Writer and photographer Alison Smith argues that shark feeding in Fiji has brought many benefits to the marine life and local communities, but points out the dangers of such a poorly regulated tourist business
Fijians have a seamless connection to the reefs and the oceans surrounding them. They have historically crossed oceans in small dugout canoes. As children, they play in the sea from an early age and most Fijian men are incredibly good spearfishers. Returning to the village with a good catch incurs a ‘champion’ status.
The Fijian shark deity, ‘Dakuwaqa’ is revered in popular culture and routinely given ceremonial offerings of kava (an intoxicating drink common in the South Pacific), in order to protect fishermen. Today, that relationship is taking a new form with the offering of organised shark dives for tourists.
The reefs and shallow waters of the 300-plus islands that make up this archipelago, scattered over an area of 1.3 million square kilometres, are blessed with sharks. Bulls, tigers, lemons, silvertips and grey reefs are common. There are also comparatively healthy populations of hammerheads, guitar sharks, makos and leopards.
Fiji’s bull shark feeds are now world-famous. In Beqa Lagoon on the south side of the main island of Viti Levu, locals, protected with just a glove and a stick, wrangle eager sharks for the delight of tourists. The sheer number of the bull sharks that emerge from the 100m-deep ocean to snatch a bite of a tuna carcass is astonishing.
Dives can regularly deliver 40 and more of these apex predators, many of which are pregnant females measuring more than three metres in length. In addition to the bull sharks, divers enjoy the company of tawny nurse sharks, silvertips, lemon sharks and the occasional tiger shark.
Approximately 49,000 divers took part in at least one shark dive in Fiji during 2010 – the last time a proper survey was conducted. It is estimated, conservatively, that shark-feeding dives have increased by at least a third in the post-Covid tourism rebound of 2023. It is thought nearly 80 per cent of all divers visiting Fiji to dive all over the country will extend their stay to dive with the sharks in Beqa Lagoon for a day or two.
Shark diving is a major Fijian industry. The economic benefits are very persuasive to a country which relies on tourism. A study by the University of Western Australia, back in 2010, estimated that shark diving contributed US$42.2 million to the Fijian economy, of which US$17 million went directly to the Fijian government through taxes paid by the operators.
Beqa Lagoon has long been a draw for adventure seekers who want to wow their friends with bull shark footage from a GoPro and tick a box on their list of
‘must-do’ encounters. To dive with bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) is incredibly exhilarating. They have street cred – they’re large and aggressive and are
responsible for fatal attacks on humans around the world.
Bull sharks can weigh up to 225kg and have the strongest bite of all sharks, including great white sharks and tiger sharks. With a force of 217kg (478lbs), this is far greater than that needed to kill and eat their prey. These big, burly requiem sharks are also the only sharks capable of surviving for long periods in fresh water, and this is why they live in the Beqa Lagoon area close to the river estuaries of Fiji’s main island of Viti Levu.
The shark-feeding business has meant a major shift in the relationship between the local Fijians and the ocean. No longer are fishing rights being granted to any local needing to earn a living. Many of the reefs where the shark feeds take place have been fished out in recent years. The majority of Fijian villagers live a subsistence existence: wages are low – the minimum wage is just four Fijian dollars (£1.30) per hour.
The traditional chief of the village, the ‘Turaga-nikoro’ had in the past little choice but to grant fishing rights to the coral reefs under his jurisdiction. For a sum as small as US$180 for a year’s fishing, the reefs were being emptied of fish life, and in many areas the marine environment went into severe decline.
The first shark-feed dives began in 1999 using tuna remains from the canneries in Fiji’s capital, Suva. They quickly attracted the resident bull sharks. A 100m-deep ‘bull shark’ freeway allows the sharks to move between the various river mouths in the lagoon. As you ascend after the dive you can witness the bull sharks drift off, and descend into the deep channel once the feed is over.
The mechanics of the dive are simple – the Fijian shark men will go out to the reef an hour prior to the guest divers and lower the feed bin, filled with fish blood and guts, onto the dive site, secured with ropes. By the time the dive boat arrives, nurse sharks are nuzzling the bin and the bull sharks are circling. The theatrics begin with the feed bin being dragged about a metre away from the guest divers before a hand feeder, protected by sticks held by colleagues, goes into action.
A tuna head is quickly taken from the bin and held up to a bull shark, before the audience. It is mesmerising to watch the jaws of a shark opening and
slamming shut around the fish head. Many of the sharks have stainless-steel hooks embedded in their jaws from Chinese longliners out on the High Sea, which the feeders remove when possible. Fiji’s sharks have also long been under pressure from reef degradation caused by overfishing, agricultural run-off and coral bleaching.
The debate rages about the ethics of shark feeding. One of the major issues raised is the possibility that feeding the sharks will lead to them associating humans with food. Undoubtedly, the sharks link the arrival of the dive boat with food. They know the noise and vibrations of the engine and will be circling ready for the action. They are habituated to the feed-bin system and they clearly recognise individual shark-feeders.
It is fascinating to watch the interaction between the shark-feeders in Beqa Lagoon and the resident bull sharks. Some of the divers are able just to raise a hand or tap a stick when the sharks become too animated for comfort and to make a cross with their arms if there is no food left. Strangely, the sharks appear to understand.
The argument that feeding the sharks will make them more aggressive to humans does not seem to hold water. Once the feed is over, the sharks invariably disappear down into the blue depths. When diving the sites when a feed is not taking place and there is no food in the water, a few of the resident sharks will emerge to see if anything is happening. However, their casual pace and their body language are very different. It’s certainly not that of an aggressive predator interested in humans!
What does appear to be different, as a result of the feed activity, is the number of sharks staying in the Beqa Lagoon area. The river mouths on the south side of Viti Levu, where the rain from the Fiji highlands drains into the ocean, are the preferred area for the bull shark females to have their pups. The bull shark females will disappear in November for several weeks into the murky water of the river estuaries to give birth.
It was also common for most of the males to move away from the area as they mature, only to return for mating. Although no scientific study has been done on the changing patterns of the shark population, the shark feeders, themselves, believe the composition of the resident population has changed.
‘Since we have been feeding, the population of bull sharks has grown a lot,’ explains Wati Watisoni, a Fijian shark hand-feeder who has been working with the sharks for more than 20 years. ‘It is only possible to hand-feed the slow female sharks, as the younger males are unpredictable and aggressive. The males used to move out of the area but now they stay around. I can still see a lot of the original female sharks and they know me, but the male population has grown a lot, and I don’t trust them.’
A number of the local dive staff in Fiji have been bitten over the years. Some of the shark divers from the villages have scars from old bites, normally from hand-feeding, where a hungry shark, amid a cloud of fish guts, can make a mistake. A couple of incidents have required multiple stitches and emergency visits to nearby Suva hospital.
It is obviously not something the shark-dive operators like to publicise. To date, there has not been a serious injury. It is telling that swimmers and snorkellers have not been bitten in the Beqa Lagoon area considering there are so many bull sharks present. It seems, apparently, the bull sharks are not willing to exert the massive biological energy used in ‘biting’ when the potential prey is not a meal a they normally would target.
The main threat to the delicate balance between the shark-dive industry and the Fijian villagers is the potential for an accident. There are four shark feeds in the Beqa Lagoon area. Some, such as the ‘Bistro’ dive site, have up to 30 divers (often very inexperienced) at any one time. This is very stressful for the Fijian shark-divers as they attempt to assist the novice divers with weight, buoyancy and occasionally panic attacks.
There are often frenzied squeals from the novice divers as the sharks circle back around the group as they take turns being fed. Additionally, the current can also be strong in the area, making safety stops a problem. The dives are also to a depth of 23m, which without nitrox, means short bottom times.
The sudden halt in the shark feeds in Fiji’s Beqa Lagoon during the Covid-19 pandemic created problems. Bull sharks started to appear near the capital, Suva, as they drifted away from Beqa Lagoon on the hunt for food. They were spotted around public beaches and near Suva’s fish market, where scraps are often thrown into the ocean. This tested local patience with the shark-feeding businesses.
There is also an issue with the number of shark feeds around Fiji. After the success of the initial shark feed in Beqa Lagoon more than 20 years ago, there has been an unregulated expansion in the number of resorts baiting the water to try to develop their own shark feeds. There are several shark feeds now in the Yasawa Islands and Mamanuca chain on the west side of Fiji. Most, if not all, are owned by foreign operators.
The levels of protection are woeful for the shark divers when compared with the chain mail suits used in the Caribbean and Mexico – the other two main shark-feeding destinations. Some operators only provide the feeder with one glove extending to the wrist. There is also no insurance policy for the divers’
families in the event of an accident
The worst thing for the bull sharks of Beqa, for the Fiji dive industry, and for the villagers themselves, would be an accident which closes the industry. In a world that is less that optimal for sharks, this may be the best way we can protect shark populations in Fiji.
There is always someone knocking on the door of the South Pacific islands for access to fishing rights. An estimated 75 per cent of the sharks present at the four bull shark feeds in Beqa are injured by fishing hooks in some capacity. Marine park status takes a long time to achieve as traditional Fijian owners of the country’s reefs must agree to the no-take measures. Marine park conservation areas also require diligent policing, which is not something developing
nations such as Fiji can easily afford.
If you do wish to experience a Fijian shark dive, please choose an operator who gives back to the local community and protects their divers – one that is involved in shark conservation. Pick a local operator with the profits going to the local community, rather than one that is foreign-owned.
Alison Smith is a professional photographer and the founder of www.waterlustfiji.com dive travel. She is passionate about protecting the sharks and the reefs of Fiji. She is also the author of Blue Bubbles – Underwater Fiji, a 178-page visual journey through the underwater world of the Fijian archipelago. For details on how to purchase, Alison can be contacted at allyfiji@me.com, or follow her on Facebook @waterlustphotographer and Instagram @waterlust_fiji_diving
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