexicans. But one form of extreme ecotourism, cage diving with sharks, is raising questions about the management of Mexico's natural resources as well as the safety and integrity of both humans and animals.

A remote chunk of land off the Pacific Coast of Baja California, Guadalupe Island is a hot spot for shark cage diving. Every year one hundred or more great white sharks gather near the island, likely drawn by Guadalupe's tasty seals. In April 2005, Guadalupe Island was declared a protected biosphere reserve by the federal Mexican government. However, the reserve lacks governmental or medical facilities.

Guadalupe Island's lack of infrastructure hasn't stopped several San Diego-based tour operators from offering adrenaline-spiked encounters with the magnificent if potentially deadly great white sharks. Running expeditions from the port of Ensenada, Baja California, tour boats ferry as many as 22 people on shark-seeing adventures. Advertised on the Internet, five or seven-day Guadalupe Island packages range from $2,750 to $4,295 in price. Once near the island, tourists don diving gear and are then put into cages from where they observe great whites swimming near the enclosures. The circling sharks are attracted by bait, usually tuna, dangled from a line.

According to Mexican environmentalist and columnist Ivan Restrepo, a November 4 trip crossed the line in keeping sharks and people at safe distances. Restrepo reported in a recent column that a great white shark snagged itself on a cage which contained two tourists, ripping apart an entire section of the "barrier." Luckily, the two thrill-seeking tourists, who presumably got their money's worth, escaped harm.

Restrepo said a previous pilot study conducted by Dr. Jose L. Castillo Geniz, a researcher with Mexico's Regional Fisheries Research Center of Ensenada, resulted in recommendations to tour operators about where to place the bait and how to keep a prudent distance from the sharks.

"(Tour operators) promised to do it, but nothing more," Restrepo charged. "The lives of tourists and sharks continue being at risk."

The incident reported by Restrepo once again raised questions about the possible impacts of ecotourism on wild animals. Whale-watching, for instance, is an economic plus for coastal residents in Baja California, Banderas Bay and other areas, but the popular activity poses important questions. When does the number of boats viewing animals reach a saturation level? How close is a safe distance from an animal? How do human-animal interactions alter the natural breeding, migratory and other patterns of wild species?

According to Restrepo, Guadalupe Island's shark tourism brings in about $3 million per year for the tour operators, who pay nominal permit fees to Mexico's Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment.

"The business of taking tourists to watch white sharks on Guadalupe Island is an excellent one for a small group from the neighboring country," Restrepo wrote, "but not for the natural reserve, which lacks resources to establish a management plan, sponsor research or pay its personnel better…."

On the other hand, tour operators maintain that their Guadalupe Island excursions help shield protected great white sharks from poachers, who hunt the endangered creatures for the lucrative global fin market. Recent reports estimate that the worldwide population of great white sharks has declined by as much as 70-90 percent. A group of San Diego shark-watching tour operators has established the non-profit Guadalupe Island Conservation Fund to raise money for the preservation of the local shark population.

"Great whites are listed as endangered in Mexico; however there are no resources to dispatch park rangers in small enforcement vessels to protect them," said a statement from the Fund posted on its website.

Experts regard closer US-Mexico collaboration as essential for preserving the great white shark, which is an international traveler of excellence. After tagging a male great white shark with an electronic tracking device in early 2007, a cross-border team of researchers released the young predator into the ocean from the privately-owned Monterey Bay Aquarium in north-central California. Months later, the shark surfaced off the southern coast of Baja California near Cabo San Lucas.

"It clearly shows that like many migratory animals, sharks don't recognize international boundaries," said Dr. Salvador Jorgensen, a researcher with the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Hopkins Marine Station. "It underscores how important it is to work closely with our Mexican colleagues to make sure we have adequate protection for the species," Jorgensen told a California newspaper.

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Sources: La Jornada, February 4, 2008. Article by Ivan Restrepo. Article by Kevin Howe. Guadalupefund.org