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Guy Harvey

In previous issues of this column I have made mention of some of the marine research work that has been undertaken by the institute that bears my name, the Guy Harvey Research Institute, based at the Oceanographic Centre at Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The institute was formed in 1999 as the result of my training as a marine scientist. Having a background as an ichthyologist and obtaining my PhD from the University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica, I was keen to reconnect with academia. I had temporarily resigned from university life and started a career in the marine art business from the mid 80s, so my profession became my hobby and my hobby became my profession.
 
As my licensing programmes were becoming successful, I allocated part of the licensing proceeds to be spent on marine research work. The mission statement was hatched; The institute conducts high quality, transformational scientific research on marine fish biology and ecosystem function on a global scale to provide knowledge required for more effective management, conservation and policy practices.
 
I had always supported a number of conservation groups, but few actually conducted research work, particularly on large oceanic fish species, the billfishes, sharks and tunas. The director of the institute is Dr. Mahmood Shivji, a conservation geneticist who had already conducted a lot of work on sharks. We collaborated on a number of projects, one of which was a way to quickly identify shark species from body parts and tissue samples using their DNA.
 
Shark forensics became the main project of the GHRI for a number of years as commercial over exploitation of many shark species for their fins has brought these species to the brink of extinction. Sharks were being supplied to the fin trade by over 80 counties, and no one was keeping track of which species were being exploited the most to supply the expanding market demand. Without this information, there were and still are widespread concerns that some species are being fished out of existence. As it turned out most large oceanic and coastal species of shark faced this predicament, including the largest of all sharks, the whale shark and the basking shark.
 
Sharks pose no threat to mankind – there are fewer than one hundred unprovoked attacks annually worldwide, with fatal attacks in the single digits. Contrast these figures with the estimated 40 to 70 million sharks that were slaughtered each year by commercial fishermen and it quickly becomes apparent that our almost instinctual fear of sharks is completely unfounded, and irrational. Catch rates have declined dramatically. Most estimates put shark populations at 30 per cent of the level they were only two decades ago. Sharks grow and mature very slowly, are long-lived animals and produce few offspring, so they are especially susceptible to overfishing.
 
Shark forensics has applications in a number of fields including detection of protected species illegally landed by commercial and recreational fishermen. Enforcement of state and national fishing regulations is backed up by these initiatives. The same factors work in exposing operators that name fish as grouper, snapper or redfish in a restaurant, when in fact a poorer quality, usually farmed species is substituted. This indicates two problems; the desired species is overfished and are not available, consequently the restaurant is misleading the customer.
 
The list of other achievements can be found on the GHRI website, which shows 40 peer reviewed scientific articles published since 2001; 45 research presentations at professional conferences since 2000; 20 graduates trained or in training; discovery of two new fish species (one hammerhead shark, one billfish species, the round scale spearfish), and the discovery of asexual reproduction in sharks.
 
Other research projects undertaken by the GHRI include studies on the life history and migration of the Caribbean reef shark in locations such as Belize, the Bahamas and Brazil. In 2002, the GHRI began a two year long population analysis of the southern stingrays in Grand Cayman with the assistance of the Department of Environment. This study was the first of its kind and produced data on the overall numbers, sex ratio, growth rates, reproductive rates, longevity and diurnal behaviour of the species. Very high tag retention by these animals provides a base line for further research and monitoring of the population.
 
As time progressed the Guy Harvey brand became more popular and so more dollars were raised for research work. In purchasing an item of GH merchandise the customer is making a small but significant donation to marine research work. I also designed two Florida specialty license plates for the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, a percentage of which benefited the GHRI, and we organised other fund raisers as well as obtaining grants from other agencies. The more funding I raised, the more research work could be undertaken. The results of this research work were published in all media, and on the www.guyharvey.com site which will lead you to the GHRI and GHOF sites.
 
The GH Ocean Foundation was formed in 2008 to collaborate with and fund other like minded research organisations. The GHOF will assist with inspired scientific research and innovative educational programmes to encourage conservation and best management practices for sustainable marine environments. The GHRI remains the research arm of the Foundation but I now want to give equal emphasis to education and outreach using all the modern computer related avenues such as Facebook, Youtube, as well as TV documentaries and conventional print media to reach out to the public.
 
As the GHRI/GHOF continue its important research work in the Caribbean, the focus for 2010 will be studying the ecology of the tiger shark. This work, already begun in the Bahamas, Bermuda and the USVI, will be undertaken in conjunction with the Save Our Seas Foundation and the Dept of Environment, in the Cayman Islands. Other projects will study bull sharks, lemon sharks and reef sharks in conjunction with spawning aggregations of several species of groupers and snappers in the Caribbean. The GHOF will be working with REEF on grouper and snapper aggregations in the Cayman Islands, as well as studying migrations of blue marlin and wahoo as they swim past the Cayman Islands. Further afield, the GHOF is sponsoring research work on white sharks in the eastern Pacific, and is sponsoring billfish tagging efforts in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.
 
Documentary productions on this research work will be part of the educational aspect of the role of the GHOF. For more information and how to subscribe to the GHOF please visit my website.
 
It is our collective responsibility to conserve marine resources and maintain the biodiversity of the planet. WH

Safe diving, tight lines.
Guy Harvey Ph.D.
www.guyharvey.com