Here at Beneath the Waves we wanted to bring you the insider scoop on the superstars of Shark Week. Thus, we elicited the help of five of our most favorite sharky scientists. Today we caught up with Marine Biologist Alison Towner of University of Cape Town, SA, to tell us a bit about the shark science she is involved in, how she got where she is today, and what she thinks we can do to move shark conservation forward.
 

 
Briefly can you describe the focus of your research and the species you work on?
 
My research focuses on the movement and ecology of white sharks in Gansbaai, South Africa. The work investigates the potential driving factors behind white shark presence in the region such as food and environmental parameters through telemetry and long-term boat based data collection.
 
In your opinion, how can people help save sharks?
 
Education and outreach are powerful tools for shark conservation, particularly with children who are ultimately the next generation to handle our sharks future. Supporting ethical shark eco tourism, particularly in poorer countries, can directly facilitate keeping shark species worth more alive than dead and enforce government protection. Knowledge is power, many shark stocks suffer major declines, simply because there is limited research or data available on their key life history traits. Shark research (like most marine research) is very expensive and funding limited. By supporting active NGO’s with research projects the public can help make a huge difference to the research to aid management decisions for sharks.
 

 
How did you get involved in shark research and what advice would you give those interested in studying them?
 
I began working for the Dyer Island Conservation Trust as their marine biologist and guide 8 years ago. For the first 5 years I worked daily on their shark diving vessel where I spent literally thousands of hours at sea collecting data and observing the sharks! I began acoustic tagging and tracking the predator from a dedicated research vessel in 2010 and from this work I am conducting my PhD. I am very lucky to have had such support from the Dyer Island Conservation trust and Marine Dynamics shark Tours although I did work hard for it! My advice would be study hard and never let anyone tell you that you cannot study sharks. If it’s truly the career for you there will be a way. Internships offer invaluable field experience and many shark orientated NGOs offer programs these days, I would highly recommend trying these!

HAPPY SHARK WEEK!