Shark Week 2017 Production Storyline Pitch for Arrow Media

Channel Islands White Shark Expedition

ACT I

● Footage of adult white sharks aggregating near and around the Farallon and Gaudalupe

Islands. Map showing known adult white shark aggregation sites and scene includes

voiceover of the question(s) we want to answer:

○ If white shark population is increasing, these islands are too small to support the

growing populations

○ How is the rising white shark population affecting shark behavior?

○ Are the Channel Islands the new hunting grounds for adult white sharks?

○ How are the Channels Islands affecting well-known and established aggregation

sites (Guadalupe and Farallon Islands)?

● Dr. Lowe and CSULB Shark Lab students meet with Ryan Freedman and Chris Caldow

of the NOAA Channel Island Sanctuary to discuss their hypothesis on the relationship of

white sharks and the Channels Islands, and what that means to the sanctuary and

general public.

● Jeff Harris (marine mammal biologist for NOAA Fisheries) goes behind the scenes with

Dr. Lowe and his team to explore the Channel Islands’ mainland. Scene includes

footage of the Channel Islands as a major rookery for California sea lions, Northern

elephant seals and now Guadalupe fur seals. Shots of 20,000 sea lions on the beach at

San Miguel Island – some with healed and fresh shark bites. Team discusses how the

pinniped population has grown since the Marine Mammal Protection Act (1973) and

reduction in marine mammal bycatch in U.S. commercial fisheries.

ACT II

● Dr. Lowe and team talk with commercial urchin divers and fishermen out of Santa

Barbara talk about their encounters with white sharks around the Channel Islands to

figure out the best time and locations to seek out adult white sharks to tag and study.

● Background information is presented on the other two main white shark aggregation

sites (Guadalupe and Farallon Islands) and how the sharks behave at those locations

and the results of previous tagging and tracking studies.

● Dr. Lowe and team take an in-depth look at the Channel Islands as adult white shark

habitat and hypothesize how white sharks might be behaving differently and how

previous anecdotal accounts suggest that there may be another population of adult white

sharks that use the Channel Islands year around that may not go to the other feeding

aggregation sites (Guadalupe and Farallon Islands)

ACT III

● Dr. Lowe and his team discuss the next step in searching for their answers – an

expedition to the Channel Islands to tag adult white sharks in the area.

● Dr. Lowe and team provide explanation of shark tracking technology and how it works.

Talk about how this technology is shared by other researchers and will enable them to

determine if this is a new population of adult white sharks or if sharks are shuffling

between these aggregation sites in search of better feeding opportunities. Scene

includes footage of the team gearing up to tag sharks (shots of the boat, tracking

technology and team).

● Scene where Dr. Lowe gets on the radio with Jeff Harris (who is stationed on San Miguel

Island) indicating where he is seeing shark activity – seal/sea lion predation around the

rookery locations. Scene includes Dr. Lowe and his team on the boat and driving

toward the location where the predation event was witnessed.

ACT IV

● Dr. Lowe and team try to use the dead/dying seal as lure to get close to the shark from a

small boat so they can harpoon an acoustic tag, pop-off archival tag and obtain a muscle

biopsy sample for genetic and stable isotope analysis. Scene includes Dr. Lowe

explaining how they will tag the shark.

● If the opportunity allows, Dr. Lowe will clamp a “smart tag” on the passing shark’s dorsal

fin as the shark swims by the boat. He explains that the Smart Tag has an acoustic

transmitter on it so the shark can be continuously tracked from the boat or from the

autonomous underwater tracking robot. The smart tag also has a 3D accelerometer, 3D

gyroscope, videologger (Shark POV 8 hrs of SD video), depth and temperature sensor

and a radio transmitter. The clamped on smart tag will be programmed to stay on the

sharks for 24 hours and will then pop-off and be relocated and downloaded by the team.

This will enable the team to evaluate what the sharks are doing around the rookery,

whether they are hunting during the day or at night.

● Scene includes excitement and lots of commotion as the white shark takes the bait, and

is successfully tagged before it’s seen swimming away.

ACT V

Dr. Lowe and the NOAA Sanctuary team go out to one of the acoustic receiver locations

to dive and retrieve an acoustic receiver.

They download the receiver on the boat to see if any tagged sharks have been by the

location (show a map of acoustic receiver locations around the Channel Islands and

other aggregation sites).

ACT VI

Dr. Lowe and team are back on the mainland in a research lab, and were able to successfully

tag white sharks. Dr. Lowe explains how they are tracking the sharks (explain how tags and

receivers work). Scene includes the team looking at computer’s tracking signals of where the

sharks are located and their movement patterns.

● The team talks about what they expect to see over the coming years as juvenile white

sharks tagged off Southern California beaches mature – will they be joining the Channel

Islands population, or one of the other aggregation sites?

● Scene includes teaser of the team compares behavior patterns of white sharks from the

Channel Islands with those from the other aggregation sites.

ACT VII

● The findings suggest that white sharks are aggregating around the Channel Islands

because it is one of the world’s largest rookeries for sea lions. This suggests the rising

seal/sea lion and white shark population may be forcing white sharks to find new hunting

grounds/aggregation sites.

● These changes in behavior as the white shark population grows might be very similar to

that of orca where some populations are resident and specialize in feeding on salmon

and other populations are transient and specialize in feeding on more wily marine

mammals.

● An explanation is brought forth as to how this affect the sea and human life around the

Channel Islands.

● Scene includes shots of white sharks swimming around the Channel Islands, with a

voiceover of the questions Dr. Lowe and team answered in the show.

Rough equipment budget

item unit cost total cost

acoustic transmitters (10) $ 400.00 $ 4,000.00

Wildlife Computers miniPAT tags (4) $ 3,000.00 $ 12,000.00

titanium darts for tags (15) $ 215.00 $ 3,225.00

Argos satellite service (1 year) $ 3,000.00

Smart tags (open tag, Little Leonardo videologger, acoustic transmitter, radio transmitter) (2 systems)

$6,000 $ 12,000.00

Smart tag clamps $ 800.00 $ 1,600.00

biopsy dart/tag harpoon $ 300.00 $ 600.00

acoustic receivers - Vemco VR2W - 5 units $ 1,900.00 $ 9,500.00

Iver3 AUV with DVL, wifi controller, Vemco VR2C $ 245,000.00 $ 245,000.00

The AUV is a definite wishlist item that we could get a LOT of future Discovery Channel

show footage from, but would mainly be an invaluable research tool.

The budget does not include any boat or personnel time. Equipment and research tools

would be accepted in lieu of personnel payment for time.

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