Bangkok--26 Mar--PRpedia
GROUND-BREAKING NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL EXPEDITION LIFTS GREAT WHITES OUT OF THE WATER TO MAKE DARING, HANDS-ON RESEARCH POSSIBLE
SHARK MEN ON NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL UNLOCKS MYSTERIES SURROUNDING ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST ELUSIVE AND MISUNDERSTOOD APEX PREDATORS
How do you capture a great white shark weighing in at up to 2,200 kilograms and armed with 300 razor-sharp teeth and the ability to bolt through the ocean at speeds exceeding 40 kilometres an hour? Use the right combination of brains, brawn and an audacious plan to safely catch great white sharks, lifting them out of the water with a unique forklift to attach tracking devices and return them to the ocean unharmed.
SHARK MEN, premiering on 7 April 2010 at (21.00 hrs.) on National Geographic Channel-True Visions A24, D19, boldly unmasks the mysteries of the world’s largest predatory fish as it chronicles a team of expert anglers led by Chris Fischer and renowned shark scientist Dr. Michael Domeier. They have joined forces on a ground-breaking expedition in search of great whites. Their goal is to unlock the secrets of the shark’s migratory patterns, breeding and birthing sites. Hollywood has typecast the great white shark as a ferocious predator intent on finding yet another swimmer to feast on, yet this apex predator has no taste for human flesh and is not a mindless eating machine. The stereotype inflates the bounty for their teeth, jaws and fins while bycatch fishing too continues to threaten their numbers. Despite years of research, the great white remains one of the most vulnerable and elusive creatures of the deep.
Dr. Domeier has been studying great whites at Guadalupe Island, 260 kilometres off the coast of Mexico, for nearly a decade and knows almost 100 of them by name. Dr. Domeier has been using short-term pop-up tags on great whites in the past, but they provide no data on where the fish has been between the time it was tagged and when the tag pops off. So he has developed a more precise satellite tracking device that works for up to six years. But there is a catch: the new tags must be bolted onto a shark’s fin in a procedure not believed to harm the fish.
Chris Fischer is an expert at catching and releasing the kind of fish that usually get away. He has travelled the globe with Captain Brett McBride to catch and release some of the world’s biggest fish. Chris and Brett have the ship and the skills to catch great whites, and something no one else has: a specially-modified hydraulic cradle able to corral and lift the sharks out of the water. But once the sharks have been brought on-board, time is limited. Mimicking a race car “pit crew”, the team has only 20 minutes to examine and tag each of the sharks before they must be returned to the water.
Episodes include:
First Bite
Premieres Wed, 7 Apr @ 09pm (TH)
An unprecedented great white shark expedition begins. A brazen team of seasoned fishermen and an innovative scientist join forces to unlock the mysteries of the worlds largest predatory fish. They seek to catch adult great whites, bring them on board their vessel, take DNA and blood samples and attach the most sophisticated tracking devices before setting them free. What it takes to make their first catch challenges their skills and preconceptions.
Big Mama
Premieres Wed, 14 Apr @ 09pm (TH)
After the success of catching and releasing their first Great Whites, the team sets its sites on catching a bigger shark - a female. But a couple of feisty males require some on-board redesigns and deliver a scientific surprise. And then comes Curly.
Size Matters
Premieres Wed, 21 Apr @ 09pm (TH)
The great white shark team returns to Guadalupe Island with new information, new crew and renewed scientific ambition. Re-tooled tags, a blood sampling kit and actor Paul Walker join the mission to save the sharks. We discover what has happened to the 4 sharks tagged the previous year and catch and release two more including the biggest girl yet - 16 1/2 foot (5 m) Kimel.
The Hot Spot
Premieres Wed, 28 Apr @ 09pm (TH)
It looks like it's going to be a tough day on the Ocean when the Mexican authorities arrive. But the team's paperwork is in order so they return to big fishing. Chris loads the hook for a big one but a smaller male steals the bait and is hooked. It's Skid - he's a fighter and comes in bumpy. And he has a surprise for Dr. Domeier and a clue to Great White reproduction - sperm in his claspers. They end the day with another catch - the big girl with the droopy fin. It's Keiko - the party fish.
Shark Men is produced for National Geographic Channels International by Fischer Productions. Executive Producers for Fischer Productions are Chris Fischer and Maureen Lemire. For NGCI, Executive Vice President of Content is Sydney Suissa.
About National Geographic Channels International
National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) invites viewers to live curious through its smart, innovative programming that questions what we know, how we view the world and what drives us forward. A business enterprise owned by National Geographic Television (NGT) and FOX Entertainment Group, NGCI contributes to the National Geographic Society's commitment to exploration, conservation and education through its six channels: National Geographic Channel, National Geographic Channel HD, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo Wild HD, Nat Geo Adventure and Nat Geo Music.
Globally, National Geographic Channel (including NGC U.S., which is a joint venture of NGT and Fox Cable Networks Group) is available in more than 315 million homes in 166 countries and 34 languages.
For more information, please visit www.natgeotv.com.
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