Adopt a Shark - COMING SOON!
By adopting a Grey Nurse shark, you can give it a nickname and receive updates each time it is spotted by citizen scientists. Funds raised through shark adoptions are used to maintain the Spot A Shark program and supports additional Grey Nurse shark research and conservation.
When you adopt a shark you will receive a certificate in the post and information pack about the Grey Nurse Shark, along with any photos in our database of your shark. Please expect 10 business days for delivery within Australia.
Famous Sharks
Unidentified Sharks
Support our "SavingNorman" Campaign
Norman is a name given to the Grey Nurse sharks of Bondi, Sydney.
We are currently compiling evidence that Bondi is a new aggregation site and just like the critical habitat in Magic Point, it sits alongside the Department of Primary Industries Shark Meshing Programme's shark nets, which capture and kill our shark population every year. In fact over 90% of what is caught in these nets are non target species. Every year Grey Nurse Sharks die in these nets across NSW.
In 2020 the trigger point was hit for the number of Grey Nurse sharks killed in the nets but the nets remain in place. These shark nets were installed in 1937 to "rid the ocean of sharks" and contrary to popular belief, they do not keep swimmers safe. Go to www.change.org/savingnorman/ to sign the petition to remove these nets, install much safer solutions that will provide swimmers with far more safety, whilst not harming the marine life, and find out more here: www.savingnorman.com.au
Donate - COMING SOON!
Spot a Shark relies on donations for its continuing existence. Funds raised go towards:
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General administration: Spot a Shark does not use paid fundraisers or pay its staff for their time but we do have costs associated to running websites, domains, and the associated servers and Wildbook software.
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Scientific papers & publications: Spot a Shark can occasionally incur costs in relation to preparing scientific research or publications for the Grey Nurse shark population that help provide evidence of the health, distribution and population size that can be used to maintain recovery actions from the government and scientific community.
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Surveys: Our ongoing research relies upon surveys of populations up and down the coast and whilst our volunteers try their best to perform as many surveys as they can out of their own pocket it helps to get funding to help with boat costs so that more thorough surveys can be performed.
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Grey Nurse Shark related campaigns: Spot a Shark also may incur costs in relation to rescuing injured sharks, or in materials used for campaigns that aim to raise awareness and help protect shark populations,
Learn how to dive
If you want to learn how to dive, improve your skills or get out diving with dive centres who are familiar with Grey Nurse sharks and may be able to arrange you boat dives to see these animals we would recommend the following centres who have supported us with donating many photos and giving us a lot of time for our ongoing research:
- Wolf Rock (Wolf Rock Dive Centre)
- Byron Bay (Sundive)
- South West Rocks (South West Rocks Dive Centre)
- Forster
- Nelson Bay (Feet First Dive Centre)
- Sydney (Dive Centre Bondi)
- Shellharbour
- Narooma (Narooma Charters)
