You’ve seen them during Shark Week & on Animal Planet; they are the top shark experts in the

world.

Now get to know them personally!

Shark experts from around the world are up for auction on eBay during Shark Week 2010 to

raise funds for the Shark Research Institute’s conservation programs.

Being auctioned are dinners or lunches with the world’s foremost “shark experts”. This is an

unprecedented opportunity to “talk shark” face-to-face, one-on-one, with a real authority on

sharks.

How it works:

a. Bid on an expert that lives or works in your area, unless you are willing to drive or fly to

meet them in their area.

b. The winning bidder pays for the lunch or dinner and may bring as many guests as he or

she wishes (exceptions are Chris Fallows & Tom Campbell because their winning

bidders also receive a boat trip).

c. We will introduce the winning bidder to the shark expert and the meeting is valid for

one year. The two of you then set a mutually agreeable date, time and place to

meet.

The Auction starts on August 1st and runs for 7 days. All winning bids are tax deductible

charitable contributions from US Federal 2010 income taxes. Funds raised will be used to

expand the Shark Research Institute’s shark conservation programs.

USA Oakland, California Dr. Sylvia Earle, Ocean Activist San Francisco, California Amos Nachoum, Underwater Photographer Malibu, California Georgienne Bradley, Activist, Photographer, Producer Los Angeles, California Donald Schultz, Host of Animal Planet’s Wild Recon Santa Barbara , California Tom Campbell, Filmmaker — plus boat trip Santa Barbara, California Jeff Kurr, Filmmaker San Fernando Valley, California Ralph Collier, Shark Attacks Solana Beach, California Marty Snyderman, Filmmaker, Photographer, Author San Diego, California Doc Anes, Shark Diver Operator Denver, Colorado area Dr. Alex Antoniou, Researcher, Videographer Colorado (July-October) Dee Scarr, Underwater Photographer, Author Fairfield, Connecticut Robin Culler, Educator West Palm Beach, Florida Jim Abernathy, Shark Photographer Sarasota, Florida Dr. Eugenie Clark, Shark Scientist Pensacola, Florida Dr. Erich Ritter, Shark Behaviorist Haleiwa, Oahu, Hawaii Stefanie Brendl, Shark Conservationist, Activist Chicago, Illinois Dr. Jennifer V. Schmidt, Molecular Biologist, Whale Sharks Washington DC Sonja Fordham, Shark Advocate Washington DC Jim Toomey, Cartoonist (Sherman’s Lagoon), Conservationist North Reading, Massachusetts Jonathan Bird, Filmmaker Allenhurst, New Jersey Dr. Richard Fernicola, NJ Shark Attacks, Author Brick, New Jersey Captain Steve Nagiewicz, Conservationist, Educator Cape May, New Jersey David Dunleavy, Marine Artist Lawrenceville, New Jersey Dean Fessler, Researcher, Educator Princeton, New Jersey Marie Levine, Ocean Activist Princeton, New Jersey Dr. Leonard J.V. Compagno, Shark Scientist, Author New Brunswick, New Jersey Matt Potenski, Researcher Millbrook, New York Jupp Baron Kerckerinck zur Borg, Ocean Activist New York, New York Richard Ellis, Marine Artist, Author Newport, Oregon Mark Marks, Research Biologist, White Sharks Newport, Oregon Dr. Leonard J.V. Compagno, Shark Scientist, Author Portland, Oregon Jason Holmberg, Ecocean Dallas, Texas Nancy McGee, Underwater Photographer

International Sydney, Australia Phil Watson, Cartoonist Perth, Australia Brad Norman, Ecocean Bonaire Dee Scarr, Underwater Photographer, Author Canada: Sechelt, BC Ron Steven (Rogest), Marine painter Canada: Drummondville, QC Jeffrey Gallant, Greenland Sharks Italy: Milan Dr. Alessandro de Maddalena, Researcher, Author, Artist Mahe, Seychelles Dr. David Rowat, Whale Sharks Singapore Michael Aw, Underwater Photographer, Publisher South Africa: Durban area Debbie Smith, Conservation, Ecotourism, Field Research South Africa: Fish Hoek Leslie Rochat, Filmmaker South Africa: Glencairn Dr. Leonard J.V. Compagno, Shark Scientist, Author South Africa: Simonstown Chris Fallows: White sharks (Air Jaws) — plus boat trip Honduras: Utila Steve Fox, Whale Shark Dive Operator

Debbie Smith — (Durban area, South Africa) Conservationist, Field Researcher and Shark Ecotourism Debbie Smith, a PADI MSDT Instructor, was instrumental in the complete setting up of top dive centers at upmarket resorts — from mapping and naming sites to full operational status — winning top international awards. Founder of an ecotourism company “Diving with sharks”, Debbie worked in the Seychelles in conjunction with David Rowat (SRI-Seychelles), and is currently based at Aliwal Shoal, South Africa, where she is co-running Africa Dive Expeditions, another ecotourism company operating in conjunction with “Diving with Sharks”. Both companies are involved in diving & shark research along the east coast of South Africa. Debbie has free-dived with many species of sharks, including white sharks. During the past year she has developed “soft diving” with benign species of sharks in an effort to introduce even more divers to sharks. She also escorts divers to the sardine run along the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, one of the ocean’s great spectacles. In 2007, Debbie was inducted into Women Divers Hall of Fame for her outstanding contributions to diving, education and shark research.

www.divingwithsharks.co.za

Jim Abernathy — (West Palm Beach, Florida) Shark Conservationist Jim Abernethy has spent a lifetime pursuing sharks all over the world. For the last decade he has lived at sea, miles from shore, doing back-to-back shark expeditions year round. His award winning images are unique and intensely intimate because he personally knows these elegant creatures. Jim also operates a scuba charter dive service, as well as a marine life art gallery located in West Palm Beach, Florida. His 65-foot live-aboard vessel M/V Shearwater offers the best in Bahamas diving, specializing in big animal encounters including great hammerhead, tiger, oceanic white tip, bull and lemon shark expeditions at Tiger Beach. The Deep Obsession, based in Palm Beach, provides daily drift diving year round on local reefs and wrecks. Jim has always been at the forefront of the action and sees sharks as they truly are, not as they are often preconceived by the media or fertile imaginations. In his new book, Sharks - Up Close, Jim employs his decades of experience diving with sharks to answer many of the most compelling questions about these animals. Jim offers the most spectacular underwater shark photographs ever taken. His book is a visual testament to why we must all work to preserve the shark’s place on our planet.

http://www.scuba-adventures.com/index.php

Paul Anes — (San Diego) White Sharks, Blue Sharks, Bull Sharks & Whale Sharks Paul “Doc” Anes, owner of San Diego Shark Diving, has been in the sharking business a very long time. If you have seen divers on television in chain mail suits hand feeding sharks, you have probably seen either Paul or one of his crew. Initially, he worked with blue sharks off San Diego until the numbers of sharks plummeted. “Years ago we saw 25 to 50 blue sharks a day,” says Paul. “And the fellow who owned San Diego Shark Diving before me back in the 80s, saw an average of 100 to 150 sharks each day. Compare that to what you’d see today; a mere four or five sharks during an entire day.” Today, Paul takes divers to Isla Guadalupe and beyond to find Great White Sharks. Paul’s trips are top-notch and particularly well-suited to serious photographers, videographers and long-time divers. He has hosted a long list of the most active underwater image makers at Guadalupe for many years. Shark Research Institute president emeritus Stan Waterman and the late Peter Benchley always called on Paul whenever they wanted to film the white sharks of Guadalupe. Howard Hall and Bob Talbot have both been on a couple of Doc’s Guadalupe trips. In recent years, Paul has expanded operations, taking divers to interact with sharks in the Galapagos Islands and the Maldives, to observe bull sharks in Fiji, and small select groups of divers to interact with whale sharks at Isla Holbox, Mexico. As Doc tells it, he is always on the lookout for new shark diving destinations. They have to have the right combination of shark action and logistics of getting to the destination and the quality of the facilities once you get there. One of the most important aspects of his shark diving tour company is teaching divers about the importance that sharks play in keeping the oceans in balance and why, as divers, we all need to care for and conserve these magnificent animals. Cousteau said it back in the 70s: people only love what they understand. Doc says, "I'm hoping to open a window to understanding sharks and showing divers what shark behaviors to look for."

www.sdsharkdiving.com

Alex Antoniou, Ph.D. — (Denver, Colorado Springs Monument, CO) Field Research: White Sharks, Whale Sharks & Scalloped Hammerhead Sharks Dr. Alex Antoniou has been working with and studying sharks for over 15 years. He began his work by establishing a field station for SRI in the Honduran Bay Island of Utila and subsequently convinced the Honduran Government to enact protection laws for the whale shark in their territorial waters. He was the first to tag whale sharks in the Caribbean with satellite tags. From Honduras, Alex moved on to study sharks in Mexico and the Galapagos Islands. Recently, he initiated a radio-telemetry program to study scalloped hammerhead sharks. This research is ongoing with PRETOMA with plans to tag more sharks in 2011. Dr. Antoniou also works in Mexico. In 2008 he helped to tag white sharks with acoustic transmitters and also helped deploy radio receivers for data collection. The work in Mexico also includes the first tagging of sharks at the Revillagigedo Islands south of Cabo San Lucas. During an expedition in 2008 and one in 2009, a total of 17 sharks were tagged, including scalloped hammerheads and Galapagos sharks. The data from this research project is already beginning to collect valuable information that will hopefully lead to increased protection at these remote islands. The research is continuing this year with more plans to tag white sharks at Guadalupe Island and hammerhead sharks at Revillagigedo. Alex has a passion for shark research and shark conservation around the world. For a decade, he served as the Director of Field Operations for the Shark Research Institute and now continues his efforts by partnering with researchers around the world to help with shark research projects. He feels that more people need to become engaged in protecting these magnificent and valuable creatures. Becoming educated about sharks is the first step.

Alex in submarine, filming scalloped hammerhead sharks

Michael AW — (Singapore) Underwater photographer, writer, publisher Michael is the founding director of OceanNEnvironment, a organization that promotes and initiates preservation projects as well as endeavors to document the status of coral reefs, bio-diversity and the impact of man-made pollution through research programs, and measurable conservation projects. With OceanNEnvironment, he has initiated the Napoleon wrasse protection program in the Maldives, turtle nest adoption program in Indonesia and Say No to Shark Fins campaign in the South East Asia. As founder of Asian Geographic and publisher of Scuba Diver , he used the magazines to support the conservation efforts of OceanNEnvironment. Pursuing the art form of documentary photography, Michael AW is well known for his saturated color imagery. His work on environmental issues and natural history, have been featured in BBC Wildlife, National Geographic, Asian Geographic, GEO, Underwater GEOGRAPHIC, Nature Focus, Action Asia, Scuba Diver, Smithsonian magazine, Ocean Realm (USA), Times, Asia Week, DIVE, Unterwasser, Tauchen, and Aquanaut, to name but a few. His photographs have received more than 50 awards from several international organizations including the prestigious Nikon International Photo Contest on three occasions. Michael has won eight times at the World Festival of Underwater Pictures in France; in 2009, his 27th book of the sea – Philippines, Heart of the Ocean won the Palme D’or International Book of the Year and his audio visual presentation – Wonderful World won the Silver Diver statue. More than 28,000 of his images have appeared in various publications and exhibitions worldwide including the Australian Museum and Queensland Tropical Museum. Michael has presented lectures and slide presentations on marine life and underwater photography to the Australian Museum Society, the Australian Maritime Museum, the Oceanographic Centre in Valencia, aquariums and private organizations in the pacific-rim countries including the world renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium in California. He has produced and directed two 24-hour photographic documentaries of corals reefs in the Australian Great Barrier Reef and the Maldives. Michael, a Fellow of the famed Explorers Club, recently returned from Antarctica where he led the ElySium Epic expedition which created a visual documentary of the Antarctica Peninsula and South George.

www.michaelaw.com

Jonathan Bird — (North Reading, Massachusetts) Cinematographer, Photographer, Writer Emmy Award-winning cinematographer and producer, Jonathan is president of the non-profit organization Oceanic Research Group, and a widely-published author, underwater photographer and speaker. He is the author of seven books of underwater photographs, and a member of the Wyland Ocean Artists Society. Jonathan’s articles and/or images have been published in dozens of books, calendars, and magazines including National Geographic, National Geographic World, National Geographic Kids, National Geographic Adventure, National Geographic Traveler, International Wildlife, Caribbean Travel and Life, Ranger Rick, ever U.S. dive magazines and many foreign magazines. Jonathan has directed and produced more than 20 films, winning two Emmy Awards and two Cine Golden Eagles. His films have been shown worldwide on networks such as National Geographic Channel, PBS, ABC, USA Network, Discovery and even the SciFi Channel. His films include: Sharks, Masters of Survival, Sharks: Predators with a Purpose, and Sharks: Deep Trouble His Emmy Award-winning family underwater educational adventure series, Jonathan Bird’s Blue World, is airing across the USA on public television.

www.jonathanbird.net

Georgienne Bradley – (Malibu, California) Ocean Activist, Photographer / Producer Georgienne is the founder and executive director of "Imaging Foundation - Sea Save" and co-owner of Bradley Ireland Productions. Georgienne uses her education as a biologist and her professional background as a photographer/producer to leverage the power of media to educate. "Young people are turning increasingly to Internet communities, podcasts and other new media as their source of information and inspiration. If we want to reach a young audience, we need to embrace this technology." She served as a Latin America Representative for the Cousteau Foundation and worked closely with many government and NGOs in efforts to protect our oceans. Georgienne helped develop the proposal that gained World Heritage status for Cocos Island and she continues to foster programs protecting this island from shark poaching and finning. She authored two books and hundreds of magazine articles about the ocean, published multiple scientific papers and created productions with, among others, Paramount, Disney and National Geographic. Georgienne was the co-founder and chair of the ASMP Underwater Specialty Group, and in 2006 she was inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame.

http://imagingfoundation.org/index.php http://bradleyireland.com/

Stefanie Brendl — Haleiwa, Oahu Shark Conservationist, Activist Stefanie Brendl is a very passionate advocate for sharks. Stefanie was born and raised in Bavaria, Germany, but has lived, worked and dived in the Pacific region for the past 20 years.

When Hawaii was considering its landmark legislation to prohibit possession of shark fins, Stefanie mobilized divers, surfers, and shark conservationists throughout the country to support the legislation.

Stefanie has been diving with sharks for a decade. Since 2002, her business "Hawaii Shark Encounters", offers shark diving on the North Shore of Oahu. Over the years she has connected with shark enthusiasts, researchers and divers from around the world, becoming part of the community with a shared passion and concern for sharks. Thousands of people have had a chance to observe sharks during their "shark encounter" tours and Stefanie assisted with the production of several shark documentaries (in front and behind camera) for US and German TV.

In May 2007, Stefanie founded Shark Allies with the goal of raising awareness and the common knowledge of sharks and to dispel some of the myths and unreasonable fears that still exist these days. Shark Allies concentrates on creating public awareness about sharks. the brutality of shark finning, and organized petitions in support of the Federal Shark Conservation Act. In Jan 2010, Stefanie joined forces with Senator Hee to introduce a bill to stop shark finning and shark fishing in Hawaii by prohibiting the possession, trade and sale of shark fins. The bill was passed in record time and enacted into law July 2010. This law is the first of its kind in the world.

http://www.sharkallies.com

Tom Campbell — (Santa Barbara, California) Filmmaker Tom Campbell is one of the world’s premier underwater filmmakers! Tom will take his winning bidder aboard his Cabo yacht for the day to dive, look for whales or cruise at the Channel Islands off the coast of Santa Barbara. If the winner is a photographer or cinematographer, and he or she wishes, Tom can provide tips on shooting. The Cabo is totally set up for what Tom’s production work in California and is based at the Santa Barbara marina. Tom began his diving career in the cold water lakes and rivers of Alberta and British Columbia. As a US Navy diver, he was part of a select Force Recon unit that was assigned to Seal Team. After discharge, he spent 20 years with the California Highway Patrol and received numerous commendations for his service, including one from President Reagan. And as a NAUI diving instructor, Tom introduced hundreds of people to the ocean realm. Throughout his professional years Tom was an avid photographer and filmmaker shooting wildlife, both underwater and topside His photographs have appeared in hundreds of popular publications worldwide, and he completed assignments for a wide range of corporations such as the BBC, Continental Airlines, National Geographic, Time Life Books, New York and LA Times magazine. He has written dozens of articles and won several photographic awards, including International Wildlife's Annual Competition and recognition in the BBC's Wildlife Photographer of the Year publication. Tom has been a featured speaker internationally including Antibe, France and Norway at the Antibe and Lofoton film festivals. His successful line of notecards and posters, titled "It's Our World Too", are marketed worldwide. Recent assignments include shooting Discovery's High-Definition film documentary on White Sharks in South Africa, and Giant Mantas in Mexico. Tom’s production company and crew hosts a complete line of High-Definition equipment Tom believes that the most important contribution any wildlife photographer or filmmaker can make is: "To create an awareness that will protect and preserve our environment for future generations."

www.tomcampbell.com

Eugenie Clark, Ph.D. – (Sarasota, Florida) Ichthyologist and Shark Behaviorist Dr. Eugenie Clark is a world-renowned ichthyologist and authority on sharks who is popularly known as the Shark Lady. Although she is now retired from teaching in the Department of Biology at the University of Maryland, College Park, where she joined the faculty in 1968, she still holds the title of Senior Research Scientist and Professor Emerita. She currently works on her research in the Center for Shark Research at the Mote Marine Laboratory, where her title is Senior Research Scientist and Founding Director. She was a research assistant at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, at the New York Zoological Society, and at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. She was the founding director (1955 to 1967) of the Cape Haze Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida, now a leading center for shark research called the Mote Marine Laboratory with which she is still affiliated. Dr. Clark is the recipient of three honorary D.Sc. degrees and awards from the National Geographic Society, the Explorers Club, the Underwater Society of America, the American Littoral Society, the Gold Medal Award of the Society of Women Geographers, and the President's Medal of the University of Maryland. In addition to her books, she has authored more than 160 scientific and popular articles. She has conducted 71 deep submersible dives. Her latest research projects concern the behavior of tropical sand fishes and deep sea sharks. These studies have been featured in 12 articles she has written for National Geographic magazine. Her books, Lady with a Spear and The Lady and the Sharks, have made her a role model and inspiration for thousands of young girls who love the sea.

www.sharklady.com/clarkcv.1999.html

1974: Eugenie Clark with tiger shark

Ralph S. Collier — (Canoga Park / San Fernando Valley, California) Shark Attacks Internationally recognized as the leading authority on Pacific Coast shark attacks, Ralph Collier is Founder and President of the Shark Research Committee Dedicated to expanding scientific knowledge and saving lives, Collier has studied shark / human interactions for more than 40 years. Excerpts from his exceptional collection of data and understanding about how, when, where and why sharks bite humans have been published in professional journals and research symposium volumes. A favored media expert, his work has been cited in hundreds of newspapers, magazines, television reports and documentary films. Ralph has interviewed more white shark accident survivors, witnesses, and rescuers than any other acknowledged researcher. He pioneered the technique for using interspace measurements (distance between tooth impressions) to determine shark species and size, and was the first to cite the significance of “recurring locations” in white shark attacks. Because most of the unprovoked Pacific Coast shark attacks involved white sharks, Ralph specializes in that species’ biology and behavior. He is also the author of the landmark book: Shark Attacks of the Twentieth Century from the Pacific Coast of North America. Ralph continues to investigate and analyze each new shark / human interaction reported from the Pacific Coast of North America and is the Regional Director, Pacific Coast, North America for the Global Shark Attack File

www.sharkresearchcommittee.com www.sharkattackfile.net

Leonard J.V. Compagno, Ph.D. — (Glencairn, South Africa; Princeton, NJ; Newport OR) The world’s foremost expert on sharks. Dr. Compagno earned his Ph.D. at Stanford University in 1979, and has authored more than 100 publications on sharks, including books, chapters in books, numerous scientific papers and a number of popular works, mostly on cartilaginous fishes.

His books include Catalog of World Sharks (Food & Agricultural Organization of the United Nations); Sharks of the Order Carcharhiniformes (Princeton University Press); Guide to Sharks and Rays of Southern Africa (Struik). His Sharks of the World, published simultaneously in the UK and USA, is the first ever field guide to sharks. He was co-founding director (along with Samuel Gruber and Don Nelson) of the American Elasmobranch Society, an Ordinary Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa, and he is the regional vice-chair for Southern Africa for the IUCN’s Shark Specialist Group. In 2008, Dr. Compagno was awarded the Gilchrist Medal for his “outstanding contribution to the enhancement of marine and coastal science in South Africa, including the Southern Ocean”. In 2009, he received the Robert H. Gibbs Award, the most prestigious award in the field of Ichthyology. He is also an avid birder, science fiction writer and political cartoonist.

www.sharks.org

Annie Crawley —Seattle Washington (& Chicago, Illinois in February and October) Filmmaker, SCUBA instructor, boat captain, writer and motivational speaker Annie Crawley founded her own production company to create entertaining and educational multi-media programs about our Ocean. She has explored and traveled with a camera in hand from Indonesia to Galapagos, Belize to Papua New Guinea. Annie is changing the way a new generation views our Ocean and includes empowerment and leadership skills into every presentation! Her Dive Into Your Imagination, creates programs for all ages including an award winning series of illustrated books and dvds. In addition Annie launched the Live Your Dreams limited edition poster and print series. Annie’s work has been published and broadcast worldwide with clients including National Geographic, the BBC, NOAA, Monterey Bay Aquarium plus more. Annie is passionate about everything she does and in her words, “I want people to fall in love with our Ocean because we protect what we love.” Breathing underwater changed Annie’s life. In August 2009 Annie joined Project Kaisei to document a scientific expedition to the North Pacific Gyre to help find a solution to what is becoming a plastic ocean.

www.anniecrawley.com

Robin Culler — (New Fairfield, Connecticut) Educator Robin Culler knows how to inspire kids about sharks! And this year, Robin’s students, the Shark Finatics won Oceana’s prestigious Junior Ocean Hero Award. In addition to adopting sharks, the Shark Finatics are present at school events to educate the public about the need for shark conservation. Robin also speaks at area schools and workshops. The Finatics gather signatures asking for a ban on shark finning and even contacted Mattel Toy Company about a shark toy that gave the wrong message. They have written President Obama, as well as various legislators, asking for stricter laws. The Finatics have made friends, worldwide and have even published a book on shark conservation. They sell a variety of shark items, using the proceeds to provide grants for shark conservation. Robin shows her students that kids have POWER! Don’t you wish you had a teacher like Robin?

David Dunleavy – (Cape May, New Jersey) Marine Artist, Muralist & Sculptor David will present his winning bidder with an unframed signed and numbered lithograph! David Dunleavy, artist, painter, muralist, designer, graphic artist and sculptor, is an influential figure in conservation contemporary art. He is widely recognized as one of the most celebrated endangered species artists. To date, David has painted 54 life-sized and larger-than-life murals along the Eastern Seaboard from Atlantic City to the Florida Keys and the Bahamas Islands. The largest environmental awareness mural is at the Melbourne Aquarium in Australia, and the endangered species mural painted in Cape May is a historic landmark. Hoping to raise awareness, David has a goal to paint over 100 murals in strategic locations around the world, spreading his dream of a healthy ocean planet to millions worldwide. David partnered with Oceans for Youth Foundation to create an original work of art for the cover of the DVD and its contents for the interactive 15-chapter presentation, the first ocean education program submitted into the school systems teaching students about our ocean planet. He collaborated with underwater explorer Jean Michel Cousteau, actor Leslie Neilson, Hollywood producer Pete Haymen, and Oceans for Youth President Wayne Hasson to produce this wonderful program. David uses his talent for the preservation of our fragile ocean planet and hopes his art will inspire people to educate themselves on how to help protect it for future generations.

www.daviddunleavy.com

Dr. Sylvia Earle — (Oakland, California or Washington, DC, possibly elsewhere) Conservationist & President of the Shark Research Institute

Dr. Earle is the ocean’s most eloquent champion. She is Explorer in Residence at the National Geographic Society and recently led the Google Ocean Advisory Council, a team of 30 marine scientists providing content and scientific oversight for the "Ocean in Google Earth." To date, Dr. Earle has led more 70 expeditions, logging more than 7,000 hours underwater. She was the first person to dive solo to 1,250 feet beneath the surface without being connected to a support vessel. She planted the U.S. flag at the floor of the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii during this feat. She also led a team of researchers who lived underwater

for two weeks in an expedition known as Tektite II, Mission 6. In 1990 she was appointed as Chief Scientist of NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) where she served until 1992. In 1992 she founded Deep Ocean Exploration and Research (D O E R), to design, operate, support and consult on manned and robotic sub sea systems. Dr. Earle has authored more than 90 research papers and her books include Exploring the Deep Frontier, Sea Change (1995), Wild Ocean (1999) and The Atlas of the Ocean (2001). Her books written for children include Coral Reefs, Hello Fish, Sea Critters, and the award winning Dive! She has also participated in numerous television productions and has given scientific, technical and general interest lectures in more than 60 countries. Additionally, Dr. Earle served on the President's Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmosphere and serves on boards, foundations, and committees supporting marine research, policy, and conservation including the World Resources Institute, World Environment Center, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Duke University Marine Laboratory, Natural Resource Defense Council, and supports conservation groups and organizations such as Blue Vision Summit and the Shark Research Institute. Among the more than 100 national and international honors she has received is the 2009 TED Prize for her proposal to establish a global network of marine protected areas. She calls these marine preserves "hope spots... to save and restore... the blue heart of the planet." Time Magazine recognized and rightly named Dr. Earle as a “Hero of the Planet” and the Library of Congress recognized her as a Living Legend. To read more about her many accomplishments and awards go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvia_Earle

Richard Ellis — (New York City) Painter, Author

Recognized as one of America's foremost painters of marine natural history subjects, Richard’s work has been exhibited at museums and galleries around the world. Richard’s published books include The Book of Sharks; The Book of Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises; Men and Whales; Great White Shark (with John E. McCosker and Al Giddings), Physty, The True Story of a Young Whale’s Rescue; Monsters of the Sea; Deep Atlantic; The Empty Ocean, The Search for the Giant Squid; The Encyclopedia of the Sea; Tuna, a Love Story; Big Fish, On Thin Ice, The Changing World of the Polar Bear.

An eloquent conservationist, Richard has written more than 80 articles published in such magazines as National Geographic, Audubon, and Geo, and he has led cruises in such places as Alaska and Antarctica for the American Museum of Natural History.

http://www.tonmo.com/ellis.php

Chris Fallows — (Simonstown, South Africa) An opportunity to meets with Air Jaws, the giant white sharks that rocket out of the water while hunting seals.) Instead of lunch at a local restaurant, Chris Fallows is offering his winning bidder a free space on his boat. Grab a sandwich, board the boat and chat with Chris as you view the aerial displays of white sharks first hand! If you’ve seen Air Jaws on Discovery Channel, Planet Earth, Great White Shark on the BBC, Jaws 25-year Anniversary on National Geographic, or 60 Minutes, then you’ve seen Chris Fallows and Monique Fallows and the giant white sharks as they hurtle above the surface in False Bay, South Africa. Husband-and-wife team Monique and Chris Fallows make a living by photographing the huge sharks soaring through the air, as they rocket from the depths to catch seals near the surface. The phenomenon is best seen near Seal Island, a crowded seal colony near Cape Town, South Africa. There, great whites and other sharks congregate to feed on the Cape fur seals. When seals cross deep water to approach or leave their island sanctuary, the waiting sharks, swimming at depth, rocket toward the animals at the surface. The momentum of the ascent often results in both predator and prey exploding out of the ocean like a cork from a champagne bottle—a moment that the Fallows have caught on film for magazines, exhibits, and television documentaries seen all over the world. The Fallows lead small tourist groups to Seal Island to witness and photograph the breaching behavior, which they sometimes induce by dragging a decoy of a seal behind a boat. They have gathered much data about the sharks and their behavior, and are dedicated to the conservation of these misunderstood and underappreciated predators. This will be an experience of a lifetime, and after spending time with Chris you too will understand why these giant sharks need protection!

Richard Fernicola, M.D. — (Allenhurst, New Jersey) Shark Attacks of 1916 at Matawan, New Jersey Richard Fernicola, author of Twelve Days of Terror: A definitive investigation of the 1916 New Jersey Shark Attacks, based his book on actual events that occurred in July 1916 in New Jersey waters. The book, a meticulous in-depth investigation of the shark attacks of 1916 plus modern-day shark attacks, required interviewing many people connected with the 1916 attacks and examinations of the arguments and conclusions of contemporary and modern scientists to determine the species of the shark involved in the attacks. These tragedies inspired Peter Benchley to write the best-selling novel Jaws, which later became a movie by the same name. Richard’s book was also made into an episode for the History Channel: Shark Attack 1916 (2001). and the Discovery Channel’s docu-drama, 12 Days of Terror (2004).

Richard points to the location in Matawan Creek where two of the attacks took place.

Dean Fessler — (Philadelphia / New Jersey, preferably at an Indian Restaurant) Marine Biologist / Educator Dean encountered his first shark (a four-foot nurse shark) in 1978 while snorkeling off the Florida Keys as a marine biology student at the University of Miami. Dean joined the Shark Research Institute in 1991, and began studying bull and Caribbean reef sharks off the Bahamas, and sandtiger sharks off North Carolina. In 1992, he relocated to San Diego to work with blue and mako sharks, and studied hammerhead sharks and whale sharks in the Sea of Cortez. In 1995, Dean joined the Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institute of Oceanography where he fed and lectured about resident shark populations. In 1998, Dean relocated to South Africa to study great white sharks and worked with other scientists, underwater photographers and documentary filmmakers. Dean is the Dean is Education Director of the Shark Research Institute and a member of the famed Explorers Club.

Sonja Fordham – (Washington, DC*) Shark Advocate. For nearly two decades Sonja Fordham has been an advocate of science-based policies for sharks and rays in the United States and internationally, specifically policies seeking an end to overfishing, shark-finning and habitat destruction. Prior to forming Shark Advocates International in May 2010, Sonja served as director of the conservation program at Ocean Conservancy and policy director at the Shark Alliance. She is also deputy chair of the IUCN (World Conservation Union) Shark Specialist Group and serves on the board of directors for the American Elasmobranch Society. Sonja has authored and co-authored numerous reports on shark fisheries management. She received an Environmental Hero Award from the U.S. Department of Commerce in 2000, a Fishery Achievement Award from the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council in 2004, and the Peter Benchley Shark Conservation Award from the Shark Research Institute in 2007. Sonja travels regularly between North America and Europe so a lunch or dinner with her on either continent is possible.

www.sharkadvocates.org

Steve Fox — (Utila, Honduras) Whale sharks Steve has been diving since the 1980s and is a PADI Staff Instructor. After moving from London to Utila ten years ago, Steve started Deep Blue, a dive resort. Intrigued by the whale sharks visiting the island, he created Utila Whale Shark Research (UWSR). Steve intended the UWSR to be a five-year-study of whale sharks in the area, but the sharks became his passion. By bringing his business expertise to the project, he was able to raise money for research and expand the program. Steve has forged many close relationships that assisted his research, including strong ties with the Shark Research Institute and Ecocean. UWSR was one of the first to use the Ecocean photo ID system out of Australia, and he has cataloged more than 90 whale sharks in the waters surrounding Utila. In addition, Steve worked with Dr. Rachel Graham on her Marine Meganet program which included setting up acoustic transmitters around Utila to track whale sharks and other species. He has also worked with Dr. Eric Hoffmayer of the Gulf Research Station at the University of Southern Mississippi who has been tracking aggregations of whale sharks in the Gulf of Mexico, and the Domino Project which studies whale sharks off the coast of Mexico. For four weeks each year, Steve hosts whale shark specialists from around the world at Deep Blue Resort and encourages his customers to participate in the whale shark research.

www.utilawhalesharkresearch.com

Deep Blue Resort, Utila

Jeffrey Gallant — (Drummondville, Quebec, CANADA) Field Research: Greenland Sharks Jeffrey Gallant studies distribution of the Greenland shark; social and environmental impact of sport diving activities in the presence of sharks, and shark behaviour. He is Managing Director of the Shark Research Institute in Canada (SRI Canada), Director of GEERG (Greenland Shark and Elasmobranch Education and Research Group, and Executive-at-Large of the Canadian Association for Underwater Science (CAUS). Jeffrey started diving with the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets in 1982 at the age of 14. He has led several research and training expeditions around the world. Among other accomplishments, Gallant was trained as an aquanaut in Romania in 1995, he is the former Chief Diver of the Quebec Aquarium, and he spent a few days diving aboard Cousteau's windship Alcyone in 1999. An award-winning underwater photographer and videographer with Aqualog Underwater Productions, Jeffrey has contributed to several dive publications, books, as well as television and film documentaries on sharks and diving, including Discovery Channel, History Channel, CBC, Radio-Canada, TV5, TVA, TQS, LCN and Télé-Québec. He is the author of the internationally-acclaimed Diving Almanac and Book of Records and he has been a columnist of Vancouver-based DIVER Magazine since 1997. He was made an Honorary Member of the Diables des mers (Sea Devils) Dive Club in 2007. Gallant lives in Drummondville, Quebec, where he teaches at the local CEGEP (university prep).

www.geerg.ca

Greenland shark

Jason Holmberg — (Portland, Oregon) Ecocean, an online whale shark ID program Jason Holmberg, a computer programmer, is a member of the three-man team that developed Ecocean. (The two other team members are marine biologist Brad Norman, and NASA scientist Zaven Arzoumanian. Ecocean is a web-based project which utilizes a pattern-recognition algorithm to identify individual whale sharks based on their body patterns, much like fingerprints. Winner of the Shark Research Institute’s Peter Benchley Shark Conservation Award and the Rolex Award for Enterprise, this non-invasive, yet highly accurate and unique research tool monitors the global movements and population size of these highly-migratory and threatened sharks, and encourages public participation.

http://www.whaleshark.org/

Area to photograph

Two matches

Jupp Baron Kerckerinck zur Borg (Millbrook, New Yor k) Ocean Activist, Shark Conservationist Jupp is a dashing aristocrat who grew up in a castle in Germany. When he was born, Adolph Hilter attempted to present his mother with the Golden Mother Cross for giving birth to six “Aryan” children. However, she spurned the award and was almost tossed into a concentration camp because of “disrespect to the Fueher.” After completing his education and military service . he opened an advertising agency and soon became a race car driver for Abarth and Alfa Romeo. In 1977 he moved to upstate New York, where he founded the first commercial deer farm in North America, the Lucky Star Ranch. Jupp hunted in Africa, UK, Denmark, USA, and Canada, but lost interest in hunting when he learned to dive. When he joined his daughter Philipa on a cage dive with white sharks at Isla Guadalupe, he fell in love with sharks. ”I was so intrigued by these wonderful animals that I decked to spend my time talking to people about sharks, and the senseless slaughter of sharks throughout the world. Since that dive at Guadalupe, Jupp has been on hundreds of dives with sharks, always without a cage, to show people sharks are not as dangerous as humans and has dived with reef sharks, lemon sharks, hammerheads, and great white sharks, but tiger sharks have become his favorites. Today, Jupp is President of the Shark Research Institute. He is also a very hot item on Germany television, appearing on such shows as the popularr ZDF Markus Lanz Talk Show and regularly attacks two million viewers. An eloquent advocate for sharks, Jupp lectures about sharks, wh people fear them, their worldwide decimation, and the alleged ‘danger’ they pose to humans. He eloquently describes the perils these beautiful and still-misunderstood animals face due to the ever-increasing demand for their fins, and the crucial role they play as apex predators in the marine food chain. He also fights for their protection at the United Nations and international forums such as CITES. Jupp, a Fellow of the Explorers Club is also founder of the nonprofit organization: Shark Protect.

www.sharks.org www.sharkprotect.com

Jeff Kurr (Santa Barbara, California Filmmaker Jeff Kurr has filmed more than two dozen segments for Shark Week. In his latest film, Ultimate Air Jaws, a one-hour special, he uses state-of-the art equipment in filming the aerial displays of white sharks. The film kicks off Shark Week 2010 on August 1 at 9 p.m. “The sea is the last wild frontier left on Earth,” Kurr says. “Just about all terrestrial animals have been fenced off where we can safely see them. But you go into the water at your local beach, and you're in a complete wilderness. In California it's not beyond the realm of possibility to see a great white shark 100 feet from a beach.” In Future Shark, which aired on Discovery Channel’s Shark Week focused Dr. Alex Antoniou of the Shark Research Institute as he deployed satellite tags on huge whale sharks. Kurr's films are informational and myth with fact. “We keep discovering interesting behaviors,” he says. “There are a lot of great stories out there, lots that we don't know. I think that's why people are fascinated by sharks.”

Marie Levine — (Princeton, New Jersey) International Shark Conservationist This is a unique opportunity to “talk shark” one-on-one with Marie Levine, Executive Director and founder of the Shark Research Institute. In the mid-1980s, while living in South Africa, she re-opened the South African Shark Attack, interviewing more than 1,200 victims, witness and medical personnel , and today also serves as Archivist of the Global Shark Attack File. Marie works to secure protection for sharks at national and international levels such as CITES and CMS. She worked with white sharks and whale sharks in South Africa and has dived with sharks in 42 countries during the past 30 years. She is also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, and the famed Explorers Club, and has led four Flag Expeditions for the Club, She is also in the Women Divers Hall of Fame and has served on its board.

www.sharks.org & www.sharkattackfile.net

Two children’s books written by Marie

Dr. Alessandro De Maddalena — (Milan, Italy) Shark Researcher, Author, Artist Dr. Alessandro De Maddalena is one of the foremost shark experts in Europe. He is curator of the Italian Great White Shark Data Bank, the President of the Italian Ichthyological Society, and a founding member of the Mediterranean Shark Research Group. Alessandro is also the author of 12 books on sharks. His research findings have been published in more than 30 papers in peer-reviewed journals, and in more than 60 articles in popular magazines. Considered one of the world’s finest nature illustrators, Allessandro has produced more than 1,000 illustrations of marine animals. His illustrations have appeared in more than 100 publications, including popular magazines, scientific journal and books. His drawings and paintings have been exhibited at the Oceanographic Museum in Monaco, the World Festival of Underwater Pictures in Antibes – Juan-Les-Pins, France, Nausica – The French National Sea Experience Centre in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, the Aquarium of Milan, Italy, the Museum of Marine Biology in Porto Cesareo, Italy, and the Whale Shark Museum in Talisayan, Philippines.

http://alessandro-de-maddalena.webs.com/

Mark Marks (Newport, Oregon) Research Biologist White Sharks Mark Marks is a seasoned research biologist who is best known for his pioneering studies of the behavioral ecology and social dynamics of white shark off South Africa. For this extreme biologist the possibility of uncovering and elucidating new, yet described shark behavior is the driving force behind exploration and expedition adventures with a distinct academic twist. Mark has most recently returned from his fourth research trip to Guadalupe Island, off Baja Mexico, where he participated with National Geographic in filming white shark predation of Northern Elephant Seals. Mark often swims with the sharks outside the confines of a cage to get a unique perspective on the little-known world of white shark behavior and their social relationships with others of their kind. For more than 20 years, his research on sharks skates and rays has taken him to numerous countries and remote locations off four continents.

Nancy McGee — (Dallas, Texas) Underwater Filmmaker and Explorer, Scuba Instructor, Educator Nancy McGee has been an underwater photographer for thirty years. Twenty years ago Nancy created Island Time Scuba, in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. In 2000 she partnered with Stan Waterman to promote and manage Stan and Stan Waterman Productions. She has restored, digitized, and resurrected his vintage films, and provided Stan’s narration to preserve some of the history of diving. She and Stan have led groups to the world’s most exotic dive locations. Nancy, a PADI master instructor, has trained nearly 1000 divers and has introduced many of them to other areas of the world. She has dived with many species of shark, including one of the world’s largest tiger sharks — and has even dived with an elephant! Nancy tirelessly promotes the dive industry, the ecology of the sea, and the Shark Research Institute. She accomplishes this by speaking, producing and showing films to schools, clubs, and community service groups, and as a featured speaker and emcee for national and international dive shows and film festivals. Nancy conducts group tours and films in many of the world’s most exotic dive locations, some so remote the local natives have never before seen Western people. She has filmed for NBC and Discovery, and written for a variety of dive journals and publications. She is a member of the Women Divers Hall of Fame.

www.islandtimescuba.com

Amos Nachoum – (San Francisco, California) Underwater Photographer Amos Nachoum is an internationally-acclaimed underwater photographer. He has led National Geographic expedition teams, which have included Dr. Eugenie Clark, Dr. Sylvia Earle, and Buzz Aldrin, and worked as a co-producer of television documentaries with Stan Waterman. He is an author as well as a professional photographer. Amos is one of the few photographers who won twice (2007 and 2008) the most prestigious prize for any wildlife photographer, the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year in the Animal behavior category. Amos' photos and essays have appeared in more than 500 publications in North America, Europe, and Japan. Born in Israel and having a passion for marine life, Amos co-founded Israel’s Marine National Park on the Red Sea. Following a noteworthy military career, Amos embarked on three-year adventure circumnavigating the world. Amos’ intimate knowledge of the world of not only big animals, but also scuba diving, culture and the edge of the earth environments he specializes in began when Amos moved to the United States, where in 1978 he established La Mer Diving Seafari, Inc., which managed and operated 15 live aboard dive vessels worldwide. In 1992, he developed a second adventure-travel company supporting his vision and passion and expertise — Big Animals Photography Expeditions. www.biganimals.com Amos has become world-renowned explorer and photographer in the field of Big Animal photography, producing images and stories for magazines, advertising, and television, Hollywood. Amos works tirelessly scouting trips, often several times, before offering them to his clientele. This is why Amos can offer superlative, unique and thrilling experiences no one else can. Amos knowledge comes from studying, researching and experience in the field, not brochures. Often called “the Ambassador of Big Animals,” Amos leads intimate teams of clients (4-6) and or productions (TV & Movie) companies on adventures to observe, photograph, and interact with great white sharks, killer whales, polar bears, leopard seals, sailfish, humpback and blue whales, dolphins and more. Leading expeditions from the North Pole to Antarctica, Amos believes that through personal observation and direct interaction people will both understand and learn to respect and love to protect our fragile environment and the most imposing inhabitants in our universe.

http://biganimals.com/

Captain Stephen D. Nagiewicz — (Brick, New Jersey) Chairman, Board of Trustees, Shark Research Institute Steve is also a licensed professional Ships Master and has 30 years experience diving the world’s oceans searching for shipwrecks, and promoting shark and ocean conservation issues as a writer, photographer, oceanographer and field researcher. He owned and operated the dive boats Diversion & Diversion II, conducted side-scan surveys, oceanographic and scientific research for universities and industry, search and salvage of shipwrecks, bulkhead and hull inspections, TAT cable survey and support services and underwater repair. He has logged over 4000 sport, technical/mixed gas, and commercial dives. He has written more than 100 articles about diving, oceanography and shipwreck archeology for numerous national publications and newspapers. Steve has been featured on national network news programs as well as the Discovery Channel. He was a presenter at the famed "Writers of the Future Awards Ceremony in Hollywood, CA as part of the L. Ron Hubbard awards for Writing and Illustrations in Science Fiction. Steve managed the James J. Howard Marine Sciences Laboratory at Sandy Hook for the State of New Jersey. The lab houses NOAA, National Marine Fisheries, MAST, Rutgers and the New Jersey Marine Sciences Consortium. He operates Oceanography for Kids, an interactive visual program for children on topics about the oceans and NJ marine life. He lectures at aquariums, diving symposiums, and many dive shops and clubs around the United States, and at more than 50 local/regional school systems. Steve currently edits and writes for DVDs and teaches high school Earth and Environmental Sciences. Steve is a Fellow of the Explorers Club, has served on its Board, and was its Executive Director for several years, planning many fund-raising dinners and events for the Club. In addition, he served as chairman of the Club’s Philadelphia Chapter for three years, and participated in Flag Expeditions. Steve is also a Fellow of the Royal Geographic Society.

http://www.sharks.org

Carolyn Nickels — (King of Prussia, Pennsylvania) Director of Member Services, SRI and Ocean Conservationist

Carolyn grew up spending summers at the New Jersey beach but didn't begin diving until 1998, realizing a long overdue goal of diving with sharks shortly after that while diving with SRI and Tom Campbell off the coast of Beaufort, North Carolina.

She is passionate about protecting our oceans; working tirelessly to educate people about the importance of preserving our remaining natural habitats by reducing their "plastic" footprint both on land and water by pre - and re - cycling.

Carolyn is also an accomplished equestrian who hails from the Philadelphia suburbs where she co-chairs the local environmental advisory board. She is a longtime volunteer for SRI and is responsible for creating the Shark Celebrity Auction.

www.sharks.org

Brad Norman — (Perth, Australia) Whale Sharks & Ecocean Brad Norman has dedicated most of his adult life to the pursuit, identification, understanding and protection of the world’s largest fish, Rhincodon typus, the aptly named whale shark. Reaching 18 metres in length, the huge beast resembles nothing so much as "a bus under water", Norman says. Yet an animate, placid, occasionally inquisitive bus, pursuing its mysterious life across tens of thousands of kilometres of open ocean. Brad, trained as a researcher and fisheries management consultant, determined to find out more about whale sharks and enhance our knowledge about this rare species. Together with computer engineer Jason Holmberg and NASA astronomer Zaven Arzoumanian, Brad developed Ecocean, a photo-monitoring program. Adapting a technique used by Hubble Space Telescope scientists for mapping star patterns, known as the Groth algorithm, the team was able to map the patterns of white spots on a whale shark’s hide. The program, known as Ecocean provides a reliable way to identify individual whale sharks, as well as other spotted animal populations. Images provided by divers around the world are helping the Ecocean database build a global picture of the abundance, health and fluctuations of the whale shark population. Today, Ecocean now involves thousands of divers in conservation of whale sharks, and has earned Brad a richly-deserved Rolex Award for Enterprise.

Matt Potenski (New Brunswick, New Jersey) Field Research: Whale Sharks & Underwater Photographer Matt Potenski has worked with southern stingray, Dasyatis Americana, populations in Grand Cayman, BWI, and studied lemon sharks, Negaprion brevirostris, in both the Bahamas at the Bimini Biological Field Station-SharkLab and the Marquesas Keys, Florida. As a Shark Research Institute field researcher, Matt Studied whale sharks in the Bay Islands (Honduras), Galapagos Islands (Ecuador), Cocos Island (Costa Rica) and Mafia Island (Tanzania). Matt, now Director of Field Operations of SRI, has led field expeditions and conducted both visual ID, and utilized both satellite and radio telemetry to study the whale sharks of Mafia Island/ An award-winning underwater photographer, he is also CEO of MDP Productions. His work can been seen in many publications including Asian Diver and in books such as Sylvia Earle’s Defying Ocean’s End. The winning bidder will also receive a Lifetime Adoption of one of the whale sharks that Matt has tagged at Mafia Island, Tanzania.

http://www.matthewdpotenskiphoto.com

Erich Ritter, Ph.D. — (Pensacola, Florida) Shark Behaviorist Erich Ritter has a Ph.D. from Zurich University in “Behavioral Ecology” and is the only professional applied shark-human interaction specialist. Ritter's main expertise is the body language of sharks, with a major interest in shark attacks and their causes. Many of the old theories of why sharks attack have been erased through his experiments, and new ideas proposed. He is the only shark attack expert to recreate many of the typical attack scenarios with the respective species. His understanding of potential reasons for shark attacks opened new doors in this field of research. Dr. Ritter is the head of the SharkSchool™, an institution that teaches divers, snorkelers, rescue swimmers and others how to interact with sharks, what to look for when entering the water and most importantly how to feel safe among sharks. He is also the executive director of SAVN™, the Shark Accident Victim Nework, and non-for-profit organization to help shark victims.

http://sharkvictimnetwork.org/

Lesley Rochat — (Fish Hoek, South Africa) Filmaker, Underwater Photographer, shark and marine conservationist. Lesley graduated from of the University of Cape Town, South Africa, where she studied dramatic arts, followed by studies in Environmental Science and Cosmology through UNISA. She had a diverse background, which included modeling, acting and television presenting, to running a financial advisory business for many years, before dedicating her life to marine conservation. As result of her growing concern for the ocean environment, she founded AfriOceans Conservation Alliance (AOCA), a non profit organization in 2003. AOCA achieved major success through the SOSF Maxine, Science, Education and Awareness Programme, a unique shark conservation campaign designed by Lesley, supported by the Two Oceans Aquarium and sponsored by the Save Our Seas Foundation. Lesley is an avid diver and a PADI Divemaster, lives in South Africa. In 2008 she helped open the Save Our Seas Shark Centre, in Cape Town, where she served as Executive Manager and Director of Education and Awareness. Lesley is a published travel and environmental journalist and underwater photographer, and the author of childrens’ and educational books. She has been the creative director of many educational and awareness initiatives from educational outreach programs for children to the award winning Rethink the Shark campaign, created by Saatchi & Saatchi. Lesley is also the CEO of Blue Pulse Pictures, a production company which has produced numerous marine related documentaries, including the award-winning Sharks in Deep Trouble.

http://www.lesleyrochat.com/

David Rowat, Ph.D. — Mahe, Seychelles Whale Sharks David is Director of SRI-Seychelles and chairman of the Marine Conservation Society, Seychelles. In 1996, David initiated the Seychelles whale shark monitoring program with the assistance of SRI-South Africa’s tagging team. The late Andrew Gifford, Director of SRI-South Africa, shipped his team’s microlight to David. The South African team (Rob Allen, pilot, and taggers Sue Smith and Jason Gifford) flew to Mahe, and trained David and his divemasters. Since that time, David earned his Ph.D., collected data on hundreds of whale shark interactions. A whale shark is spotted using a microlight, then either a passive ID tag, archival pop-up satellite tag, spot2 positional tag or an acoustic tag is used to track the shark. David has submitted ID photographs of more than 50 whale sharks to the Ecocean catalog, and published numerous papers on whale sharks of Seychelles in scientific journals. Note: if the Seychelles are too far to travel for a dinner date, David will substitute with a signed copy of his book on whale sharks which is due out on August 14th!

http://www.mcss.sc/

Dee Scarr — (Colorado July through October; Bonaire from November through June) Environmentalist, naturalist, Underwater Photographer, Author Dee Scarr is an environmentalist and experienced naturalist. A PADI scuba and specialty instructor, Scarr has published three books: Touch the Sea, Coral's Reef, and The Gentle Sea, and her articles and photos appear in The New Guide to the Bonaire Marine Park, Dive Training, Skin Diver, and other publications. Dee’s goal is to help you better understand marine creatures - first-hand on TOUCH THE SEA® dives, or through her writings and slide presentations. The dives take place in the world-renowned waters of the Bonaire Marine Park. Bonaire's easy diving enables The participants are of all levels of diving experience to fully enjoy the marine environment. The divers have fed anemones, tickled fish, met morays, befriended octopuses, been grabbed by crinoids and manicured by cleaner shrimp. The options are limitless.

Jennifer V. Schmidt, Ph.D. — (Chicago or Evanston, IL) Whale Sharks & DNA Jennifer is a molecular biologist. Her laboratory has spent the past eight years studying the population genetics of the whale shark. DNA sequences, called microsatellites, were isolated from the whale shark genome, and these markers were used to produce genetic “maps” of individual animals sampled at different sites around the world. In one of her recent studies, Jennifer looked at DNA from whale sharks from the Caribbean to the Indian and Pacific oceans. Results of her study showed little genetic variation between the different populations, indicating the big fish migrate across oceans and breed with other whale shark populations thousands of miles away. It is the most comprehensive to date on the little-understood shark. It sheds new light on the behavior of the polka-dotted, filter-feeding giant that can reach 50 feet in length and weigh more than 20 tons. Jennifer, Director of the Shark Research Institute’s DNA study for the past eight years, has dived with and studied whale sharks in Honduras, Mexico and the Philippines, and works closely with shark researchers around the world.

Donald Schultz — (Los Angeles, California) Host of Animal Planet’s WILD RECON Donald Schultz has a job some would envy — traveling to remote locales to collect venom and rare DNA critical to cataloguing species and research that will one day save countless lives. Whether harvesting venom from deadly black mambas or collecting DNA from bull sharks in Mozambique, collecting lethal jellyfish tentacles off the remote coasts of Australia, chasing and relocating charging elephants in Sri Lanka, or bringing down a 600-pound wild African lion to get a blood sample in South Africa, Donald is fearless in the worldwide pursuit of bio-specimens for research and potential new scientific discoveries that he hopes will save lives. While he's on assignments, he also gets a chance to rescue an occasional critter.

As Donald himself says, “This is not a stunt; this is my job.”

“The work I do on WILD RECON is literally my life’s work,” he says. “I’ve been going on these missions for years, and now the series spotlights the jeopardy in collecting these samples on behalf of the research community. I’ve dedicated my entire life to working with animals.”

Each episode of WILD RECON sends Donald to an exotic locale where he faces some of Earth’s mightiest, deadliest and most fascinating creatures in their natural habitats. Hiking through thick jungle undergrowth, diving to retrieve tissue samples from sharks or skydiving into hard-to-get-to habitats, Donald stops at nothing to complete each mission.

His missions have an air of urgency as it’s a race against the clock to get his fragile samples out of the field and into the lab for the next stage of work to commence. With Donald's help, researchers will hopefully unlock the mysteries of animal DNA, identify the blueprint for undiscovered anti-venom or even one day find a cure for a life-threatening disease.

Donald works closely with researchers at zoos, universities, laboratories, pharmaceutical companies and especially local governments and communities to assess their needs and identify what research could be critical to their ongoing studies.

www.animalplanet/wildrecon

Marty Snyderman — (Solana Beach / San Diego, California) Cinematographer, Producer, Author and Speaker Marty is a still photographer, an Emmy-Award-winning cinematographer and film producer, author, and speaker specializing in the marine environment. His films have been shown on PBS, Discovery Channel and his cinematography has been used by Warner Brothers, National Geographic Society, and the BBC. Marty's still photography and/or writing has appeared in National Geographic Magazine, Skin Diver Magazine, numerous National Wildlife Federation publications, Natural History, Dive Training, Sport Diver, Time, Newsweek, Time Life, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, New England Aquarium, Sea World and Seattle Aquarium. His books include Ocean Life: Discovering the World Beneath the Sea; Guide to Marine Life: Caribbean-Bahamas-Florida; California Marine Life: An Identification and Field Guide to Common Marine Species; and Shark: Endangered Predator of the Sea. Marty also serves on the Shark Research Institute’s advisory and his DVD, Sharks and their Kin is one of the most popular education tools for teachers throughout the USA.

www.martysnyderman.com

Ron Steven (a.k.a. Rogest) — (Sechelt, British Columbia, CANADA.) Painter, Conservationist Ron Steven, better known as Rogest, is one of the most recognized painters in Marine Dot Art today. He has perfected a dotalistic style of painting, a true pioneer of modern day bright dot art. Thru his art, words and teachings, Rogest combines his passion for diving and the oceans, sharing its beauty and fragility. For the past decade, Rogest has made it his personal and business mission to educate and help save the environment one dot and one brushstroke at a time. Rogest has delivered a message of environmental awareness about the oceans we all love and enjoy with his involvement with the Kids Sea Camps, hospitalized kids in Canada, foster kids in Cayman, village kids in PNG and Fiji along with schools and libraries in Canada, England, USA, Australia, Singapore and invites to various other events. Art is an amazingly stimulating way to get people of all ages and races excited and involved. Rogest’s work has been in articles, portfolios and featured on the front covers of publications worldwide. He is an author ("A fish In My Heart"), has been a MC and auctioneer at many events such as ones that raise over $20,000 in a single night. At a single event thru collaborative artwork created by guests and Rogest, 14 turtles have been released. Rogest has worked closely with DAN both in the USA and Australia. He has donated his art work and time to the Cayman National Trust, O.W.U. Scholarship Society, Conservation International, Ocean Pals, Oceans for Youth Foundation, REEF, Catalina Conservancy Divers, W.W.F., Coral Reef Alliance, Reef Check, the Marine Mammal Care Centre in California and many other events and organizations worldwide. His artwork and motivational inspiration is truly making a difference. Rogest says, “It’s simple; we can all make a difference if we truly make an effort”. His passion is to inspire and educate the next generation of marine stewards.

http://www.rogest.com/main/

Jim Toomey — (Annapolis, MD / Washington, DC area) Cartoonist & Ocean Activist There is a lagoon called Kapupu near the island of Kapupu in the sunny North Pacific just west of the Elabaob Islands in the Palauan archipelago of Micronesia. Sherman the shark, his wife, Megan, and a host of other lagoon occupants call it home. Occasionally the hairless beach apes with their so-called civilized human ways try to encroach on the Lagoonies tropical paradise. For the past 18 years Jim Toomey has been writing and drawing the daily comic strip Sherman’s Lagoon, which is syndicated in more that 250 newspapers in North America including the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, the San Francisco Chronicle and the Toronto Star. It also appears in more than 30 foreign countries, in French, Portuguese, Spanish, Norwegian and Swedish. Jim has completed his 16th book, Confessions of a Swinging Single Sea Turtle. Sherman’s Lagoon combines two of his life-long passions: art and the sea. In addition to drawing his comic strip, Jim is active in marine conservation. Jim (and Sherman) enlighten and engertain, promote shark conservation: Kapupu Lagoon and the entire ocean ecosystem depend on a healthy shark population! The conservation messages in his comic strip earned him the Environmental Hero Award presented by NOAA on behalf of Vice President Al Gore “for using art and humor to conserve and protecct our maine heritage”. He has also contributed his comic characters and other illustrations to educational materials published by NOAA for the purpose of raising environmental awareness.

http://www.slagoon.com/

Phil Watson — (Sydney, Australia) Cartoonist & Shark Conservationist Phil was born a shell's throw from the Great Barrier Reef in North Queensland, Australia. He now lives, works and surfs on the northern beaches of Sydney, Australia. After school he completed a degree in Science, majoring in Coastal Geomorphology. But it was his other skills in cartooning and story-telling that would become his career. He worked for 15 years as a freelance cartoonist, illustrating kids educational material and telling original stories to thousands of school kids throughout the Sydney region. He worked for the Channel 9 TV show "Burgo's Catch Phrase", his animations watched all over Australia every weeknight. In 2000 Phil combined his love of the ocean with cartooning and developed his own series of shark cartoons. This casual hobby has now become the world's largest collection of single panel shark cartoons, which can be seen at his dedicated 'Shaaark!' website: In 2005 Underwater Adventures Aquarium in Minneapolis, USA hired Phil to turn their mascot 'Sharky' into a cartoon character. Over the next few years Phil created some short animations of Sharky on his YouTube channel, and these animations are on their way to a million views. These days Phil is passionate about his family, the ocean and telling stories to a kids of all ages. He is a gifted communicator and loves using pictures to tell stories. It could be with a pencil and a piece of paper, or it could be shooting a HD short film. And he gets in the ocean with his wife and kids as much as he can.

www.shaaark.com