A Shark's Response to the Human Touch: The Catatonic State

Sharks are animals that I would not imagine anyone wanting to pet or stroke. I mean, can you picture yourself petting a Great White Shark or a Tiger Shark? How about swimming with a Great White? Now, there are many things I would like to do, but this is definitely not one of them. However, there are those who do and do it all the time.

My daughter loves animals and wildlife, especially sharks. She has studied and learned a great deal about animals, hoping to become an animal rehabilitater one day. She loves to watch The Discovery Channel and Animal Planet every chance she gets. There was one particular week when The Discovery Channel aired documentaries about sharks every day and night throughout that entire week. Well, my daughter had to watch every single one over and over. I tried not to look most of the time, but to my surprise by the middle of the week these sharks became a part of our family.

One night, I was doing my schoolwork and my daughter was watching one of the documentaries named Sharkman. Now, prior to seeing this particular piece on sharks, I thought these animals were fierce and savaged creatures. Every time I looked, there she was watching one of the shows with such detailed graphics, while she was eating. Now, that is a strong stomach.

Sharkman was different and even got my attention, so I stopped what I was doing to watch it with her. A man named Mike and a woman went diving to the bottom of the ocean floor, so they could demonstrate a technique that is used to put a shark in a catatonic state (state of relaxation) by gently rubbing or caressing it. They used bait to lure the sharks to them first, and what happened next was astounding. If I had not have seen this with my own two eyes, I would not have believed it. A shark swam straight into the lap of the woman as she was standing on the ocean floor. The shark liked her touch, so she came back for more. The woman began to rub the female shark just beneath the nose and caused her to relax and become catatonic. This was an unbelievable site because the very instant the woman began to stroke and rub the shark, she stood still and you could see her eyes closing as every part of the shark was becoming catatonic or relaxed. Basically, the shark was motionless and asleep.

Mike wanted to try this technique on a Tiger Shark, so he dove to the ocean floor, once again. A Tiger Shark is a very aggressive shark, but there was one particular shark that displayed such gentleness with him because of his touch. These sharks wanted to be touched by him, the same way a dog or cat wants us to pet them.

One of the Tiger Sharks became jealous and pushed the others out of the way because she wanted him to touch her. She wanted Mike's affection all for herself and would fight for it. She ran straight into his hand, so he could caress her. Once he began to rub her under her nose, the shark was in such a deep and relaxed state that Mike was able to balance the shark in the palm of his hand by her nose. This shark was completely relaxed and floating, while enjoying every stroke. Would you ever imagine such a thing with a Tiger Shark, or any shark for that matter? I know I sure would not.

The last and final time Mike dove to the bottom of the ocean floor, because he wanted to try to use the catatonic technique for a Great White Shark. Now, my heart was really beating on this part because these sharks are huge. All I could think of was Jaws, as I saw a 10 foot Great White female approach him. The closer she came to Mike, the more curious she was with him and the feel of his touch. As she swam near him he attempted to touch her nose but was barely able to do so. She swam past him a few more times, because she was obviously intrigued by his touch. However, the next time the shark swam by him, she turned and revealed her stomach to him. When a shark reveals or shows their stomach, it is a sign of yielding or submitting to another shark. Yet, this Great White female was yielding herself to Mike. By the time the shark was comfortable with him, she was scared off by another Great White female that was about 17 feet long. The bigger female shark approached him, so he decided to take his opportunity to touch her. However, instead of him being able to rub her, she allowed him to swim with her, while he was holding onto her fin for 75 feet. This shark could have easily turned and devoured him, but she did not.

Sharks are not as vicious as they appear to be, apparently. To know that two people could rub a shark and have them fighting for their attention and affection is something to be in awe of. However, this does not mean I would want to try this, nor do I want to swim with them. I do not believe just anyone could do something like this, because it requires a certain touch and a gift, which these two people obviously have.