Shark cull

[Fade_To_Black]

Over here in West Oz, after 7 or 8 fatal shark attacks in the last few years (one just two weeks ago), there is a growing sentiment from the public supporting a cull of sharks that are posing a perceived danger close to shore. It is currently being reviewed by the State government.

Was interested to see what peoples thoughts are on this?

Have loved the ocean and spent the best part of 25 years entering it daily but have to admit that the vibe in the water has changed and sharks are now an ever-present thought, whereas a shark attack used to be a remote possibility that was just in the back of your mind.

I don't support a cull, we are using their territory and it is just a risk you take when entering the water. There is no denying that there are way more attacks and close encounters with sharks reported these days, yet the government almost flatly refuse to attribute it to overfishing of our oceans.

 

[Cultured_Bogan]

I'm no green by any stretch of the imagination but I agree with you when people enter the water they know it is the sharks domain.

No cull thanks.

 

[Fade_To_Black]

After a report on the proposed shark cull on the radio this morning there was a story of 3 young people (one of them was a 19 year old girl) who got high on meth, pot and ecstasy and wilfully murdered another youngster by strangulation, soaked his body in acid and buried him in a grave in the bush. They got life with a minimum of only 14 years. So if a human does this sort of thing, knowing full well the consequences of their actions, why are they not culled? Culling worthless pieces of human excrement that go out of their way to make others suffer would be a hell of a better solution to saving innocent lives than killing something that is behaving as nature intended it to do.

 

[Sabre]

I thought this thread was gonna be about what ASADA is gonna do to the Cronulla Sharks.
In all honesty I agree, if you go into shark territory and it happens to be feeding time then it's bad luck. It's an unfortunate situation but it doesn't mean the shark should be killed. What if humans were culled for all our attacks on other animals.
Animals eating each other is just the way nature is.

 

[westy81]

No way that should happen, it's just their natural instincts to kill to survive but they don't know the difference between humans and seals, it's just a case of mistaken identity yes they are dangerous but if all the sharks were killed it wouldn't have a positive affect on the ocean food chain

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

 

[LaT]

Over fishing is largely to blame IMO. In the end the answer and way forward is going to be much more complicated then "their ocean, their rules".

There are no end of great predators on earth that are culled when needed. Sharks are not a special case.

Whether that means we need a cull I don't know, but there is no reason it should be off the table if experts deem it required.

 

[pHyR3]

apparently a large cause of all these shark incidents is the growth of WA and more and more young guys with time to kill and cash to burn. So far more people are swimming and surfing at unpatrolled beaches. Just what i heard anyway

 

[Peaches]

There should definately not be a cull. Sharks help the ecosystem get around and removing a dominant predator will have ramifications. I'm pretty sure most species of sharks are endangered too.

I'm sure overfishing, more people using the beaches and the use of blood to attract sharks for shark sighting tours have all had impacts on the higher likelihood of an attack. I think there has to be an overall better cooperation between scientific leaders, the government and fishing companies to address the issues and it has to be soon. Unsustainable fishing of the ocean I think could be one of the big issues of this century.

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

 

[stryker]

Its a tough subject. We got a lot of sharks up here too and every once in a while a tourist gets his arse bit. Crocs are the bigger problem up here though. Since they have become protected they have exploded in numbers and people have run ins with them regularly.

Sustainable fishing is a dream I feel as even though I love the Asian regions, they practice terrible over -fishing of waterways, including ours. I love the ocean, am in it most days and enjoy boating, diving and fishing. Sharks are mostly harmless, however there are documented cases of sharks targeting human flesh. I am not suggesting a crazy kill frenzy but some form of culling is warranted.

 

[wtigers]

I don't think culling is ever warranted. They are in their natural habitat, all we would be doing is majorly messing up the local ecosystem

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

 

[LaT]

**I don't think culling is ever warranted.** They are in their natural habitat, all we would be doing is majorly messing up the local ecosystem

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

Ever? For every species or just sharks?

 

[happy_tiger]

Probably start with the ex Tigers at the Sharks and then just work your way through their playing list alphabetically

I get a funny feeling that the Sharks fans won't be too happy when we cull all their players though

Serves them right I guess ,

Crucifixion first offence

 

[MacDougall]

I'm afraid Fade to Black hit the nail on the head here.

 

[tigertye]

It's the risk you take when you get in the water unfortunately. I think we would be better served providing more air services to scan busy beaches and beaches used by surfers and more lifeguards during peak shark feeding periods, as well as a greater number of shark taggers to keep an eye on where they are moving. We wouldn't save everyone but they would be reducing the chances of people being attacked. They're truly amazing creatures and are to be respected, culling should be the last answer.

I remember when I was living in Nth QLD, they invested in a lot more catch and release equipment and personnel and the chances of seeing one near the mainland decreased dramatically. I think they have similar programmes in the NT. Something similar may be a better option then simply killing the sharks.

As sad as it is for people to be taken, you're in their domain, they're the boss and your chances of encountering a dangerous shark are extremely low. I read a stat that more people are killed by horses each year.

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

 

[tigertye]

Edit: "catch and release of crocs in QLD"

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

 

[Anthism]

FTB - i disagree with killing another human being no matter what they have done. It destroys the inhumane things they've done by causing more death. No doubting they would deserve it more than a hungry shark but none the less.

On topic:
Need to look at the root cause for every problem and look at the consequences of our actions instead of - as much as I hate cliches - knee jerk reactions.
We really aren't giving ourselves (Aus) a good image if we're killing marine life (possibly endangered?) for the pleasure of care free swimming when the Japanese are killing whales for eating. Loses any moral high ground we have over them to influence stopping it in the future.

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

 

[happy_tiger]

I think the one thing that stood out for me with every recent case of a Shark attack was that every victims family I've heard asked have said they didn't want the Sharks killed

The croc situation is a different matter

If we continue to let them breed unregulated with limited food sources due to over population they will head south especially with our climate warming

Being on the edge of a croc zone ( we have warnings everywhere but no official sightings with photos ) that's a scary prospect

With Sharks you take the chance , crocs to not know if they are or aren't there makes it a different story Especially when you can be attacked not even being in the water

Being on the end of a drag net neck deep doing a bait run isn't so exciting anymore 😱pen_mouth:

Taking the kids fishing to the mouths of rivers and creeks around Happy Rock and you think twice about it

Then again , I should probably be more concerned about the heavy metals the dredging of the Harbour has stirred up with the building of the LNG plants around Gladstone

The locals fish boards still can't use local fish stocks and the live trout industry has had to move their operation south as they can't bring their catches into Gladstone Harbour

Unfortunately one of the people being affected by this is leading a massive negligence court case against the government

Reason I bring this up you might ask , the person leading the court case is related to our former legend fullback Bret Hodgson

 

[Fade_To_Black]

**FTB - i disagree with killing another human being no matter what they have done.** It destroys the inhumane things they've done by causing more death. No doubting they would deserve it more than a hungry shark but none the less.

On topic:
Need to look at the root cause for every problem and look at the consequences of our actions instead of - as much as I hate cliches - knee jerk reactions.
We really aren't giving ourselves (Aus) a good image if we're killing marine life (possibly endangered?) for the pleasure of care free swimming when the Japanese are killing whales for eating. Loses any moral high ground we have over them to influence stopping it in the future.

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

Nah, can't agree with that. Do you think people such as Martin Bryant who hunted down two innocent little girls in the Port Arthur massacre and shot them deserves to live? No bloody way. I would happily go to a public execution of maggots such as him. Why do they deserve to live? So taxpayers can pay $5oo grand a year to keep him in prison playing Playstation and watching movies etc? He is a prime example of where an eye for an eye is the way to go.

Either that or use people such as him as human guinea pigs for testing the effects of chemicals , drugs etc on the human body. They are trash.

 

[cqtiger]

**FTB - i disagree with killing another human being no matter what they have done.** It destroys the inhumane things they've done by causing more death. No doubting they would deserve it more than a hungry shark but none the less.

On topic:
Need to look at the root cause for every problem and look at the consequences of our actions instead of - as much as I hate cliches - knee jerk reactions.
We really aren't giving ourselves (Aus) a good image if we're killing marine life (possibly endangered?) for the pleasure of care free swimming when the Japanese are killing whales for eating. Loses any moral high ground we have over them to influence stopping it in the future.

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

Nah, can't agree with that. Do you think people such as Martin Bryant who hunted down two innocent little girls in the Port Arthur massacre and shot them deserves to live? No bloody way. I would happily go to a public execution of maggots such as him. Why do they deserve to live? So taxpayers can pay $5oo grand a year to keep him in prison playing Playstation and watching movies etc? He is a prime example of where an eye for an eye is the way to go.

Either that or use people such as him as human guinea pigs for testing the effects of chemicals , drugs etc on the human body. They are trash.

Trash some may be, but others convicted of heinous crimes have been proven innocent at a much later date. It is for this reason alone that I cannot condone capital punishment.

Take a look at the many crime and misconduct commissions, not just in this country, and ask yourself why there are so many fraudulent prosecutions.

How many of the trash actually confess to murder? Not many at all because when push comes to shove they are all really cowards deep down. Manslaughter is what they agree to, which brings a lesser sentence.

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_

 

[Fade_To_Black]

Bryant was guilty of the crimes WITHOUT ANY DOUBT WHATSOEVER. When this is the case then they deserve a slow, painful death. When there is doubt it is a different matter altogether.