Maggie's Farm

John the River ... One of the reasons that naturalists want to protect sharks is their place in our universe. Sharks are sometimes called "the vacuum cleaners of the sea." They are scavengers who are seagoing vultures, if you will, and they are protected because they mate not often enough to maintain their populations. One year when I had to be in Hawaii for a trustees meeting, my naturalist husband hitched a ride on a boat being operated by some naturalists, and spent the afternoon observing the Waikiki beaches from offshore. He came back fascinated that even though the waters off the beaches are protected by netting there were one heck of a lot of sharks on the other side of the netting. Little did the swimmers inside the netting know how closely they were being observed by hungry maneaters.

It's sometimes called "the balance of nature," John. Needless to say, I'd rather swim in a landlocked swimming pool.

Marianne.