Back in 2002, I had the opportunity to work with Rob Stewart as co-producer of his incredible film Sharkwater.
All of the documentation at Cocos Island off Costa Rica and in the Galapagos was filmed while he and his crew were onboard my ship the Farley Mowat.
It was an exciting campaign complete with confrontations with shark fin poachers, governmental corruption and of course the documentation of the on-going extermination of sharks.
Rob was passionate about sharks in the same way I have always been passionate about whales. I understood what people called an obsession but more accurately should be called a connection.
Rob once told me that he considered the shark to be perfect, in form and movement, an apex predator that filled an extremely important niche in marine eco-systems.
He understood that after 400 million years of evolution that the shark species were the reason that diversity and interdependence kept the sea healthy and thriving.
Fish in the sea, their camouflage, their speed, their behavior has been influenced by sharks for millions of years. Sharks keep fish populations healthy and healthy fish populations maintain the health of coral reefs and benthic communities.
Rob was determined to bring this message, the importance of sharks in a world facing species diminishment and the weakening of marine ecosystems.
There are four things that are important to championing the protection and conservation of marine species. First, is that connection which inspires the passion to intervene and to make a difference. Secondly, is to identify where your skills lie and to direct your natural talents towards making a difference. Thirdly, to not let anyone or anything deter you from the path you have chosen. Finally, the fourth thing – finding and mastering your weapon of choice, a weapon perfectly suited for realizing your objectives.
Rob Stewart found his passion at a young age and that passion was sharks.
The strength of an eco-system lies in diversity therefore the strength of a movement must also depend upon diversity. That choice can be the path of education, litigation, legislation, and direct action.
Rob made the decision to combine direct action with education and his chosen weapon was the camera.
The camera is the most powerful weapon ever invented especially in a world that values and appreciates non-violent intervention. In our modern media culture, the reality is that if it was not recorded on camera, it did not happen and once recorded the camera can send a mind missile into the consciousness of millions of people.
Rob Stewart understood the power and the usefulness of mass media and therefore he set his sights on writing, producing, directing and starring in what is the most powerful documentary ever created on the beauty, the allure, the complexity and the essentiality of the aquatic realm of the sharks.
Rob had that connection, and he found a way to represent the more than 500 worldwide species of sharks by weaving a tapestry of images, music, science and courage into a cinematic masterpiece.
When we were threatened by poachers, he kept the cameras running. When interrogated by police on charges of attempted murder against the poachers, he kept the cameras running and his film was the evidence presented in a Costa Rican court that kept me from being railroaded into prison.
Rob made sharks sexy, fascinating, intriguing and popular and Sharkwater helped to pass legislation in many countries to ban shark fins and most importantly he educated millions of young people to embrace a new relationship between the communities of sharks and that of humanity.
There is still a very long way to go.
About one hundred million sharks are slaughtered each year without much sympathy or even concern.
After all, in the eyes of many, sharks continue to be seen by many as very scary man-eating monsters.
Considering the 100 million sharks killed each year, an objective assessment would be that humans are the real monsters.
On any single day more than a hundred million people are in the sea, swimming, snorkeling, diving, spearfishing and surfing.
And yet the number of shark attacks is relatively minimal. An average of 20 shark attacks each year. There were two fatalities in Australia in 2021 and seven in 2020.
There are far more dangerous activities on land like playing golf, mowing the lawn, playing football or fishing from a boat. Between 2006 and 2019, 28 people die on average in lightning strikes in the United States. Australia averages 10 deaths a year from lightning strikes. Globally, lightning strikes kill over 6,000 people each year. The average global number of people killed each year from bee, hornet and wasp stings is 72. In Australia about 12 people die each year from stings making the little guys far more lethal than sharks.
But some sharks have big sharp teeth that can intimidate and a few of the 500 occasionally kill a human being. Most sharks however are harmless, even gentle including the largest shark of all, the whale shark.
I had the very awesome experience of diving with sharks with Rob Stewart in the Galapagos and I have swum with sharks many times in the waters around Cocos Island, Malpelo Island and the Galapagos. Hammerheads, White Tip, Black Tip, Tiger, Bull, Blue and even the Great Whites. Like Rob, I never felt threatened in their presence.
I have met people who have lost a limb to sharks and became defenders of sharks. People like Mike Coots who lost his leg to a Tiger shark when he was 18. Like Rob Stewart, Mike picked up his chosen weapon – the camera and began to champion the survival of the very species that had attacked him.
Mike told me he was inspired by Sharkwater and his images of sharks have reached millions of people. In 2010, Mike worked to pass legislation in Hawaii to make it illegal to possess shark fins.
Why would someone who lost a leg or an arm choose to become a defender of the very animal that viciously assaulted him or her. The reason lies in translating such an intimate experience into comprehending that there was nothing malicious or personal in the attack. The shark was being a shark in an environment where the shark belongs. Mike Coots realized that in most cases, shark attacks are mostly accidental. Rarely does a shark target a human being, most likely because humans are not part of their food chain. Humans are a relatively new presence in the shark’s world and sharks are a cautious group of species. From below, a surfer on a board closely resembles the image of a seal, and spear fishermen having made a kill simply become competition. Swimmers splashing about resemble injured fish and white bathing suits or flashy watch bands are attractive because when a sick fish is dying, they tend to turn their lighter colored underbodies to the light indicating they are weak and easy prey.
A study in South Australia found that surfers and board sports accounted for 42% of shark attack incidents. Swimmers and waders accounted for 39%. Snorkelers/free divers accounted for 13%.
The death of a human by a shark is tragic but it is equally tragic to any death in the water from drowning. There is always a risk but with hundreds of millions of people entering the sea each day, the chances of being killed by a shark are less than winning the lottery.
One thing that I have discovered is that shark culling programs tend to encourage shark attacks instead of deterring them.
I have noticed in the waters around the French island of La Réunion in the Indian Ocean that shark attacks are more prevalent after aggressive culling. The reason for this in my opinion is that the removal of Reef and Bull Sharks creates a vacuum in the reef eco-systems that attracts more sharks into that diminished habitat and the newcomers to establish their territorial boundaries tend to be more aggressive than their eradicated predecessors.
Rob Stewart dove and swam with thousands of sharks without consequence but in the end, it was his passion that killed him. He died in a rebreather accident on January 31st, 2017, while filming another documentary film.
I was in Miami at the time with my ship the John Paul DeJoria and immediately joined the search for his body. I knew in my heart that he had died when I first heard that he had sank after surfacing from a deep dive. Firemen recovered his body. He was only 37.
His family finished the film he was working on, Sharkwater: Extinction.
Rob Stewart’s greatest fear and in my opinion only fear was the mass extinction of sharks. He knew that the consequences for life in the sea would be catastrophic and it was this awareness that kept him motivated and inspired, pushing him to explore more, to dive deeper and to dangerously push beyond the boundaries of his unselfish and passionate ambitions.
To have accomplished something with a lasting and powerful impact on the consciousness of humanity is a major achievement and Rob Stewart’s legacy continues to inspire a new generation of marine conservationists, film makers, divers, and activists.
If you would like to learn more about Captain Paul Watson or the Captain Paul Watson Foundation, visit paulwatsonfoundation.org
This article originally appeared in DIVE LOG Australasia #405 in April 2024. Please visit www.divelog.net.au to access the magazine.
