Category Archives: Sharks

Guide to Shark and Ray Awareness Day in Australia

shark and ray awareness day australia

Sharks and rays take the spotlight on July 14 each year as we celebrate Shark & Ray Awareness Day. This global event focuses on the positive impact that sustainability can have on populations of these magnificent species in our oceans.

Sharks and rays are true marvels of natural selection, with extraordinary physical and behavioral adaptations that have allowed them to thrive in diverse marine environments. These creatures play a crucial role in marine food webs and contribute significantly to the health and balance of our oceans.

Rays, often referred to as “flattened sharks,” are closely related to their more well-known cousins. They possess unique features, such as their flattened bodies and wing-like fins, which make them exceptional swimmers and hunters. Both sharks and rays are indispensable contributors to the delicate ecosystem of our oceans.

Shark & Ray Awareness Day serves as a platform for education and engagement. By understanding these amazing creatures, we can all play a vital role in protecting them and ensuring their survival for generations to come.

Core messages of Shark and Ray Awareness Day

ray

  • Educate the public
  • Promote sustainable practices
  • Combat Misconceptions
  • Support Conservation Efforts
  • Engage the Youth

 

Read on to discover why we need to raise awareness and what you can do to help…

Combating Misconceptions in Australia shark

Sharks often face an unjustified negative reputation in the media, overshadowing their critical role in marine ecosystems.

On average, three people are killed by sharks in Australia each year. Many more fatalities occur due to encounters with horses and cows. In comparison, an estimated 100 million sharks are killed worldwide by humans annually.

Sharks, in particular, have been subject to negative portrayals in popular media and culture, leading to fear and unwarranted demonization. Many people associate sharks with danger and aggression, which has perpetuated the idea that they are ruthless killers. In reality, shark attacks on humans are relatively rare, and most shark species are not a threat to humans.

How can you help?

One effective way to address this image problem is by learning all you can about sharks and rays, and sharing your enthusiasm with others. You can also choose to support only media that portrays a positive image of these misunderstood animals.

Australia Needs Sharks

Sharks are crucial for the sustainability of Australian waters and marine environments globally. They serve as top predators, helping to control the balance of marine species and ensure ecological stability. Removing sharks from these ecosystems would have far-reaching consequences, disrupting the delicate balance of marine life and threatening the health of coral reefs, including the magnificent Great Barrier Reef in Queensland.

The Great Barrier Reef Needs Sharks

The Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest natural wonder, is a global treasure attracting millions of tourists every year. Sharks are an integral part of this vibrant ecosystem, contributing to its biodiversity and resilience. Their presence enriches the experience of divers and snorkelers, offering an opportunity to witness the wonders of the marine world up close.

 Read Our Guide to Sharks Down Under

Support Shark Conservation Efforts

The excessive and indiscriminate fishing of sharks and rays, driven by the high demand for their products, is the primary threat to their survival. The demand for shark fins, in particular, has led to a devastating practice known as shark finning, where sharks are caught, their fins are cut off, and the rest of the body is often discarded back into the ocean, still alive. This wasteful practice has resulted in serious declines in many shark and ray populations worldwide. As a result of these unsustainable fishing practices, one-third of shark and ray species are now classified as threatened with extinction

How can you help?

You can help by supporting campaigns and by always purchasing sustainable seafood. Remember, shark is often labelled as flake in Australian fish and chip shops.

How to Engage Kids and Celebrate Shark and Ray Awareness Day

whale shark

We need to take time to learn the facts about sharks and why they are so important to us and our world, so that we can help to protect them. Inspiring kids by teaching them about sharks is crucial to improving the outlook for sharks.

We have created a range of FREE shark videos and fact sheets to assist in teaching children, as well as a paid online teaching resource pack and an online sharks course for kids.

 

Our resources and videos cover the following shark themed curriculum topics for kids:

Adapatation, Habitats, Human Impact, Food Webs, Natural Selection, Classification, and more…

Amazing Sharks Videos for Kids

Ocean Life Education’s owner and Director of Education, Richard Coward, is a marine scientist and recently created a range of engaging shark videos for kids, entitled:

  • Built to Hunt
  • The Point of Teeth
  • Why We Need Sharks
  • Why Sharks Attack

 Click here to watch Amazing Sharks video

 Quiz – Search for Your Inner Shark

How much are you like a shark??

Take the Quiz

We hope you enjoy our resources and courses and that you become an advocate for our misunderstood sharks and rays too.

 Other Important Shark & Ray Awareness Days to Remember

  • June 25- Angel Shark Day
  • August 30- International Whale Shark Day
  • September 17- World Manta Day
  • October 17- International Sawfish
  • October 30- Ghost Shark Day

Useful links

Join a volunteer shark conservation organisation like:

 

Is a Whale Shark a Shark?

whale shark

Whale sharks look quite different to how we imagine a shark to look. They are enormous, reaching 12 meters or more in length and weighing as much as 16 tons – basically, they are about the size of a bus! And they don’t have sharp teeth, in fact their teeth don’t really assist in feeding at all. So, it’s no surprise that people often ask us the question…is a whale shark a shark?

Are Whale Sharks Really Sharks?

The answer is yes, whale sharks really are sharks. They have all the 33 characteristics of a shark, such as a cartilage skeleton, five pairs of gills and unfused pectoral fins to the head. Unlike whales, they are not mammals and their young are not fed by the mother’s milk. Like sharks, whale sharks are fish. In fact they are the largest fish in the ocean. So, whale sharks really are sharks…and they get their name from the fact that they are enormous!

What Do Whale Sharks Eat? 

Whale sharks have rows of over 300 tiny teeth, but as filter feeders they do not use these teeth to eat. Instead, whale sharks (and other filter feeding sharks) swim along the ocean’s currents with their huge mouths open wide, filtering large quantities of water as they go and extracting tiny organisms called plankton & krill from the water. A whale shark’s mouth is about 1.5 meters wide, so it’s an impressive sight!

The 3 largest sharks include (in size order)

  1. Whale Shark 17 meters
  2. Basking Shark 15 m
  3. Megamouth Shark 7-8 m

All filter feeders!

Diet: Plankton (tiny organisms), krill and small fish

Ten Amazing Whale Shark Facts

  1. Largest fish and shark in the world
  2. Habitat: warm open waters of the tropical oceans 
  3. Whale sharks spend most of their time near the surface
  4. Lifespan: 70 to 100 years
  5. Average length of an adult: 9.7 meters
  6. Average weight: 9 tonnes
  7. Teeth: over 300 rows of tiny teeth – not used for eating!
  8. Whale sharks are solitary creatures
  9. Filter feeders – feeding mainly on plankton
  10. Able to process over 6,000 litres of water each hour

Why We Need Sharks

Learn more about sharks? 

online shark course

Check out our Amazing Sharks Online Shark Course

Check out our Shark Resources

 

 

Further reading…

Save Our Seas – Whale Sharks Down Under

 

Should We Protect Sharks?

 

Amazing sharks

We think so! We hear so many negative stories about sharks in the media but what role do they actually play in the ocean and why are they important to us?

The fact is that sharks are a crucial part of the food chain and help keep the oceans, planet (and us), healthy… and their numbers are dwindling fast.

Read on to discover why we need sharks and why we need to take action to protect these misunderstood creatures…

Sharks Get a Bad Press 

shark cullMany people fear sharks because of sensationalised stories in the media and scary films like Jaws.

The fact is that 100 million sharks are killed by humans each year and sharks kill around 12 humans a year.

So, maybe sharks should be scared of us, not the other way around?

Learn the Facts About Sharks

 

why we need sharks

 

We need to take time to learn the facts about sharks and why they are so important to us and our world, so that we can help protect them. So, we have developed a range of FREE shark resources and an online Amazing Sharks Course aimed at dispelling the myths and promoting the facts about these misunderstood creatures.

 

 

Here are some REAL FACTS about Sharks…

 

Sharks Help Create a Healthy Ecosystem

shark ecosystemSharks are APEX predators, which means they sit at the top of the food chain and help control the numbers of animals below them in that food chain. By controlling populations of large and mid-sized predators, sharks allow smaller fish to thrive, which has a knock on effect on the food chain below them. Therefore, sharks help create a healthy ecosystem with a diverse range of species and competitors.

 

 

Sharks Are a Keystone Species

Apex predators like sharks are known as keystone species. This means that they are crucially important. If you take sharks out of the food chain, the whole structure could collapse.

Sharks & Natural Selection

sharks & natural selection

Sharks play an important role in natural selection because they prey on and remove weak and sick animals. This reduces the chances of them reproducing and helps keep fish populations healthy and strong.

 

 

Sharks & Habitat Loss

reef sharkSharks help prevent habitat loss. Habitats like coral reef depend on their fishy caretakers, like the little reef fish that live on them and clean and protect them from disease. Without sharks controlling numbers of big fish in a marine ecosystem, the numbers of these fish could explode. They would in turn kill off the smaller fish. If that happens, the reef would become diseased and die off, affecting millions of animals that depend on it for survival.

 

 

Everything On Earth is Connected

blue planet earthThe earth’s ocean produces 70 % of the oxygen we breath, food to eat, controls the climate, breaks down pollution, provides us with medicine and much, much more.

Humans are part of our amazing planet’s ecosystem. So, it is in our best interest to protect our home environment and everything within it…including sharks.

 

Want to Know more?

Watch our video: Why We Need Sharks

Read Our Blog: How to Engage Kids with Sharks

 

How You Can Help Protect Sharks

Check out Ocean Life Education’s other blogs:

How to Inspire Kids to Protect the Ocean

Reasons Why We Depend on Our Oceans

How Can I Protect the Ocean

 

shark cullCheck out the latest film ‘Shark Cull’ for some interesting views about shark safety programs off Australia’s East Coast 

 

 

 

 

Engage Kids with Sharks

online sharks course

Most children (and adults!) are naturally fascinated by sharks, either through sheer awe and wonder or by misguided fear. So, it’s no surprise that we can engage kids with sharks to learn a whole range of curriculum topics, without them even realising!

Ocean Life Education has developed a range of FREE online shark teaching resources and an online shark course to provide kids, schools and teachers with engaging ways to learn about sharks.

Why Are Kids Fascinated by Sharks?

shark anatomy and adaptation

shark anatomy – amazing sharks online course

Unfortunately, kid’s interest in sharks is often fuelled by exaggerated media stories and scary films, but it’s sharks’ appearance, immense power and ability to hunt that really grab their attention.

Incredibly, sharks have been around for at least 450 million years (since before the dinosaurs). A major reason why sharks have outlasted so many other animals, and a key reason why we are so fascinated by sharks, is their incredible anatomy, which is adapted to hunt and to survive.

 

 

Teaching Kids About Sharks Helps Protect Sharks and The Ocean

sharks & natural selection

sharks & natural selection

As APEX predators, sharks sit at the top of the food chain and help control the numbers of animals below them in the food web, thus maintaining the balance of life in their marine habitat. By controlling populations of large and mid-sized predators, sharks allow smaller fish to thrive, ensuring healthy ecosystems with a diverse range of species and competitors. Take sharks out of the food chain and the whole structure could collapse.

As we depend on healthy oceans for around 70% of the air that we breath, as well as for a host of other things such as food to eat, it is in our interest to minimise human impact and protect animals that protect our ocean.

 

Curriculum Themes and Sharks

Through the fascinating topic of sharks, kids can learn a host of curriculum themes such as adaptation, habitats, human impact, food webs, natural selection and classification. Studying the curriculum, while being thoroughly engrossed in the subject matter, makes the process of learning all the more enjoyable and inspiring.

Learning Enrichment and Sharks

Often children who need extra support within learning enrichment respond really well to curriculum-based learning which is based around their own topic of interest. That’s where teaching ‘Sharks’ can be a really useful tool to stimulate interest and hook children in.

 

Sharks Course for Kids & Shark Teaching Resources 

 

Ocean Life Education has created a host of engaging FREE shark teaching resources and activities: videos, sharks factAmazing sharks sheets & infographics, shark worksheets, shark activities, shark quizzes and an online shark course for kids (and adults!), with the aim of promoting understanding of sharks. All can be used as engaging shark teaching resources for educators, as well as fun shark activities for kids.

Online Sharks Course for Kids

Amazing Sharks Certificate

Amazing Sharks Certificate

Become a Shark Legend with Ocean Life Education’s Amazing Sharks online course – learn the facts, bust the myths and help protect these totally awesome creatures through a fun and interactive online shark course. Personalised shark legend achievement certificate awarded on completion. Suits Age 7+.

We hope you enjoy our resources and course and are inspired to want to protect amazing sharks too.

Want to know more?

Link – ONLINE SHARKS COURSE

Link – SHARK RESOURCES

Blog – Should We Protect Sharks?

5 Awesome Shark Facts

  • Sharks have been around since before the dinosaurs.
  • Sharks are literally built to hunt.
  • Sharks can produce 30,000 teeth in a lifetime.
  • Humans depend on sharks.
  • You have more chance of being killed by a cow than a shark!

5 Easy Ways to Help Protect Sharks