WEBVTT - Why are there so many shark attacks right now?

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<v Speaker 1>Already and this is this is the Daily art, this

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<v Speaker 1>is the Daily ears.

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<v Speaker 2>Oh now it makes sense.

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<v Speaker 3>Good morning and welcome to the Daily Odds. It's Wednesday,

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<v Speaker 3>the twenty first of January. I'm Elliott Laurie.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm Billy fitz Simons.

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<v Speaker 3>This week, three shark attacks were reported at Sydney Beach's

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<v Speaker 3>over just two days. It's left swimmers along the coastline

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<v Speaker 3>asking the question what's going on. To help us understand

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<v Speaker 3>what's driving the spike and what it means for public safety,

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<v Speaker 3>we're joined by Associate Professor of Environmental Science, doctor Daryl

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<v Speaker 3>McPhee from Bond University. In today's podcast, we're going to

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<v Speaker 3>chat to doctor McPhee about why there's been so many encounters,

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<v Speaker 3>what swimmers need to look out for, and how he

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<v Speaker 3>thinks the government should respond.

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<v Speaker 2>Elliott, I feel like every single conversation I've had over

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<v Speaker 2>the past couple of days has been about the shark

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<v Speaker 2>attacks in Sydney, because it's unusual that there are so

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<v Speaker 2>many any such a short period of time. Do you

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<v Speaker 2>want to take us back to the first one that

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<v Speaker 2>happened this week?

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<v Speaker 3>So it all started on Sunday when a twelve year

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<v Speaker 3>old boy was attacked near Shark Beach in Sydney's East.

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<v Speaker 3>He was taken to hospital in a critical condition, with

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<v Speaker 3>police at the time saying he's quote in for the

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<v Speaker 3>fight of his life now. It was reported that his

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<v Speaker 3>injuries were consistent with what is believed to have been

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<v Speaker 3>a large shark, most likely a bull shark.

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<v Speaker 2>Okay, And so that was the first attack, that was

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<v Speaker 2>on Sunday, and then on Monday we heard of another one.

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<v Speaker 3>Right, yes, exactly, so we had this first incident. Then

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<v Speaker 3>on Monday we heard two more reports of shark attacks

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<v Speaker 3>in Sydney. The first one was an eleven year old

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<v Speaker 3>boy who had a surfboard bidden by a shark at

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<v Speaker 3>d Y, which is on Sydney's northern beaches. He was

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<v Speaker 3>not injured in the incident, but his board certainly was.

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<v Speaker 3>Did you see the pictures of this I did.

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<v Speaker 2>It was a legitimate bite out of the surf a chomp,

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<v Speaker 2>a chomp, that is a great way to describe it.

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<v Speaker 2>And luckily the boy wasn't injured, which is easy to

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<v Speaker 2>think about when you see this photo of the surfboard

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<v Speaker 2>that has a big chunk taken out of it.

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<v Speaker 3>It was certainly a narrow escape and that shark would

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<v Speaker 3>have got a mouthful of styrofoam at the very least.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes.

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<v Speaker 3>Now, a few hours after that, a man in his

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<v Speaker 3>twenties was attacked by a sharknear Manly Beach, which is

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<v Speaker 3>also in the city's north, not too far from d

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<v Speaker 3>Y and he was a surfer as well, and it

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<v Speaker 3>was reported that he was taken to hospital in a

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<v Speaker 3>critical condition. Now, I just wanted to flag that there

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<v Speaker 3>has actually been a fourth bite in New South Wales,

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<v Speaker 3>which came yesterday, so that's Tuesday this week, and this

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<v Speaker 3>time it was a surfer on the mid North Coast

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<v Speaker 3>who managed to escape with just a few grazes. Now,

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<v Speaker 3>while this one wasn't in Sydney, so we won't count

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<v Speaker 3>it as part of the sort of total going on

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<v Speaker 3>in Sydney, it does contribute to that sense that there's

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<v Speaker 3>a lot of shark activity happening in the state this week.

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<v Speaker 2>And in the office we have had so many questions

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<v Speaker 2>just internally about what is happening, why now, what is

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<v Speaker 2>it about, you know, weather conditions, if it is that

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<v Speaker 2>that is causing all of these shark bites, And we

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<v Speaker 2>put you to the task of asking this to an

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<v Speaker 2>actual expert, and I believe we're about to hear that interview.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, for sure. So I spoke to doctor Daryl McFee.

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<v Speaker 3>He's renowned for being assarlily sort of go to experts

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<v Speaker 3>on sharks and coastal safety. His work includes a study

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<v Speaker 3>of shark bite incidents in particular and control measures for sharks,

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<v Speaker 3>as well as how human activity impacts the behavior of

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<v Speaker 3>marine life, and he joins us now, Darryl, welcome to

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<v Speaker 3>the Daily Oz.

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you, thanks for having me.

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<v Speaker 3>Now we're talking today because there's been three shark attacks

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<v Speaker 3>in just two days at Sydney Beaches. Can you start

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<v Speaker 3>by explaining why it feels like there's been a surge

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<v Speaker 3>in activity over the past week.

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<v Speaker 1>It's unusual to have those series of three bytes in

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<v Speaker 1>twenty four hours, and we've just had a fourth byte

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<v Speaker 1>in the mid North Coast as well. So at a

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<v Speaker 1>decaytal trend, the number of shark bites is increasing. We're

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<v Speaker 1>also getting better at spotting sharks, recording sharks and circulating

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<v Speaker 1>that information around through various platforms. So it's a common

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<v Speaker 1>of things, but certainly in New South Wales the number

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<v Speaker 1>of shark bites has been increasing over.

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<v Speaker 3>Time and how does that figure compare to maybe the

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<v Speaker 3>national trend or the historical trend.

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<v Speaker 1>There have been increasing trends in other states, with the

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<v Speaker 1>exception of Tasmania. The more recent bites have been occurring

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<v Speaker 1>in northern New South Wales and now we're seeing that

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<v Speaker 1>series of bites in that short period of time in

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<v Speaker 1>the greater Sydney area. In the Sydney area, what do we.

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<v Speaker 3>Know about the sharks or the type of sharks that

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<v Speaker 3>are responsible for these bites.

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<v Speaker 1>There are three shark species responsible for most serious bites

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<v Speaker 1>and fatalities. That's the white shark, the tiger shark and

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<v Speaker 1>the bull shark. At least two of the incidents in

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<v Speaker 1>Sydney and possibly the third are probably from bull sharks.

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<v Speaker 1>We expect bull sharks to be present in Sydney Harbor

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<v Speaker 1>and in the coastal areas around Sydney during these warmer months,

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<v Speaker 1>particularly during January and February, so it's no surprise that

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<v Speaker 1>bull sharks have been there. The first recorded bite on

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<v Speaker 1>the European in Cidney Harbor was eighteen oh seven, so

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<v Speaker 1>it is something that has happened for a long time.

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<v Speaker 3>And why this week is there anything happening with the

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<v Speaker 3>climate that could have spurred this on.

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<v Speaker 1>There's significant rainfall in the catchments. Bull sharks are very

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<v Speaker 1>well adapted to feeding in murky water. That rain also

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<v Speaker 1>flashes down the prey of bull sharks and can concentrate

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<v Speaker 1>them in areas such as the mouth of rivers, estuaries

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<v Speaker 1>and embayments like Sydney Harbor. It's always the case at

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<v Speaker 1>low light levels you expect to see more activity from

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<v Speaker 1>sharks but also other fish predators. Particularly for bull sharks,

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<v Speaker 1>that later afternoon period seems to be one where they're

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<v Speaker 1>a little bit more active. So you've got the right

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<v Speaker 1>time of the year, you've got the right conditions. That

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't guarantee, thankfully, that a bite will always occur, but

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<v Speaker 1>there is an elevated shark activity inshore during those set

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<v Speaker 1>of conditions, and that's what sadly has been experienced.

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<v Speaker 3>A common reaction from people reading the headlines is maybe

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<v Speaker 3>to have a little bit of panic and maybe stay

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<v Speaker 3>out of the water. Are you able to put into

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<v Speaker 3>context what the chances of a shark attack are.

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<v Speaker 1>The chance of an unprovoked shark by occurring is very low.

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<v Speaker 1>It was low last week, it's low this week, and

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<v Speaker 1>it'll be low again next week. It just doesn't feel

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<v Speaker 1>like it with this series of bites. But to put

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<v Speaker 1>it in a perspective, there's been four bites in Sydney

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<v Speaker 1>Harbor over the last fifty years. Is substantially a greater

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<v Speaker 1>risk of drowning at a surf beach than you are

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<v Speaker 1>being killed by a shark. But the government has has

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<v Speaker 1>closed the beaches silly on the Northern Beaches for forty

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<v Speaker 1>eight hours, and I think that's a prudent move. If

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<v Speaker 1>you're a Sydney sider, I wouldn't be getting back in

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<v Speaker 1>the water until that murky water from that rainfall event

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<v Speaker 1>has cleared, and avoiding particularly that late afternoon period. It's

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<v Speaker 1>probably some of the key tips I can give Sydney siders.

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<v Speaker 3>And you mentioned there that the new South Belles government

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<v Speaker 3>they've shut down these beaches and will probably be considering

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<v Speaker 3>a series of measures that they could take to help

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<v Speaker 3>with these types of incidents. When we hear about things

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<v Speaker 3>like culling, increased tracking and shark NEETs. What of those

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<v Speaker 3>solutions do you think are the most responsible steps to take.

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<v Speaker 1>I think in the short term, once the beach is reopened,

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<v Speaker 1>I think the state government should increase its drone surveillance.

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<v Speaker 1>There's some practical challenges with drones, but they're a very

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<v Speaker 1>important and relevant tool for identifying sharks and providing an

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<v Speaker 1>information back to surf life savers on the beach. There

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<v Speaker 1>is no one hundred percent way to eliminate shark bites altogether,

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<v Speaker 1>but we can reduce the risk.

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<v Speaker 3>And on the point of shark nets, there's been a

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<v Speaker 3>lot of discussion over the last year about trials of

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<v Speaker 3>removing them in places, or you know, potentially expanding them.

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<v Speaker 3>What's your take on shark nets.

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<v Speaker 1>I think the long term approach is that we do

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<v Speaker 1>need to transition away from lethal methods to more non

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<v Speaker 1>lethal methods. But these sorts of events obviously do not

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<v Speaker 1>hasten that transition. So we need to stop looking at

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<v Speaker 1>shark nets as a binary choice. Shark nets in, shark

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<v Speaker 1>nets out. We need to be more nuanced and look

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<v Speaker 1>for that longer term transition and bring the beach communities

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<v Speaker 1>along with that transition.

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<v Speaker 3>Now, before we finish, I was wondering if there's anything

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<v Speaker 3>about sharks that you want our listeners to know, or

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<v Speaker 3>maybe a myth that you'd like to dispel.

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<v Speaker 1>Look something that's I've always asked about, is that we

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<v Speaker 1>think we're pretty cool on top of the food chain

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<v Speaker 1>because we've got five sensors. Sharks have eight, so they

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<v Speaker 1>have had four hundred and fifty million years of evolution

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<v Speaker 1>to work out how they set the environment, so they

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<v Speaker 1>probably think we're pretty primitive with just our five senses.

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<v Speaker 1>They can detect magnetic fields, so some shark species can

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<v Speaker 1>migrate large distances based on detecting magnetic fields in the Earth.

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<v Speaker 1>They can detect electric pulses in the water, and that

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<v Speaker 1>means electric deterrence can be an effective personal deterrent tool.

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<v Speaker 1>And like other fish, they can also sense vibrations in

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<v Speaker 1>the water to their sensory system as well, so they

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<v Speaker 1>get by with eight sensors.

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<v Speaker 3>That is amazing. Well, Daryl, thank you so much for

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<v Speaker 3>your time today and thanks for joining the Daily ODS.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you such a fascinating chat. Thank you so much

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<v Speaker 2>to doctor Daryl McPhee for doing that interview with us.

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<v Speaker 2>I imagine he's very busy at the moment with the

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<v Speaker 2>media asking for all of the shark experts to explain

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<v Speaker 2>to us what is going on, so we really appreciate

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<v Speaker 2>his time and thank you so much for listening to

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<v Speaker 2>this episode of The Daily os. We'll be back this

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<v Speaker 2>afternoon with your evening headlines, but until then, have a

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<v Speaker 2>good day and stay safe.

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<v Speaker 3>My name is Lily Maddon and I'm a proud Arunda

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<v Speaker 3>Bunjelung Kalkatin woman from Gadighl country.

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<v Speaker 1>The Daily oz acknowledges that this podcast is recorded on

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<v Speaker 1>the lands of the Gadighl people and pays respect to

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<v Speaker 1>all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island and nations.

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<v Speaker 3>We pay our respects to the first peoples of these countries,

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<v Speaker 3>both past and present.