Sunset on Osprey Reef

Nearly the whole crew has descended 45 feet underwater to watch the final crescendo, the last episode of shark rodeo. The cameramen are in place, the rest of us are sitting back on the coral shelf, and Richard and JR come down with the bait—200 of bait. They open the crate, and the cloud of rotting fish guts and flesh make the already murky water like a cloud. I can’t see well but I can see sharks. One grey reef shark comes close, swimming right toward me before turning away. Before long they’re in the wildest frenzy I’ve ever seen, tearing madly at the tuna heads and fish, darting around. Because there are so many of us on the coral shelf, we form a wall of air bubbles that tend to keep them away from us.

Richard tries to grab the whitetip but she escapes. Plan A foiled. I see the other shark they’re after & a grey reef with a temp logger as well. Because they are bigger than whitetips, he has to catch them with the “claw.” He makes a grab but misses. So much for Plan B. On to Plan C—use spearguns to attach pinger tags to silvertips, much the same way they tagged pizza sharks, erm, manta rays, but near the silvertips’ dorsal fins. Because of their large size, the only way to catch silvertips would be by hook and line, but that takes time and as we saw earlier in the week, doesn’t always work.

Richard and Mike follow the whitetip into a cave, and several grey reefs and silvertips follow them in. They’re inside the cave with a bunch of sharks that block the entrance, and Richard has to punch two in the nose to get them to back off. Brendon and JR went to the mouth of the cave to keep more sharks from coming in.  When Richard got out of the cave, he saw silvertips circling around. Ping! Richard darts the silvertip in the perfect location and gives Mike a high five. Two more follow in quick succession. They come back out of the water elated. Success!

Without a doubt this week’s trip, plus a research-only shark tagging trip a couple weeks ago, have been highly successful. “We’ve gotten more done in the past month than we have in the last 12 years,” says Richard. They’ve now tagged over 60 sharks and rays, placed a grid of receivers all around Osprey Reef and four inside the lagoon at its center. We made a stop in the lagoon center one evening and caught 7 juvenile grey reef sharks, literally just discovering on this trip that it may serve as a shark nursery grounds. And they’ve collected data from 16 receivers placed a couple months before along Osprey’s western wall. A full picture of how the sharks use the reef — and whether they leave seasonally — won’t come into view until at least a year’s worth of data have been collected.

“We just picked up a manta ray,” Richard says. He’s back on the boat looking at the data from one of the receivers, and has already picked up signals from the manta tagged a couple days ago. By the next night, they picked up the second manta they tagged as well as chambered nautilus tagged by another researcher. What started as tracking sharks around Osprey Reef has turned into a project tracking sharks, rays, nautilus, and potato cod and that will soon track several other common reef fish. They’ve created a one-of-a kind grid where they can track movements of all different species in an ecosystem-wide study.

The ultimate goal is to gather enough data and raise awareness of the importance of Osprey Reef to sharks and other marine organisms to preserve it. The isolated coral reef seamount lies outside of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, so there’s no formal protection here. Scientists know very little about shark natural history, but we do know overfishing and mismanagement threaten nearly all species around the world.

“Sharks are slow growers and take many years to mature. They’re more similar to marine mammals than to fish in that way and they’re extremely vulnerable to exploitation. It’s just that sharks aren’t as cute and cuddly as whales,” says Richard.

By gathering information about how the sharks use the habitat, he hopes to sway the Australian and Queensland governments to preserve it and all reefs within the Coral Sea permanently.

Some progress has been made. As President of the Cod Hole Ribbon Reef Operators Association, JR had been negotiating an agreement to keep the fisheries away from Osprey reef with the Coral Sea Fisheries Association, but had been unsuccessful. After watching an Australia 60 Minutes show, the fisheries organization created a Memorandum of Understanding agreeing that they would not commercially line fish within a mile of the reef. That the commercial fisheries recognized the value of tourism is commendable, but the reality is that anything can happen without formal protection.

“All shark species in the world are mismanaged, including Australia’s. Once we get all of the info out there, hopefully the government will listen to our recommendations to manage it sustainably,” Richard says.

Expedition Shark is unique because it, along with Richard’s long-term research, partners research with conservation. Not many documentaries involve conducting research as part of the filming, and Celine and Mike say they appreciate that aspect of this film the most.

Celine studied psychology and then inter-cultural relations and it wasn’t until 2003, when she spent time with her father, Jean-Michel Cousteau, while he filmed the grey whale migration to Alaska that she knew for sure she wanted to carry on her grandfather’s legacy in documentary film-making. She’s worked on several documentaries since then, and now sees film making combined with conservation as her future calling. “It’s not enough to protect the shark species. We also need to protect their home,” she says.

The ocean is a foreign world to many people. To all of us really, even those who dive and spend time undersea. But oceans, and especially coral reef ecosystems, have color, beauty, excitement, drama, and, at the same time, a serene peaceful quiet that can not be replicated on land. They also hold incredible biodiversity.

“Some people like going for a walk in the woods but in an hour hike you might see a lizard or a butterfly,” JR says. He introduced Richard to Osprey Reef and to Raine Island, and has been passionate about conserving the region from the start. “But in a dive on the reef you’ll see thousands of animals. You’ll see more different species than you’ll see on land possibly for the rest of your life. Once in a while you’ll get the bonus of seeing these rare creatures, like a tiger shark, but the background hum is incredible— a kaleidoscope of movement and life.”

We’ve spent the last 20- hours battling 10 to 12 foot swells en route back to Port Douglas. The sun goes down as we approach the Australian mainland, and we’ve squashed as many people as we can into the tiny wheelhouse room. “What will define you after Expedition Shark?” Celine asks everyone. Richard is in his bed, hiding from the seasickness, but JR, Mike, Dean, Sean, Cat, me, and others are all still hanging out in the dusky light. “The fact that I’ve had an absolutely fantastic time,” says Dean.

One thing I’ve seen for sure—these guys love their jobs, doing science, making films and  working to conserve species that can’t speak for themselves. Sharks rule the oceanic world. And it would be a shame if we allowed misplaced fear or ignorance to allow even one of these magnificent oceanic predator species to disappear.

Blog Extras:

• Peruse parting shots from Osprey Reef in a stunning photo slide show.
• Listen to Wendee and Cat's audio dispatches from the Coral Sea, too.

 

Images: Silvertip with pinger attached; Potato cod; JR and Richard review footage.

Photos: Cat Gennaro/DCL

Comments

[Melody Smith]

I can't believe it's over. We miss you though! I've loved being able to keep track of your adventure each day. Hope to see ya soon!

[Chrstine Heinrichs]

The ocean is unfamiliar and foreign to all of us land-dwellers, but your record helps us understand it better. Thanks for the adventurous spirit and dedication of the entire team.

[greg harman]

i'm still unclear - do you go for the eyes or the nose? (i still say nose, though some of your new friends, judging your last post, would likely vote for simply "going away."
in any event, glad you are all safe and sound.
thanks for communicating this important work.

[Wendee Holtcamp]

I think you go for any vulnerable spot but the gills are probably more easily accessible since they're larger...

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