Assessing the impact of white shark cage-diving tourism on fish assemblages

Project description

Wildlife tourism is becoming increasingly popular and often uses bait to attract the target species and improve customer experience. However, few studies have assessed the effects of food-based attractants on non-target species. The Neptune Islands Group in South Australia is home to Australia’s only white shark cage-diving operations. Here, two operators use up to 2,000 kg of bait and chum per fortnight to attract white sharks, but its effects on the non-target fish assemblage are unknown despite these fishes feeding on the bait and chum used. Baited Remote Underwater Video Stations (BRUVS) were used to quantify and compare fish assemblages both at the Neptune Islands and at another similar location without any cage-diving operations, across a four-year time span. This project will deploy BRUVS for a fifth year, characterise fish assemblages, and assess whether the cage-diving industry has affected non-target species.

Co-supervisors

Dr Lauren Meyer

Assumed knowledge

B Sc (Marine Biology) or B Sc (Animal Behaviour), Interest in learning EventMeasure (software used to code BRUVS videos)