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 More than 40 years after "Jaws" sank its teeth into popular
culture, sharks remain one of summer's biggest attractions on
the big and small screen, despite concerns by marine scientists
that some programming harms efforts to protect a dwindling
population.
Celebrating its 30th anniversary, Discovery Channel's "Shark
Week" kicked off on Sunday featuring celebrity encounters with
the animals, a "SharkCam" which captures their lives in the
Bahamas, and a scientific trip to waters off Cuba where some of
the world's biggest great whites have been sighted.
"There is something about it being summer vacation. A lot of
people are going to spend some amount of time on the beach, and
'Shark Week' just connects," said Nancy Daniels, head of
Discovery Channel.
"Shark Week" is one of Discovery's biggest successes, attracting
a U.S. audience last year of more than 35 million viewers.
The mix of information, entertainment and scientific research
can be a tough balance, but Daniels said "Shark Week" starts
from a place of wonder.
"We have really tried to partner with the scientific community
to make sure it's not just a scare fest but is actually teaching
the public about these animals so they can learn more and
respect their behavior," Daniels said.
"Shark Week" has inspired rivals, like National Geographic's
current two-week "SharkFest" with documentaries such as "Mayhem
in Mexico" and "The Whale That Ate Jaws."
Syfy channel weighs in next month with the sixth installment of
the cult film "Sharknado," a disaster-comedy about a cyclone
that lifts man-eating sharks out of the ocean and dumps them in
suburban Los Angeles.
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In August, movie "The Meg" seeks to rival "Jaws" with its tale of a
70 ft long Megalodon shark that reappears off an American beach
after being thought extinct for millions of years.
Marine biologists note that of the 400 shark species in the world,
none see humans as their preferred food. Their main job as predators
is to keep ocean populations healthy by weeding out the sick or
unfit.
"The portrayal of sharks in certain media has probably added to the
myth of sharks as a dangerous killer," said Hans Walters, a field
scientist at the New York Aquarium.
"If you have ever swam in the ocean you have most probably swam with
sharks. The really interesting thing to me about shark attacks is
not how often they occur, it's how often they don't occur," Walters
said.
The world's shark population is plummeting, with estimates of 100
million lost every year to fishing, often just for their fins, or
from becoming entangled in nets.
Despite public fascination with shark attacks, marine biologist Luke
Tipple hopes that shows like "Shark Week" spread the message that
they need protecting.
"It also inspires people to get out and go see sharks for
themselves, or maybe to be marine biologists or scientists, or to
contribute to conservation," Tipple said.
(Additional reporting by Alicia Powell in New York; Editing by
Daniel Wallis)
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