The team from California State University Long Beach engaged hundreds in elasmobranch education at Torrey Pines State Beach North Aug 16.
With tables of teeth, eyes and more, the team from California State University Long Beach’s Shark Lab fascinated many who stopped by the “Shark Shack” at Torrey Pines State Beach North in La Jolla Aug 16.
People on their way to and from the beach were able to peruse the maps, drawings, models and more, learning much about the white sharks that often swim nearby from the Shark Lab’s researchers and volunteers.
One fact that intrigued many visitors who stopped to pick up the jar containing a white shark’s eye: White sharks all have blue eyes, which helps them see better in the water.
The Shark Shacks are designed to educate the public “about what we’ve learned about these animals and how we safely share the water with them,” said lab director Christopher Lowe. “We’ve published several papers where we’ve studied the public perception of sharks and stingrays, so that we can better provide them with information to reduce fear and increase stewardship.”
Public outreach is very important to the Shark Lab, said education coordinator Felicity Eriksson, who volunteered for many years as an undergraduate at CSULB and is an incoming grad student in Lowe’s lab.
The Shark Lab team speaks to more than 20,000 people every year, she said, taking on education events from Coronado north to Santa Barbara.
“It’s really important to hit all of our local beaches, especially since all of Southern California is a [white shark] nursery habitat,” Eriksson said, adding Torrey Pines is a “hot spot” currently for the juvenile white shark.
“Temperature is a huge driver” for the sharks, she said, as they tend to seek warmer waters but are otherwise transient up and down the coast, depending on the time of year
“We can see anywhere from five to 40 sharks in a two-mile” stretch, Eriksson added.
The Shark Lab works closely with lifeguards to help them understand the safety implications of shark presence.
The lab team also endeavors with the Shark Shacks to help beachgoers grow their curiosity and appreciation for the sharks.
Sharks are “more afraid of you than you think they are, Eriksson said. “I think it’s important for people to understand that this is their habitat and that they’re not out for blood.’
The movie “Jaws” influenced the fear of a “whole generation,” she said, though it’s “just fiction.”
The juvenile, or young, white sharks, are only hunting stingrays, Eriksson said.
The Shark Shack aims to rotate through all beaches annually, visiting La Jolla once a summer, though the team will attend special events when requested.
“Our research is really based in public safety and conservation efforts,” Eriksson said. “We want people to be more understanding of sharks and be able to make the best beach safety practices they can [when] going in the ocean.”
The Torrey Pines Docent Society
The Shark Shack was invited to Torrey Pines State Beach North by the Torrey Pines Docent Society, a volunteer group under the auspices of the California State Parks Department to educate people about the need for conservation and preservation of the Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve and adjacent beach, said docent Nancy Novak.
The animals, plants and other ecological elements are all “in relationship with each other,” Novak said. the tidelands, the rivers that drain into it. “We want to educate people so that they care and take responsibility, because we want this to be there forever.”
The docents also take on maintenance, guided walks and more along the reserve’s eight miles of trails.
The Docent Society has hosted the CSULB Shark Lab for lectures and other events previously, Novak said.
“We have a two-mile stretch here where juvenile whites cruise up and down just outside the surf line” for the warm water and food types. “People are really curious about sharks.”
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