A change in the waters? Cape Cod leaders split on shark problem

When 16-year-old Arthur Medici was bitten by a shark Saturday, it was the first time someone had been killed on the cape by a shark since 1936.

A spate of sightings this summer and the pair of bites – one of which was fatal – are adding fuel to the debate over how to keep sharks away from swimmers.

"We've got wild animals out there," Dr. Greg Skomal, a shark expert with the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, said. "We have sharks that are trying to attack seals, and they are overlapping with humans."

Skomal believes a great white shark was to blame for Medici's death, and he's working with the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy to tag white sharks. However, the transmitters put on the sharks don't track real-time yet.

Now, they rely on a network of harbormasters, fishermen, pilots and beach managers to report sightings, while the Sharktivity app sends out alerts.

Some Cape Cod leaders say it’s time to start talking about culling the seal population. As that population has rebounded in the last half-century, the sharks that eat them have returned to the Cape’s waters.

An elected commissioner who spoke to Boston 25 News said the proposal could still be 10 or 15 years out, but he feels culling the seals is the only way to get control of the shark population.

But the superintendent of the Cape Cod National Seashore is dead against that idea and points out a federal law is standing in the way.

Wellfleet town administrator Dan Hoort says Cape leaders will be considering a myriad of solutions from further utilizing existing shark activity apps to drones.

"Everything is on the table," said Hoort.

One thing that is not on the table for Hoort or for Cape Cod National Seashore Superintendent Brian Carlstrom though is killing the sharks' main food source: seals. Something Barnstable County Commissioner Ron Beatty has advocated for even prior to this weekend's fatal attack.

He says at some point the tough decision will be inevitable.

"I think a lot of people are in agreement with me that the culling of the large seal population is going to be probably the only choice we have at some point down the road. I'm sure there will be a big uproar about it," said Beatty.

Right now, a federal law enacted in 1972 protects seals from being hunted.

"This is a national seashore. It's a wild environment and I don't think that's an appropriate response at all," said Carlstrom.

Hoort says killing seals is an unrealistic proposition.

"Are you going to go out and kill 25,000 seals? I just don't think that's realistic. I think we have to realize that they're there," Hoort said.

The Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce issued a statement:

"We want to note that shark/human interactions are still extremely rare. The University of Florida data shows that in 2017, 88 people reported unprovoked contact with sharks, five of which were fatal, worldwide."

One thing all leaders we spoke with agree on is if the shark situation continues, it could impact tourism on the Cape.

"There's no silver bullet," Skomal said. "There are other parts of the world that have been struggling with shark attacks, and there's no easy solution to it."

Cox Media Group