Shark Week 2020 | 'Lair of the Great White': Why are sharks in Australia's West Coast so 'hyperaggressive'?
Attacks on the West Coast of Australia have been getting increasingly violent in recent years, much more than what would match with shark behavior. The recent death of Gary Johnson in a shark attack in Esperance, Australia, has prompted many shark scientists to ask one important question -- why? On 'Lair of the Great White,' Marc Payne and Dr Craig O’Connell and their team venture into the natural habitat by Salisbury Island of what just might be the most aggressive white sharks in the world, all in search of answers.
It turns out that while the great white sharks are among the biggest sharks in the world, it's not their size that makes them more dangerous. In fact, it's theorized that the more aggressive sharks of the Australian West Coast are primarily young, adolescent males. O'Connell describes the sharks as becoming "hyperaggressive," more prone to pushing boundaries, curiosity, and most significantly, going to greater lengths in order to capture their prey.
Diving into the waters, the team discovered that the sharks were, in fact, more aggressive than usual. What's more, they made great use of the stealth opportunities provided by the caves and coves of the West Coast. As night falls, the sharks use the surrounding crevices and shadows cast by nearby ridges to become nearly invisible to their prey. The crevices are best suited for smaller sharks. The team in fact found what they believed to be a baby shark out hunting -- the first time such an instance has ever been recorded.
To further confirm this, the team created special stealth suits that were camouflaged to look like local reeds, hid their bodies' electrical fields, and kept air bubbles from escaping their rebreathers. Now invisible to the sharks, they were able to observe their predatory behavior, confirming that these sharks preferred to attack at night, making full use of stealth attacks with all the hyper aggression they could bring to bear.
The conditions that encourage younger male sharks to make more attacks in their youth, growing up to be hyperaggressive sharks later in life, combines with another problem, one that's man-made. The declining populations of fish and sea lions over the years has led sharks to seek other prey, and humans on nearby beaches become the perfect target. Stealthy, silent, smaller, and more deadly, these young great white sharks are becoming an increasing threat. The studies that are being done, however, will hopefully shine a light on a better way forward for sharks and people to coexist without one falling prey to the other.
You can catch the full Shark Week schedule on Discover Channel here.