The Shark Podcast: Shark Awareness Day

 

I almost missed "Shark Awareness Day". I'm very aware that I've not been participating in all the many many #SharkWeek posts because a) it's not airing here, b) I've been quite caught up with work and c) I didn't find any of the episode titles that catchy. But I didn't want to miss the shark action so finally got around to do some comics.

I'm really happy there's a Shark Awareness Day - because a friend who isn't a shark-freak (yet!) reminded me of it this morning so obviously it is reaching people and making them aware. 

The Shark Podcast: World Oceans Day Special

 

What blows me away about the ocean is the fact that we still don't know so much about it. Life as we know it started in the waters. And us humans, being the only ones capable of reason and creativity were supposed to take care of all the other creatures. We failed miserably because we took care of ourselves, not knowing that to take care of the planet was to take care of ourselves. Now all of it suffers. It's time for us to do our duty and take care of what has been taking care of us all these millennia. We need a healthy ocean in order to have a healthy planet. Hence we need a good and healthy shark population. This is a shark podcast, after all. 

Sharktivity #24: Atlantic Weasel Shark finds its View-Master 3D (Couch series #2)

I have now enough sharktivities to fill calendars for the next two years (provided we all survive until then)! Now, how many of you have seen a View-Master? Millennials and later gens please don't answer. I've been showing my little nephew my old View-Master and he finds it as fascinating as his iPad so that gives me some hope. My parents got me several "knowledge building" reels and a couple of cartoon ones. Guess which ones are the most worn out?
The Atlantic Weasel shark (Paragaleus pectoralis) is one that I hardly find pictures of - I keep wanting to see photos of those amazing yellow streaks. There isn't much data on them either so they are listed as "data deficient" on the IUCN red list.

Sharktivity #19: Mako Shark stays up to speed

Mako sharks are the fastest sharks in the ocean - thankfully they have all sorts of equipment to help them vent all that speed. I hope that kind of looks like a treadmill.
The more common Mako is the shortfin Mako (Isurus oxyrinchus). These beautiful and incredible sharks are hunted for sport by people with brains that have some sort of short-wiring. They are now considered endangered on the IUCN red list.

Sharktivity #18: Angelshark spends way too much time online!

Sometimes I think that this is all that the angelshark can do during a lockdown - lie down and explore the internet. This is one of those sharks that I dread drawing - it's not even that sharkish! There are several types of angelsharks (this is another generic one) and once used to be quite common.

However, angelsharks are now listed as CRITICALLY ENDANGERED in the IUCN red list - this means they are one step away from being extinct in the wild. :(

I hope this angelshark is looking at happier things online.

Sharktivity #3: Silky Shark catches the sunrise

The silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis) has smooth and silky skin. They're beautiful sharks. They are listed as vulnerable on the IUCN red list because their numbers are decreasing. All they want is to be able to watch the sunrise each day and live happily.

Keep the fins

Here's another one to go with the album cover series. Bon Jovi's 'Keep the faith' was one of my favourite albums in school. I'd been playing with this idea for a while and sadly my art skills are not adequate for such a task - it would look awesome in traditional media. Anyway, the point is, let sharks keep their fins. It shocks me that finning is still a thing.
Find an alternative to the sharkfin soup already - pumpkin is wonderful.

13 Reasons Why (I Love Sharks)

I probably cannot tell you how many times I've been asked the question "Why Sharks?". I usually tell them it's because they ask such a question.
And then I thought about it and decided that I should give them a bunch of real reasons why I love sharks. So I came up with these. Don't worry, I do have a few sarcastic replies as well which will hopefully be another comic strip at some point.

For those of you who don't know, Port Jackson sharks are a type of Bullhead shark species (Heterodontiformes).

If you have a particular reason why you love sharks, do let me know and hopefully I can turn it into a cartoon for the next set of reasons.


I'll get a poster done at some point and it'll probably look like this. So let me know if you'd like one.

ps - I have not watched "13 Reasons Why" nor am I a fan of "Game of Thrones" so my apologies to those shows.

The Shark's Poem (Now in technicolor)

A slightly modified version of my Shark poem. It somewhat captures what a shark is and what we have done to the species. We need our oceans, our oceans need sharks, ergo we need sharks. We don't need shark fin soup as much as we need oceans. Hopefully we will see an increase in intelligence in this matter in this generation.
Sharks are usually the main attraction in aquariums. Watching them makes life better even if just for the moment. They're on almost all kids' apparel brands these days (mostly on boys' but girls love sharks as much if not more). Don't let sharks die out.

Was that a Leopard or a Zebra?

I come across pictures of Zebra Sharks (Stegostoma fasciatum) wrongly labeled as "Leopard Sharks" and hence this attempt at an infographic. I understand why people make the error - after all, adult Zebra Sharks have no stripes, let alone any resemblance to a zebra. But it was named as a child and the name stuck.
The Leopard Shark (Triakis semifasciata), on the other hand, doesn't really lounge around on tree branches nor is it found in the Asian/African region. It does have some beautiful markings though.

The two sharks look different enough and they are easy to tell apart. One just has to remember that the ridged, spotted, nurse-shark-look-alike is a Zebra shark.

I taught my 2-year old nephew to identify them and when he saw a Zebra shark at an aquarium he said "Zebra Shark". My sister ignorantly told him it was a Leopard Shark. Luckily one of the workers told her she was wrong and he was right. Another proud aunt moment.

Sandbar Shark Appreciation Day!

The Sandbar Shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus) is a species of requiem shark, and part of the family Carcharhinidae. It is distinguishable by its very high first dorsal fin and inter-dorsal ridge. 

The sandbar shark is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List.

It has been rarely associated with threats on humans. And yet, they are probably thrown in the "oh my gawd.... it's a big scary shark" category and fished recreationally (probably for the purpose of selfies). 

Year of the Dog

This year let us learn more about some of the lesser known/ less publicised sharks. They are just as spectacular and interesting. I've drawn a few of them here - they are not easy but enjoyable to draw.
The Dogfish family is one of the largest but many of them have very little known about them. The ones that were abundant have become far less in number. Let us keep them from going away completely.

Mutual learning

I was asked to do a cartoon on what we can learn from the ocean. This one was a bit deeper and more serious than intended so I did a different one for that project (hopefully you'll see it someday soon). But I did like the message of this one so I thought I'd complete it anyway. Quite apt with teachers' day around the corner, isn't it?
I think so much about our planet can be learnt from the ocean. It should be protected and respected but we take it for granted. Ocean life can fill us with awe and wonder every time we encounter it and yet we are systematically destroying it. What an opinion they must have about us!

ps - I do love the idea of these mini-discussion groups around the reef.

No touchy

This was an idea for India's first dive expo - Most divers are extremely respectful towards marine life and that is why one of the first things they insist is for all snorkelers and divers to not touch fish, coral or anything in the water. It's not a petting zoo, people.

Ghost net busters!

India's first Dive Expo is happening in Pondicherry and Temple adventures asked me if I could do some awareness posters for some of the issues they face.
This is the first of them. Ghost nets are real. Many sea creatures get entrapped and die because of these.

Bitter about Litter!

I was asked to make some art for a beach festival (please read the post script for my take on this) to spread the message of "No littering". I made these ten.  The footprints, the "ocean-minded", "ocean sense" and "make trash extinct" lines are inspired by other posters I saw online.

The rest may seem a bit harsh, but honestly littering is just a combination of laziness, selfishness, bad manners and being aesthetically challenged. It's not that hard to find a bin. It's not too hard to take it with you. Don't litter public spaces - trash isn't pretty and it harms life around you especially marine life.

#1 - Part of your world? No, thanks.

#2 - Forget them not.

#3 - Love your neighbour

#4 - No mixed signals please!

#5 - Take it back.

#6 - Yay, us!

PS- This "festival" I went to was at a local beach and was very pretty, nicely decorated. It was mainly beach sports + music + dance + puppy pad - a bit hodgepodgey. While the environment was fabulous, I read a post about how these festivals could harm the beaches if proper care isn't taken. If such was the case, I should have known better so I apologise to my marine conservationist friends for not doing enough research or for not having a deeper conversations about these concerns (although I didn't really hear back from the conservationists). But if people love the beach so much, litter and marine life should be as much of a concern as enjoying it.

Vote for Sharks & Rays at CITES CoP17

Threshers are so cute. How could they kill that face?

There's about a month to go for CITES CoP17 at Johannesburg.  This year there are proposals to include the Silky Shark, Thresher Sharks, Mobula Rays and Ocellate River Stingrays in Appendix II. Silky Sharks were once abundant but their numbers have drastically reduced due to finning and overfishing. The Threshers have also rapidly decreased due to finning. These are beautiful sharks. I hope they get the protection status they need.

Why Sharks?

This is probably the question I get asked the most at any exhibit or event. I should probably stick to events like Shark-Con or Shark Fest but then who would I be able to convince that sharks are awesome?
It's the fact that they don't get it that makes me want them to know.

Shark Fest UK 2016

I made this logo for Shark Fest 2016 and it won! I'm excited about it. I'll update this page more once I'm closer to being there.

Bigger fish? For how long?

"There's always a bigger fish." - Qui Gon Jinn, The Phantom Menace

Well, not if you kill off the biggest fish there is, right? 

The Whale Shark has just gone from "Vulnerable" to "Endangered" in IUCN's list.  How could we let this happen - and to the gentlest of giants?