Sharks are big grey killing machines hunting people, right?

That’s the big picture the majority of people have. However, what if I told you that this is not true? What if I told you that sharks are one of the most important animals alive? Would you believe me or would you rather believe the fairy-tale about the great white shark hunting a woman similar to the film “Jaws”? I hope you are ready for the truth.

I am going to tell you a few things I have learned during my volunteer work with GVI in Mexico. To help raise awareness for shark and ray protection we had an event with games and documentaries focusing on sharks. These involved building a shark fin out of recyclable material, building a shark or ray shaped sandcastle, having a shark treasure hunt and watching a documentary called “Sharkwater”. Whilst playing these games and watching the documentary, I’ve learned a lot about sharks. Did you know that there are over 500 different types of sharks and that they are older than dinosaurs?

The most important thing I have learned is that sharks are essential for the planet to survive. This is so because they are keeping the food chain of the ocean stable. If the shark, as the biggest predator, is falling away, all the big fishes will eat the small fishes. When there are no more small fishes, which are eating algae, the algae will start growing without control and will overgrow everything. That will end with a dead ocean and we all know that the ocean provides the biggest amount of oxygen.

So why do we still think sharks are dangerous and continue to kill them for their fins? Over 150 Million Sharks are killed each year just to use the fins for shark soup. After cutting the fins off, they get thrown back into the ocean, left to slowly die.

With that knowledge I hope you stand up and raise your voice to protect these beautiful creatures. Standing up for what I love and what I believe in is exactly what I am doing now. As a diver, one of the highlights of any dive comes in the form of a shark sighting, and since their numbers are getting smaller and smaller with time, the chance for me to personally see one is also getting smaller. With your help and with your awareness, we can come together and put a stop to the hate surrounding sharks.

By, Julia Holzer