How Do You Get Citizen Scientists to Dive with Sharks?

Given the current level of Galeophobia, or fear of sharks, that’s an excellent question. Most people will leave the water immediately if they think a shark is in the area. Oddly, the greatest number of those who fear sharks seem to come from those who rarely, if ever, go into the ocean—so, clearly, this is a primal fear, much like snakes or spiders.

Enter the average scuba diver. Our experience at Ocean Sanctuaries suggests that many (but not all)divers have great respect for these apex predators and—ready for this?—Can’t wait to dive with them. They engender such awe and fear, that merely being in the vicinity of a shark is an adrenaline rush for many divers, to say nothing of the ‘fish tales’, which will be told later.

But, what about collecting scientific data on sharks? Again, our experience has been that there is a sub-group of ‘self-selecting,’ highly motivated divers, who are eager to get close enough to a shark to photograph it. In fact, they don’t need to be asked twice.

Now, what about the ethics and the inherent liability involved in asking people to dive with sharks? What happens when you ask citizen science divers to get close enough to sharks to photograph one?