Grey Nurse Shark Article… Really pleased to see my article published recently in the global diving magazine X-Ray. The story of what has been done to the Australian Grey Nurse shark is a pretty sad one… But it is one that needs to be told.

It really is unbelievable how we humans do so much damage to the underwater world. In the case of the Australian Grey Nurse shark we have taken to the edge of potential future extinction. All because it is a big animal and looks pretty fierce, when the truth is they are basically harmless to humans!

The article explains the history of the Grey Nurse shark and how it was relentlessly persecuted in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Because people believed it was a man-eater. A perception that was created by it’s large size and fierce looking appearance.

The fact that Grey Nurses aggregate together at certain key locations during the year added to the myth because those locations were labelled as “shark-infested”…

It also covers the immense amount of work done around Grey Nurse shark conservation. Including the influence Australian diving icons Ron and Valerie Taylor were able to bring to the table. Along with the excellent identification database established and maintained by Peter Simpson & Sean Barker at Spot-A-Shark in Sydney.

Peter has took me out to the Magic Point Grey Nurse aggregation site near Maroubra Beach in Sydney’s eastern suburbs several times. And took the time to explain what he and Sean are doing to help this is quite special creature. 

Great examples of humans doing the right thing and trying their best to correct the mistakes of the past!

You can use the link provided to download the X-Ray magazine Australian Grey Nurse Shark Article.

Back To: Australian Grey Nurse Guide