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Tag: shark attacks

  • Shark Attack Victim’s Husband Speaks About Incident

    Rob Armstrong knew something was wrong.

    A bird came out of nowhere and swooped down on him, almost as if it were trying to warn him of the grave danger he and his wife Christine would soon be in.

    It was shortly afterwards that Armstrong and his swimming group noticed a large whaler shark heading in their direction.

    No one panicked.

    The group simply tightened their swimming formation and headed back to the safety of the beach. Once ashore, the sense of relief was palpable.

    “We thought everything was safe and we just hugged each other,” said Armstrong. “Then we found that Chris wasn’t in the change rooms.”

    Rob Armstrong hadn’t been concerned about his 44-year-old wife because his 70-year-old swimming buddy had seemed the more likely target of the predatory animal.

    Realizing that Christine Armstrong had not made it to land, members of the swimming group quickly took an inflatable rescue boat out to where the shark had been sighted.

    It was then that Rob Armstrong and the others made the heart-breaking discovery: His wife had likely been devoured almost whole during a horrific shark attack.

    Armstrong believes that Christine experienced a “quick death” and didn’t suffer.

    “The shark was such a size and it’s consumed her basically completely,” he said, “She wouldn’t have even known it happened.”

    It has been reported that only the victim’s swimming cap, goggles, and scant human remains were recovered from the water. What little was found is scheduled to undergo forensic testing.

    Authorities are still trying to locate the rest of Christine Armstrong’s body.

    Tathra Beach, the site of the incident, was briefly closed. It has since been re-opened to the public with the support of the Armstrong family.

    Rob Armstrong insists that his late wife died doing something that she loved. He’s also confident that she will be missed by many.

    “Chris only knew one way in life and that was love, and everyone loved her.”

    Image via YouTube

  • Shark Photobomb, Just When You Thought it Was Safe!

    Some types of sharks such as great whites have a reputation for being fierce predators, the type that can easily capture prey. So, when a shark is noticed as part of the backdrop within a family picture after-the-fact, surprise is one expected emotion. On Friday, June Emerson snapped photos of her family enjoying time at Manhattan Beach. Emerson’s 12-year-old son Quinn is shown surfing in one of the photos in front of what appears to be an image of either a shark or a dolphin.

    According to June Emerson, there are many who have concluded that the marine creature was a shark. “It was quite a shock to see [the photo].” Emerson said before adding, “Many local surfers and lifeguards have seen this and believe it to be a shark. Of course, I told my kids it was a dolphin, as we live at the beach and are in the waters here almost daily.”

    The thought of being within feet of a shark may sound exciting and thrilling to some; however, Emerson shared a different take on the experience when interviewed by CBS2/KCAL9. “I’m not sure what it was, but it definitely scared me when I thought it might be a shark,” she said.

    According to the Shark Research Committee, sharks are a diverse species. “Some sharks give live birth, some lay eggs. Some are carnivores and others survive on phytoplankton and zooplankton. Some sharks do not reach maturity until they are more than 10 years of age,” the Shark Research Committee website explains. Humans have entered the domain of many types of sharks.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwubcIRkV6k

    The Shark Research Committee details three types of known shark encounters including: an unprovoked shark attack distinguished by an aggressive “striking” or display, a shark encounter where the shark circles the human without leading to any sort of violence, and white shark predation that involves the shark hunting down, capturing, and eating prey.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YVp3U_5mqI

    Image Via Twitter

  • Diver Bitten By Blacktip Shark Off South Africa

    Defenseless. Helpless. These are not typical words associated with sharks. However, a South African guide recently found an entangled blacktip shark, which initially seemed both defenseless and helpless. Tyler was on his way to a feeding drum, along the eastern shore of South Africa, when he first noticed the shark. Rope was tightly coiled around the shark’s body as well as its dorsal fin, which is the fin sticking straight up slicing through the water as a shark approaches the surface.

    Tyler bravely rushed to the aid of the shark as it slashed around, trying to be freed of its predicament. Using the rope wrapped around the shark, the guide pulled himself closer where he raised his knife to cut the rope and release the shark. Agitated, the shark flung around and Tyler, respecting the creature, stopped his efforts. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you, or was the shark just responding to primal, instinctive forces? When the manmade rope ensnared the blacktip shark, was the shark relegated to prey instead of predator?

    According to Tyler, “I got my knife out and I was busy cutting off the rope and the shark bends over basically, and as it came over I just went back and it got onto me and just told me just to leave it alone.”

    While blacktip sharks may appear like skilled apex predators, these sharks are listed as a threatened species in part for the types of waters inhabited (subtropical and tropical) and the fact that their fins are desired by people for the meat. The Blacktip Shark, with the scientific name of Carcharhinus limbatus, and not to be confused with the Blacktip Reef Shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) often prefers inshore regions where the likelihood of crossing paths with humans is a common occurrence.

    As an apex predator, should people really feel sympathy for a shark, any shark?

    [ GrindTV ]