Lemon Shark dive off of Jupiter, FL

On Jan 18, 2011 my friends and I went diving with the Blue Tang dive charters in Jupiter, Florida. We were in search of Lemon Sharks. Staring in January the lemon sharks aggregations are popular among not only the scientist but also scuba divers from all over.  I found this site http://www.shark.ch/Projects/Behavior/index.html most interesting because local scientist are studying these particular lemon sharks to find out why they choose South Florida to aggregate too. Also these types of studies will help protect sharks in the future because FWC can use this data to prove importance of saving a species.

In 2010 the Florida FWC put a ban on commercial and recreational fishing of lemon sharks in Florida waters. Conservation groups and scientists were able to point out the economical importance of sharks alive rather then dead. One shark might be worth a couple hundred dollars dead to a fisherman, but alive this shark will bring in thousands of dollars. One shark alive means local dive boats can run dive charters, hotels can house tourist, restaurants can flourish during off-seasons, and locals have the opportunities to make money. This is an important fact to acknowledge and spread to keep our oceans healthy. Currently the lemon sharks is the only shark with a ban in Florida. At the end of this year there are hopes that we can add hammerhead, bull and tiger sharks to this ban in Florida.

I posted a similar blog about the diving with Lemon Sharks back in March 2010….check it out for tips on how to get involved with saving sharks! Go To  http://www.nikoleordway.com/archives/352

On this day the seas were calm and clear and we encountered nearly 30 lemon sharks between two dives. What an amazing sight and the girls, Cortney and Missy, were so excited! They have only seen little nurse sharks before so it gave be pleasure to bring them to meet lemon sharks. They thought because they were out to see sharks that they should dress like pirates! Silly girls! Along with the sharks we had fabulous dives with groupers and rays as well!