Three years after nice white shark assaults induced one death and rocked beachgoers, shark-related tourism has grown within the trip vacation spot of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
Native outlets in Chatham promote shark-themed attire and different knickknacks, with jaws on illustrated sharks open large and revealing giant pointed enamel.
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT SHARKS ON US COASTLINES
events are in a position to join charter boat operators on nice white shark excursions close to the shoreline for a charge.
On this Could 22, 2019 file photograph, a pair stands subsequent to a shark warning signal whereas trying on the ocean at Lecount Hole Seashore in Wellfleet, Massachusetts. (AP Picture/Charles Krupa)
Cape Cod hosts about four million guests a yr, who deliver in additional than $1 billion in tourism spending and assist hundreds of jobs.
As shark specialists name for a rebranding of the marine predators – suggesting that assaults be relabeled “incidents” or “interactions” – Cape Cod has begun to tentatively embrace its toothier neighbors.
“A number of years in the past, there was a priority that it might need a destructive impression on tourism,” Paul Niedzwiecki, CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce, told The Associated Press earlier this month. “However we’ve been working to coach individuals about sharks and what we’ve really seen isn’t any destructive impression.”
On this July 2, 2014 photograph, a buyer examines shark-themed clothes at a retailer in Chatham, Massachusetts. (AP Picture/Steven Senne)
Whereas there is not any definitive tally for a way a lot shark-related tourism contributes to the Cape Cod economy, Niedzwiecki stated that its progress helps to increase the vacationer season into the autumn.
Peak shark sightings occur in August and September, and dozens of seashores have been closed in latest weeks as sharks journey up and down the East Coast.
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Weather permitting, shark researchers anticipate to be out tagging and observing the creatures into November.
Though Massachusetts doesn’t rank within the prime 10 states for many unprovoked bites, exercise is presently “a lot sharkier,” Atlantic White Shark Conservancy ecotourism naturalist Maddie Poirier told The Boston Herald.
Seals, a meals supply for space nice white sharks, bask within the solar and swim, close to the sighting of an amazing white shark off the Massachusetts’ coast of Cape Cod, on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2021. (AP Picture/Charles Krupa)
Seal populations, deliciously meaty shark snacks, have additionally been growing, in line with the Cape Cod Times.
Officers have labored to invest in higher coaching and gear for lifeguards and first responders, surfers have armed themselves with shark repellents and different teams have pushed for added security measures together with land-based warning techniques and drone surveillance.
On the Atlantic coast, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) coastal survey this yr captured practically 2,500 sharks from 11 totally different species.
A terrific white shark swims previous a ship on a shark watch with Dragonfly Sportfishing charters off the Massachusetts’ coast of Cape Cod on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2021. (AP Picture/Charles Krupa)
Very like the sandbar shark, white sharks are discovered on each coasts and nice whites are the world’s largest recognized predatory fish, in line with the World Wildlife Foundation.
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Globally, there have been round 129 alleged shark-human interactions in 2020, according to the International Shark Attack File.
There have been 13 three shark-related fatalities, 10 of which have been categorized as unprovoked.
The Related Press contributed to this report.
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