Big Bigger Biggest

[Fiskadoro]

Originally Posted by dos ballenas

OK, so why did you kill the teeeeny mako pictured above?

I already posted why. When it ripped the tail off my bonito it also put a 9/0 hook right through it's gills. There was no point in throwing back when it was going to just bleed out.

Originally Posted by dos ballenas

"...... big sharks like that are probably getting pretty close to the end off their life cycle, that unless they are carrying pups they probably aren't going to producing more offspring, and that even if they did get pregnant again that at best they would only produce a handful of young..."

Such BS, in fact probably the most bullshit I have ever read on the internet.

Really!!! That's quite the claim! "Most Bullshit ever" Now please explain why in detail.

I say that in animals that continually grow until death like sharks the largest of the species recorded are likely to also be some of the oldest. That's pretty much a common sense claim. The growth rings are a potential way to figure the sharks age, but that's only possible if the shark never stops growing. Each ring no matter what the time increment involved signifies a increase in the size of the spine. What that says to me is the shark is constantly getting bigger.

As the spine is enlarged more rings are created so it only follows the larger they are the older they are.

How old is that Mako? Well the best estimates I've seen suggest thirty years but that's not what's really significant. 30 35 40 years the number is irrelevant. It's sheer size suggests it's the oldest one we've found, and though you might claim otherwise it's size also suggests it's approaching the end of it's life cycle. I hate to point out the obvious but if there are older bigger Makos around why have we not seen or caught them? Since this is the largest it's also likely the oldest. If you don't agree with that idea then please show me something based in science that proves it wrong.

You're the scientist, this should be easy for you. If you think it's BS I gather you must have some empirical evidence to back your opinion up. I'd love to hear it, tell me why the above assumption is wrong, and if you can back it up with peer reviewed information from a scientific journal, that would be wonderful. I always like to hear and read new information I haven't seen or thought about before.

Originally Posted by dos ballenas

its great that you have your own opinions, i'm not here to belittle them.

Fortunately I don't feel all that belittled. I'm not overly concerned because as you say "opinions are like assholes" and I'm used to dealing with both. All I'm trying to explain is that my ideas are based on observation of available data not some preconceived notion, bias, or emotional premise.