In the wake of the unfortunate death of the bodyboarder Mr. David Lilienfeld during a shark attack at the Caves in Kogal Bay, False Bay, explorer Chris Fischer from OCEARCH and collaborating scientists on the expedition have come under severe criticism from certain members of the public. The ferocity and timing of the attack, and details of “chumming” being practiced to lure sharks to the vessel OCEARCH in False Bay for capture and scientific sampling, were alleged to be linked by these members of the public giving rise to condemnation. The critics argue that the expedition was to blame for causing a chum slick that resulted in sharks being present at the location of the attack, and/or causing the aggressive behavior of the shark responsible for the attack, possibly through conditioning (i.e. association of humans with food) or handling, or all of the above. The scientists collaborating on the OCEARCH expedition offer a broader and more objective perspective regarding both the activities of the expedition and the likelihood that the activities led to the fatal shark attack on April 19, 2012.
Considerable attention has been given to the documentary aspect of the OCEARCH project and speculation exists that the research being conducted during the expedition is driven by television. This the scientific team of the expedition, consisting of over 30 leading South African and international shark researchers from more than 16 institutions, would like to categorically deny. We have been very impressed by the manner in which the OCEARCH crew and production company have fulfilled their commitments to us (namely providing resources and expertise for the capture and release of sharks for scientific purposes) without compelling us to deviate from our accepted scientific protocols. The sampling protocols for this project are based on the latest scientific knowledge and are the most comprehensive that have been developed for shark research in South Africa to date. Research requiring invasive procedures has been assessed by animal ethics committees of participating institutes (e.g. the University of Pretoria and the University of Cape Town) and ethical standards are rigorously monitored by senior state veterinarian Dr Pieter Koen, who has been on board throughout the expedition.
White sharks have been protected in South Africa since 1991. The basis of this protection was precautionary because consumptive exploitation of white sharks (as trophies and for the fin trade) may have become unsustainable. Since protection was introduced, scientists have been mandated to conduct research to produce the data required to monitor the health of the white shark population, and to determine whether existing legislation was adequate to ensure conservation and sustainable non-consumptive use of the species in South African waters. Due to limited funding the scientific community of South Africa was struggling to meet these objectives. The partnership with OCEARCH has offered an unprecedented opportunity to achieve our mandate to produce the knowledge required, using equipment and manpower resources that would otherwise be beyond our reach. Collectively the scientists involved in this project (their names and affiliations are given below) have been responsible for advancing the state of knowledge on South Africa’s sharks over the last 20 years through 60 peer reviewed papers on great white sharks and over 250 peer reviewed papers on other shark species. The expedition is the largest collaborative shark project yet in South Africa (and quite possibly the world).
The OCEARCH expedition lists ten research aims pertaining specifically to white sharks to address the globally limited understanding and poor conservation status of the species which is classified as Vulnerable in terms of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Four of these aims are highlighted as follows: (i) To describe age and gender specific range, distribution and movement behavior of South Africa’s white shark population, (ii) to contribute to critical population studies by collecting photographic identification data of individual sharks, (iii) to assess the national and international stock structure of white sharks via genetic analysis, (iv) to examine the reproductive status of individuals via blood Specifically the use of SPOT satellite transmitters will enable us to monitor the daily movements of each study animal for a period of up to five years. These data will be used to identify the critical habitats, migratory pathways, range and distribution of this species in southern African waters and further afield. In addition, the use of internally placed RCODE acoustic transmitters will allow monitoring of the coastal movements of animals for up to 10 years showing their seasonal use of different habitats such as embayment’s and the near-shore zone. Knowledge generated in this way can capacitate resource managers to effectively mitigate threats to this species by developing effective conservation and management measures. Such knowledge may, for example, include identification of areas where white sharks are vulnerable to exploitation, identification of habitats that are critical for mating, birthing, and feeding, and insight as to whether our white shark stock can adequately be conserved locally or whether regional or international cooperation will be necessary. Of relevance here is that one of the study animals has subsequently swum into Namibian waters and two others have entered the high seas.
Knowledge of white shark distribution (spatial and temporal) and habits is also relevant to the mitigation of shark-human conflicts. A further aim of the expedition that has particular relevance to shark attacks is (v) to advance bather safety through near real time, high precision tracking of coastal white shark behavior. Yet another (vi) is to advance the treatment of shark attack victims by sampling pathogenic bacteria colonies occurring in the mouth and on the teeth of white sharks.
What is the likelihood that the OCEARCH activities contributed to David Lilienfeld’s death?
Firstly, we would like to clear up any misconceptions about the amount of chum that that we used in False Bay. Certain members of the public have alleged that this amount was 5 tonnes. In fact, the quantities were as follows: approximately 10 kg of sardines over a 2.5 hour period on Sunday 15 April (our first day of research at Seal Island, False Bay) and approximately 24 kg over an 11 hour period on the Monday 16 April. To put this into perspective, each of the 80-100 12-man handline ski-boats that launch at Rumbly Bay during the snoek season will use 60-80 kg of baitfish in one day of fishing in False Bay. At no time was marine mammal used to chum. The chumming was monitored and guided by Dr Pieter Koen (senior state veterinarian), a Department of Environmental Affairs Ocean and Coasts official and a City of Cape Town official (Sunday only) and Ms. Alison Kock (Shark Spotters).
All of our research in False Bay was conducted within 300 m of Seal Island, some 26 km’s away from the location of the attack. White sharks naturally aggregate at the seal colony during this time to predate on Cape fur seals which is the reason the research team choose to work there and merely sampled sharks already in the vicinity rather than attract sharks into False Bay. During these operations, the predominant wind direction was SE, therefore any chum would have drifted in the opposite direction to the location of the attack and due to the amount for a few hundred meters only. We concluded our research activities on mid-afternoon of Monday 16 April, three days before the fatal attack. The vessel then travelled to Struis Bay/San Sebastian Bay over 200 km away where we continued with research on the Tuesday and Wednesday. On the day of the attack, the OCEARCH vessel was at Gansbaai, 70 kms distant from the location of the attack.
The shark that attacked David Lilienfeld was not one of the study animals. We had captured and tagged four sharks in the vicinity of Seal Island during the two days. On three of these we attached a SPOT tag to the dorsal fin, but in the case of the other animal, the dorsal fin was deformed (bent over to one side), so we released her without a satellite tag There was no evidence of a SPOT tag or of a deformed dorsal fin on photographs that were taken of the shark that attacked Mr. Lilienfeld. Moreover, regular, reliable signals have been obtained from two of the three instrumented sharks following deployment, providing highly accurate locations both prior to and after the time of the attack. The behavior of these two sharks appears normal, with activity mainly focusing around Seal Island as well as inshore in known white shark habitats near Strandfontein and Macassar. Until now, neither shark has moved close to Kogel Bay.
Previous white shark tracking research in False Bay shows without a doubt that Kogel Bay is repeatedly used by white sharks during winter and summer months. Wherever large sharks and people share the same space, there is potential for conflict. Especially in summer, the movements of white sharks in the inshore areas of False Bay bring them into close proximity to popular recreational areas, where a steady increase in the numbers of people using the surf zone has probably increased the potential for shark-human interactions. From 1960 to the present, there have been 28 known shark attacks in Cape Town’s waters. The attack on David Lilienfeld was the sixth of these that was fatal. David’s death was just as sad and shocking to the scientists and crew on board OCEARCH as it was to the public. Several of us are also keen surfers or body boarders. It is unfortunate that certain members of the public have attempted to account for the incident by attaching blame to the OCEARCH expedition. There is no reasonable evidence to support the contention that we played any role in provoking the attack, the timing of which we maintain was purely coincidental with regard to our research that took place near the opposite end of the Bay a few days prior.
In conclusion, it is very unfortunate that misinformed criticism has led to the premature termination of this unique and valuable research expedition and we request the immediate re-instatement of the permit to continue the research.
List of the scientists collaborating on the OCEARCH research projects (including student supervision, technical support and veterinary support)
Dr. Malcolm Smale Bayworld (Project leader)
Dr. Pieter Koen State Veterinary Services
Ms. Meaghen McCord South African Shark Conservancy (Project leader)
Mr. Ryan Johnson University of Pretoria (Project leader)
Mr. Geremy Cliff KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board (Project leader)
Dr. Sheldon Dudley KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board
Ms. Sabine Wintner KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board
Dr. Nigel Hussey University of Windsor (Project leader)
Dr. Les Noble Aberdeen University
Professor Marthan Bester University of Pretoria
Professor Susan Dippenaar University of Limpopo (Project leader)
Dr. David Delaney Oceans Research (Project leader)
Mr. Enrico Gennari Rhodes University
Dr. Paul Cowley South African Institute of Aquatic Biology
Mr. Dylan Irion University of Cape Town
Ms. Alison Kock University of Cape Town (Project leader)
Ms. Alison Towner University of Cape Town (Project leader)
Mr. Oliver Jewell University of Pretoria
Mr. Adrian Hewitt University of Cape Town (Project leader)
Ms. Madie Calitz Ampath
Ms. Kathy Cummings Oceans Society
Mr. Adam Johnstone Oceans Research
Dr. Matt Dicken Bayworld (Project leader)
Mr. Kyle McHugh University of the North West
Dr. Aaron Fisk University of Windsor
Dr. Adam Barnett University of Tasmania
Mr. Ryan Daly Rhodes University
Ms. Michelle du Toit Bayworld
Mr. Justin Blake Rhodes University
Mr. Andre Faul Oceans Research
Mr. Tristan Scott University of Pretoria
Ms. Michelle Wcisel University of Cape Town
The problem of he said, she said! 
