Pete Thomas Outdoors

Time 2020-11-11 11:03:47

Web Name: Pete Thomas Outdoors

WebSite: http://www.petethomasoutdoors.com

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By Pete ThomasGhost or Grinch? These are just two observations regarding an image captured via drone Friday off Australia’s Bondi Beach, just in time for Halloween.The image, captured by Drone Shark App and shared via social media, shows two swimmers and what’s described as a grey nurse shark swimming through an immense school of salmon just yards from shore.The swimmers parted the salmon in the form of two circular clearings, which appear as eyes in a ghost-like face, while the shark cleared an area that might be perceived as a mouth.The salmon school was so dense that the swimmers and shark seemed oblivious to each other’s presence. The spooky image, therefore, was purely coincidental. “Do you see what I see?” Drone Shark App wrote on Facebook. “Tell me what you see?” “Ooooh, it looks like a ghost. Just in time for Halloween,” one commenter wrote. “Grinch,” stated another.Nurse shark swims through salmon with swimmers nearby. Credit: Drone Shark AppBut some comments pertained purely to the subjects. “I see two people who want to be eaten,” a follower chimed in.Reads another comment: “More reasons to fearfully admire the beautiful ocean and only go in a few feet from shore.”Schooling salmon are common off Sydney at this time of year, and the fish attract both swimmers and apex predators. In another Facebook post,Drone Shark App shared the video footage from which the accompanying screen shot was pulled. It shows several swimmers near or within the salmon school, oblivious to two nurse sharks also swimming through the school.The drone operator, when contacted by Pete Thomas Outdoors, asked only to be identified as Drone Shark App. The group’s social media pages are filled with photos of video clips showing sea life off Australia’s beaches. By Pete ThomasA black bear provided tense moments for a family in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., recently when it removed a window screen and considered breaking into the house.“We got a visit from one of our neighbors, apparently he is not fond of our front door and doesn’t know what ‘shoo’ means,” Christian Pondella joked on Instagram.As viewers can see, the light-colored black bear deftly removes the screen and sniffs for several seconds as Pondella and his wife and son try shooing the bruin. At one point the bear seems on the verge of climbing through the window.Pondella, an adventure photographer, said the bear “eventually left” during last week s encounter, and it has not returned. “No damage except the screen,” Pondella said.Black bears are abundant in the forest around Mammoth Lakes, and commonly sighted by residents.–Image courtesy of Christian Pondella By Pete ThomasDevin Kanda was fortunate to have been facing the right direction when a large tiger shark surfaced as his feet dangled from his kayak recently off Oahu.As Hawaii News Now states in the video report posted below, Kanda had just caught an 18-pound ono off Diamond Head when he spotted the approaching shark, enabling a quick response.“I caught it in my peripheral [vision] … and I looked up,” he said. “And just in time I pulled my leg before it could take a bite of my foot.”Kanda’s video camera was operating during the July 4 encounter. His footage was picked up by Hawaii-based media outlets over the weekend.The shark was likely attracted by the scent of fish. Kanda said he was more in awe of the large shark than afraid, but thankful that he wasn’t attacked.–Image courtesy of Devin Kanda By Pete ThomasGreat white sharks are not known for their speed, so for Matt Larmand it was surprising to watch a young white shark dash across the surface at perhaps 20 mph.“He was going at least 20 mph,” Larmand said. “I was going full throttle on the drone trying to catch up to him.”Larmand, an licensed drone pilot for Dana Wharf Whale Watching, captured the accompanying footage Thursday from his home on Capistrano Beach in Dana Point, Ca. Capo Beach, as the community is referred to by locals, sometimes attracts juvenile white sharks in spring and summer.The sharks prey on stingrays and other bottom fishes until they become large enough – 12-plus feet – to move offshore to feed on seals and sea lions.Larmand launched his drone after receiving reports of recent sightings. It was his first sighting of the season and he estimated the shark to measure 8 to 10 feet. “I’m not sure what triggered him to burst into speed like that; I’ve never seen one do that,” he said, adding that the sprint covered about 50 yards. Chris Lowe, Director of the Shark Lab at California State University – Long Beach, said the shark appears to have been spooked by the drone’s shadow.“Those neonates are pretty skittish,” Lowe said. “Seeing the drone shadow gave it a pretty good scare.”Lowe added: “I think it brings about the point of one of our hypotheses as to why young white sharks use beach habitats. We aren’t sure where white sharks give birth, we know they do not exhibit parental care, so babies are completely on their own. They probably hang out in shallow water near beaches because that is a safer place with very few large predators, lots of easy to capture prey (stingrays), and the water’s warmer. This response to the shadow of the drone supports one reason why they hang out in shallow waters. They don’t know what is a threat and the safest behavior is to flee when they experience something unknown. Larmand spotted the same shark later Thursday, cruising at normal speed (see second video).Mako sharks are the fastest sharks, capable of bursts in excess of 40 mph as they chase prey such as tuna, mackerel, and swordfish.Great white sharks, which can measure to about 20 feet, become much bulkier as adults and rely on ambush to catch their prey. By Pete ThomasA reporter for NBC Montana has gained social media fame for his hilarious – and wise – reaction during a close bison encounter inside Yellowstone National Park.“Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh no… I ain’t messing with you,” Deion Broxton says in the accompanying footage, after noticing the advancing herd and before ducking for cover behind the crew vehicle. “Oh no. I’m not messing with you.” Bison do not appear in the footage Broxton tweeted Wednesday, which was later shared to Facebook by NBC News Montana (both clips were widely circulated). But Broxton later tweeted a clip of several bison he caught on video “once I got a safe distance away.”It’s worth noting that bison, which can weigh as much as 2,000 pounds, are the largest land mammals in North America. They’re not typically aggressive toward humans, but they’re wild and unpredictable, and warrant a wide berth.The footage was shared to Facebook by Yellowstone National Park, which wrote: “A perfect example of what to do when approached by wildlife! Thanks Deion for putting the Yellowstone pledge into action!”Part of the pledge, requested of all park visitors, is to treat wild animals with respect by giving them distance and staying out of their way.Yellowstone, which incorporates portions of Montana, Wyoming and Idaho, has been in the news after announcing that it was closing indefinitely because of COVID-19 pandemic.–Image showing Deion Broxton is used with the permission of NBC Montana; Yellowstone bison image is via ©Pete Thomas By Pete ThomasThere’s not much to write about Kobe Bryant that isn’t already known, but how many fans know that the NBA superstar was fascinated by sharks?He was so curious that in the summer of 2013, while recovering from a torn achilles tendon, Bryant traveled to Mexico’s Guadalupe Island to dive with great white sharks.Martin Graf of Shark Diver said that the Los Angeles Lakers’ star enjoyed close views of two white sharks while inside the cage, and afterward soaked up the magical atmosphere surrounding the vast and remote volcanic island, 150 miles west of Ensenada. “It was nice having a conversation with him that had nothing to do with basketball or him being famous,” Graf recalled. “Just a couple of guys talking about sharks.”Graf shared an amusing side note: Bryant’s feet were too big for the wetsuit booties Shark Diver clients use, so he plunged into the cage wearing his Nike shoes (see photo).This week, the Marine Conservation Science Institute, which maintains a photo-database of 300-plus great white sharks known to frequent Guadalupe waters, announced that it was naming a newly identified shark Kobe Bryant.Additionally, MCSI has “reallocated” the shark into the No. 24 spot in the catalog, to coincide with the number Bryant wore for much of his 20-year Lakers’ career.“We did prepare a press release, but then I pulled the plug on that because I did not want any perception that we’re using Kobe’s tragic death as a way to gain publicity,” said Michael Domeier, MCSI’s president and executive director. “I don’t want it to be about that. We’re just showing our respect and honoring him in a small way.”As most of the world knows, Bryant, 41, died along with eight others, including his 13-year-old daughter, in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26 in Calabasas, California.The 18-time All-Star played his entire NBA career with the Lakers, winning five championships, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.–Images are courtesy of Shark Diver By Pete ThomasKeith Poe spends much of his time offshore, trying to lure large sharks close enough to bait and tag for science.What does the Southern California fisherman do with smaller sharks attracted by his chumming technique?The accompanying footage shows Poe gently pulling a free-swimming mako shark by its dorsal fin and stroking its back as casually as one might stroke the back of a family pet.“Come on, girl. Come here,” Poe says, reaching toward the 6-foot shark. “We’re gonna get you some pets. Come on, come on. Yeah, get you some pets.”It’s a definite don’t-try-this-at-home moment, not advisable for anyone without vast experience in working with sharks.Poe, who tags sharks for the Marine Conservation Science Institute, has caught an estimated 5,000 sharks and understands their behavior as well as anyone.He said he was chumming in the San Pedro Channel off Los Angeles when the small mako shark appeared.“She was just hanging out,” he said. “I was hand-feeding her and petting her for several hours while waiting for an adult shark to show up. I never [bait] them unless they’re mature females 9 feet and up.”He said the shark was never aggressive, and that he shared the video because mako sharks “are always thought of as such vicious animals, and it’s just not true.“They come up to the boat all excited ready to kill something because that s necessary to eat usually.But after a while they calm down and you get to know their real personality.”One of the largest mako sharks Poe has tagged is named Cinderella. Her movements can now be tracked via the MCSI’s Expedition White Shark app.“When I tagged Cinderella, an 11-foot, 4-inch mako, I spent a long time with her, feeding her before I caught her,” Poe said. “It’s part of an effort to reduce capture shock.“As a result, after I caught her, and tagged and released her, she stayed at the boat for an hour-and-a-half eating out of my hand.”Poe, who recently had an 18- to 20-foot great white shark “hang out with me for five hours,” said he typically sends most of the sharks he tags to freedom with a stroke or pat to the head or back.Call it a perk. By Pete ThomasVideo showing a man ice fishing in Kazakhstan, exhibiting a style of catching that’d be illegal in the U.S., has gone viral on social media, perhaps because of its simplistic nature. Зимняя рыбалка говоришь? Да что ты знаешь о ней?)) pic.twitter.com/BI2G5FY3mG— Габит Рахимберлин (@Starshina73) January 12, 2020The footage, shared Sunday by Twitter user Gabit Rahimberlin, has been viewed more than 7 million times.The unidentified fisherman, accompanied by two white sheep, is the picture of confidence as he chops a hole in the ice, baits the water with pellets, and hurls his pitchfork through the hole to impale four hefty fish, one after the other.The rest is a display of efficiency: The fish are quickly cleaned and hauled over the man’s shoulder, on the prongs of his pitchfork, back to the homestead. In his yard the fish are carefully seasoned, butterflied with twigs, and cooked over an open fire.All in a day’s work, the fisherman gestures at the end, with two thumbs up and a broad smile.–Image is a video screen grab By Pete ThomasAfter hooking two giant yellowfin tuna and losing both – one after a 4-hour fight – a group of anglers out of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, boated the catch of a lifetime.Steve Hammerschmidt of Huntington Beach landed the 365-pound ‘super cow’ after a marathon struggle last Tuesday in the Pacific, 30 miles north of the resort city on Baja California’s tip.Veteran anglers often refer to yellowfin tuna topping 200 pounds as “cows.” Tuna topping 300 pounds are “super cows,” and catches of these giants are quite rare.However, even larger yellowfin tuna exist within their range in the eastern Pacific. The world record yellowfin – caught south of Cabo San Lucas in 2012 – stands at 427 pounds.Hammerschmidt was fishing aboard Castigo with owner Larry Jacinto, Capt. Sean Sadler, and mate Adam Cargill.According to Rebecca Ehrenberg of Pisces Sportfishing, which posted about the catch on Facebook, the anglers had received information about the presence of large tuna from the crew of the San Diego-based Red Rooster III.After arriving at the spot, they hooked a tuna estimated to weigh 380 pounds and lost that fish after 4-1/2 hours, in the darkness, just 15 feet from the boat.Cargill told Ehrenberg: “We were devastated after we lost this fish, but we were ready to get right back on it first thing in the morning. The next day I rigged the line with a natural flying fish I had, and immediately had an explosion on it. Again, huge fish, but we missed it.”Cargill then baited a line with a fresh sardine, handed the rod to Hammerschmidt, and the hookup was nearly instantaneous. After 2 1/2 hours the fish was safely on board and the veteran anglers celebrated their largest catch to date.The tuna measured 84 inches and had a girth of 59 inches, leaving the group with enough fresh ahi to feed a small community.–Images are courtesy of Sean Sadler via Pisces Sportfishing By Pete ThomasYellowstone National Park has confirmed that two wolf pups found dead on a park road last month perished as a result of an automobile strike.The black male and female pups, which belonged to the Junction Butte Pack, were hit around sunset on the road between Tower Junction and the Northeast Entrance.The park waited for necropsy results before making the announcement. The incident remains under investigation by Yellowstone law enforcement officials.The Junction Butte Pack, whose territory spans from Tower Junction toward Lamar Valley, is frequently observed by tourists and its close proximity to people and roads makes the younger animals vulnerable.The park explained in a news release that, during the summer, the pack and its pups inhabited a den near a popular hiking trail. A large area surrounding the den was made off-limits, but occasional encounters with pups occurred on the trail.Park guidelines state that tourists must remain at least 100 yards from all wolves, but some tourists ignored the rule to get closeup photos of the pups. Others illegally entered the closed area in an attempt to view the pack, according to the park.Some of the pups apparently became accustomed to people and began to approach them on the road.Wildlife experts hazed the pups repeatedly over the next several months in an attempt to make them afraid of people and paved roads, but such attempts are not always successful after wild animals become habituated to humans.“Having studied these pups since birth, I believe their exposure to, and fearlessness of people and roads could have been a factor in their death,” said Doug Smith, Yellowstone’s senior wolf biologist. “Visitors must protect wolves from becoming habituated to people and roads. Stay at least 100 yards from wolves, never enter a closed area, and notify a park ranger of others who are in violation of these rules.”A park spokeswoman told For The Win Outdoors on Wednesday that the Junction Butte pack currently has 18 members: 10 adults and eight pups.The number was 21 in early summer, but a yearling male disappeared right around the time the two pups were struck and killed.–Images showing the Junction Butte wolf pack are courtesy of Yellowstone National Park

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