Blake Chapman

The title says it all really. This is a book about shark attacks, why and when they might happen, the media and political response to shark incidences, the psychology and evolution of our fear of sharks, the mitigation options available, the treatment of shark bites and the developments in trauma medicine for these somewhat atypical wounds. Inserted throughout are powerful personal stories from shark attack victims, first responders, friends of those fatally bitten and the perspectives of several organisations tasked with the implementation of shark mitigation options.

The first section of the book covers shark biology, particularly as relates to their movement and feeding behaviours. I’m not a newbie to the topic (or biology in general) and I struggled with parts of this section, the writing in a few places lacked clarity or sufficient explanation of biological terms or phenomena. I’ve certainly read better descriptions of shark biology. The photos used throughout were the other weakness, they’re black and white and sometime didn’t illustrate specific species features very clearly.

The rest of the book however, was very good and covered a lot of ground and perspectives. The author primarily situates the text in Australia but also includes South Africa and the USA (Hawai’i and Florida), with two key examples from Reunion Island and Brazil also discussed. The explanation of mitigation measures in particular was great, the underlying logic, pros and cons of each option (placebo legislation is a thing…) and their perceived versus actual effectiveness is all laid out. A lot of current research has been pulled together in the writing of this book and Chapman highlights the conflict between the (low) risk to people and the need to conserve these amazing creatures which are also ecologically important.… (mer)