An unprecedented spike in shark attacks over the past two years prompted state officials to fund a study to tag and track the movement of tiger sharks in the waters off Maui.
Source: www.hawaiinewsnow.com
A research team led by Dr. Carl Meyer of the UH Institute of Marine Biology has reversed some of the misconceptions attributed to tiger sharks. Rather than roaming freely through various depths, Dr. Meyer said "we are seeing a strong preference for coastal habitats shallower than 600 feet…they (tiger sharks) are most frequently detected in the sea between the coast and the 600-foot depth contour which is up to 10 miles off shore around Maui." Some of the same behaviors are seen around Oahu. While the data are incomplete, they at least give us an area to consider avoiding during our beach activities. Aloha, Russ.