Shark Legacy Project Begins...
In 2009 myself and fellow PADI IDC Staff Instructor, Giacomo Palavicini started the first shark conservation organization in Honduras with the goals of protecting all shark species in Honduran waters, while educating divers and locals about the value of sharks to reef communities and sustainable tourism.
In Honduras the Whale Shark and Nurse Shark are both protected by law, but none of the other species are; Caribbean Reef Sharks, Scalloped Hammerheads, Great Hammerheads, Silky, Bull, Tiger, Lemon and short fin Mako sharks. All have been found in these waters, but not very often anymore. Due to the lack of funding, dedicated scientists working for the Honduran Fisheries Department didn't have study of shark species or population density found in their coastal waters.
Roatan is known for its sensational diving with Caribbean Reef Sharks, and Utila is known for encounters with Whale Sharks while 'those who know' also commonly find nurse and hammerhead sharks around Roatan as well. While I have had the priviledge to spend many years diving and observing shark species in the Bay Islands of Honduras, I recently began to see evidence of sharks falling under fishing pressure.
Caribbean Reef Shark 'Carcharhinus Perezi' photographed at the dive site 'Cara a Cara' with large hook in jaws and 4 meters of steel wire...
So the decision was made to create a plan for conservation, education and most importantly to establish an economic value of sharks to divers and dive tourism. With a definitive dollar value for these sharks to the growth of tourism the goal of the Shark Legacy Project was to petition the Honduran government to establish strict protection of sharks and the establishment of a Marine Protected Area (MPA).
To aid in the goals of the SLP, myself and Giaco co-authored a distinctive PADI Specialty Course - Shark Diver. This would allow us to share information about sharks with divers and motivate them to support shark conservation. The course involves one power point presentation and 2 dives with sharks, one baited, one non baited, allowing divers to get a feel for different circumstances in diving with sharks.
In 2009 the SLP was granted research status through the Roatan Marine Park and began to meet with the biologists and government officials in charge of fishing policy, national parks and conservation in Honduras. We are pleased to announce that through these efforts the Honduran government put into place a complete moratorium on fishing sharks for the entire country!
The intention of the moratorium is to protect these vulnerable species until further research is done identifying; what species are present, what the population density is of these species and what (if any) fishing pressure can these species support.
In addition to having sharks officially protected the SLP is currently petitioning for the creation of a 100% No Take Zone on the Cordelia Banks, the only offshore coral reef system adjacent to Roatan. This area is unique for; its population of Caribbean Reef Sharks, its grouper spawning events and its immense growth of staghorn and elkhorn corals (both coral species are listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List in the Caribbean).
We are now running the project full-time with the assistance of; the Roatan Marine Park, Barefoot Divers and Waihuka Adventure Diving. Current estimates as to the annual value of one shark to dive tourism here in Roatan exceeds $72,000 with an average life span of 25 years! This means just one of these sharks can be estimated to have a value of $1,800,000!!
The Shark Legacy Project is a self financing venture as we prefer to not have to draw on the limited resources available to NGOs and other organizations that rely on financial support from outside sources. Instead, the SLP has created a number of courses, offers shark researcher internships and hosts visiting scientists, all with the goal of keeping the project self sufficient. We currently offer the following programs:
- PADI Shark Diver course
- Shark Photography course
- Shark Videography course
- Shark Research Internships
Please contact us for further information about these programs, dive education with a conscience!
