Other species are seasonally accessible; at the iconic Tiger Beach site off Grand Bahama, large tiger sharks
and dozens of lemon sharks have posed for countless Shark Week documentaries. Oceanic whitetips are
known to visit the waters off Cat Island, and Bimini has emerged as a hotspot for great hammerheads. None
of this might have been possible except for the prescient ecological sensitivity of the Bahamas’ government
in outlawing shark fishing several decades ago. Whereas it is rare to see a shark in so many parts of the world
because of the ruthless efficiency of longline fishing fleets and the rapacious appetite for shark fins, this nation
reveres its shark populations and serves as a global role model for enlightened conservation.
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The Bahamas is one of the world’s most
enlightened nations
when it comes to
shark conservation
.
Residents recognized
very early that their sharks had far greater economic impact
alive, for divers to see, than dead for obscenely wasteful
consumption in shark fin soup.
Sharks are totally protected
in the Bahamas,
and as a result 40 species of shark thrive in
these waters. In-water interactions have become predictable
and are conducted safely by local dive operators.