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Michael Rutzen (born 11 October 1970) is a South African conservationist, film maker, and cage diving operator.

Since the beginning of his career as a conservationist, Rutzen has provided field support to the Department of Environmental Affairs of South Africa. Some of his projects include the deployment of satellite and acoustic tags on great white sharks. He is also a member of the Whale Disentanglement Network for the Department of Environmental Affairs, a group of marine experts who assist whales in distress.

Early life

Rutzen was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, as the youngest of five children. He is the son of Richard Harvey Rutzen, an Evangelist in the New Apostolic Church, of Austrian descent and Marie Rutzen (née Stydom), of Afrikaans descent. He has two older sisters and two older brothers, one of whom is 20 years older than him.

Due to lung complications from his premature birth, Rutzen's father moved the family from the city to the small farming town of Brits in The Northern Transvaal when Rutzen was 5 years old, allowing him and his older brother to benefit from the fresh country air. As the youngest in his family by many years, Rutzen spent a lot of his childhood alone, exploring the natural bush and the granite hills of the region surrounding the farm. There he learned important skills in bush survival and the understanding of animal behavior, particularly of snakes, baboons, and leopards.

At the age of 7, he started going to sea on his aunt's boat at Tugela River Mouth, where he learned to fish and developed a deep love for the ocean.

Career

1993–present

After high school, Rutzen enlisted in the South African Defence Force (SADF) as a medic in the 115 Battalion. He spent two years in the bush where he further honed his survival skills. At the age of 20, he became a commercial fisherman in the fishing village of Gansbaai in the Western Cape. In 1993, the shark cage diving industry was established in the area and Mike was the second local skipper to be employed for his specialized seafaring expertise. He spent a lot of time interacting with great white sharks from the boat and observing their behaviour during this time.

During this time, Rutzen developed a huge appreciation for these sharks and decided he would like to learn more about the species. In 1998, he began free diving with sharks. In 2000, he established the shark cage diving company, Shark Diving Unlimited.

While in the water with the sharks, Rutzen used his knowledge of animal behaviour to understand the sharks' movements and to cautiously interact with them. He was able to communicate with the sharks by making his body smaller or larger to attract or deter the animal.

Since 2009, he has supported population dynamics studies and DNA sampling programs being undertaken for the Ph.D. study of Dr. Sara Andreotti (Stellenbosch University), where he sponsored and co-authored a number of white shark behavioural papers. One study identified that South African white sharks all belong to one population, with the same sharks sampled on the east coast (Algoa Bay) being identified in the south west coast (False Bay), which holds several implications for population management. It also established that these sharks have extremely low genetic diversity, putting their long-term survival at risk. Specifically, 89% of South African white sharks share a common mitochondrial lineage and have low mitochondrial diversity relative to some white shark populations, which could lead to extinction.

The Shark Safe Barrier

Rutzen is one of the inventors of the Shark Safe Barrier, which prevents negative encounters between sharks and people. The barrier was conceived in 2011 when Rutzen met Dr. Craig O'Connell, a marine biologist. Rutzen had noticed that sharks did not swim through the local kelp forests, even when pursuing cape fur seals. This inspired the idea of a visual barrier resembling kelp which could potentially become the first eco-friendly alternative to the shark nets. O'Connell, who was working on his PhD project exploring the use of electrosensory stimuli—such as permanent magnets—to repel sharks, had achieved much success, prompting the two to join forces.

The Sharksafe Barrier is made of four rows of large vertical pipes, each fitted with magnets that move with the ocean currents and tides to manipulate the swim patterns of sharks. These magnets overstimulate the unique electrosensory system of Elasmobranchs (i.e. sharks, skates, and rays), known as the Ampullae of Lorenzini, which detect electromagnetic fields. These are associated with hunting prey and may also be capable of detecting geomagnetic fields (0.25-0.65 Gauss) to orientate the sharks during long migrations. This makes the Sharksafe Barrier shark-specific so other marine animals can swim through it without issue.

The Sharksafe Barrier is currently undergoing final scientific and engineering testing ahead of its first beach deployment.

Media presence from 2005–Present

Rutzen's first documentary, National Geographic's Beyond Fear was released in 2005. It described shark behaviour and body language and showed Rutzen free diving with great white sharks without a cage. The film was shown internationally on National Geographic Channel and was viewed by more than 300 million people.

This documentary was followed in 2006 by "Sharks: Man-Eaters or Misunderstood?", a John McIntyre production in association with the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, Sport Diver, and Shark Diving Unlimited, to educate workers at Blue Planet Aquarium.

In 2007, Rutzen's Discovery documentary "Sharkman" was aired. Rutzen developed the storyline by visiting notable shark experts in their fields. He learned one form of tonic immobility from Dr. Samuel Gruber and another from Christina Zenato, a behaviour which would lead him to the initial idea for the Sharksafe Barrier later on.

Sharkman became the Discovery Channel's Shark Week staple for over ten years. In 2009, Rutzen was featured as the "Sharkman" on 60 Minutes with Anderson Cooper on CBS. Rutzen then joined with BBC Natural World to develop The Great White Shark: A Living Legend (2008 - 2009), in which Rutzen visited a popular seal hunting area to better understand white sharks. He later hosted Shark Night on Discovery French TV (2010).

Rutzen was featured as a shark expert in the IMAX 3D film, Great White Shark 3D (2010) which was filmed in his hometown of Gansbaai and featured both underwater and aerial footage. The film was screened in IMAX theatres internationally.

Also in 2010, Rutzen acted as stunt double and shark behaviour expert for Halle Berry's character in the Warner Brothers film Dark Tide, which was filmed in Gansbaai and based loosely on Rutzen's life experiences. Rutzen was also featured as the 'Sharkmaster' on Stan Lee's Superhumans, which investigated and proved his claims that he could indeed interact and communicate with great white sharks using body language.

In a 2012 interview, Rutzen noted that they "were not the mindless killing machines out to hunt us" as portrayed in horror films. He was featured in Linge De Fronte (French TV) "Alerte aux requin" (2013).

On 13 May 2017, he was part of the team that broke the Guinness World Records title for the 'Longest Underwater Live Radio Broadcast' in the Atlantis Ambassador Lagoon aquarium.

Personal life

Rutzen currently lives in Gansbaai, South Africa and Tofino Beach in Mozambique with his two Mozambican beach dogs, wife, and daughter.

Achievements

Rutzen won a Lifetime achievement award at the Tourfilm Festival Prague (2012) for his contribution to extending human boundaries with respect to the world's oceans and his pioneering work with sharks. The festival organisers stated, "It is our humble opinion that your work is reducing man's innate fear of the marine environment." He was also awarded Princeton Global Network Registry Member of the Year (2012), the Mare Nordest – Adriatico! Un mare d'idee e non solo, Trieste (2012) and the Mayoral's Award for Conservation - Overstrand District South Africa (2015).

Scientific Papers

Public speaking

Rutzen regularly delivers marine conservation and scientific talks to promote the preservation of the Great White Shark internationally. He often shares his views on responsible shark management, conservation and the threats to the ocean, as well as the findings of his scientific field research on the great white shark.

References

1. "The A Team". Shark Diving Unlimited. Shark Diving Unlimited.
2. "Mike Rutzen Profile". Linked In. Linked In, Mike Rutzen.
3. "Sara Andreotti".
4. "Pioneering interaction With Great White Sharks, Shark Whisperers". South Africa. SouthAfrica.net.
5. "Disentanglement Network | Center for Coastal Studies". coastalstudies.org. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
6. "Shark Diving". Sharkmans World.eu.
7. Gosling, Melanie (10 September 2004). "Jaws Likely to Drop at Local Shark Film".
8. "Hotel Resort Insider".
9. "New Research: SA's sharks facing serious genetic threat". News24. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
10. O Connell, Craig (August 2014). "The use of permanent magnets to reduce elasmobranch encounter with a simulated beach net. 2. The great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias)". Ocean & Coastal Management. 97: 20–28. doi:10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2012.11.006.
11. "Literature of Rutzen M". Shark References. sharkreferences.com.
12. "Low levels of genetic diversity are putting great white sharks at risk". 30 November 2015 – via The Conservation.
13. Traveller 24 Editor, Traveller 24 Editor (13 November 2015). "New Research: SA's Sharks Facing Seriou Genetic Threat". {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
14. "The Sharksafe Barrier". Shark Diving Unlimited. Shark Diving Unlimited.
15. "Sharksafe Barrier Part 2". Youtube. 50/50 Tv show. 3 October 2013.
16. Keifner, Ralf. "Ocean Pix". Ocean Pix. Ralf Keifner.
17. "International Documentaries". Shark Diving Unlimited. Shark Diving Unlimited. 27 May 2022.
18. "The Sharkman". youtube. CBS. 24 July 2011.
19. "Sharkman Full Cast and Credits". Hollywood TV. Hollywood TV.
20. "Sharksafe Barrier Facebook". Sharksafe Barrier Facebook. Sharksafe Barrier.
21. "Great White Shark, A Living Legend". IMDB. IMDB.
22. "Shark Night". YouTube. Love Nature. 21 July 2011.
23. "Principals". Great White Shark 3d.
24. Boshoff Hundel, Angela (1 October 2011). "Mike Rutzen: The man who stuns sharks".
25. "Sharkmaster". Stan Lees Superhumans. Stan Lees Superhumans. 11 August 2013.
26. Goodwin, Jamie (10 May 2012). "Michael Rutzen In Dubai". Time Out Magazine Online.
27. "Alerte aux requins". m6.fr. m6.fr.
28. Swatman, Rachel (18 May 2017). "Dubai radio hosts achieves longest underwater live radio broadcast in Atlantis, The Palm aquarium". Guinness World Records.
29. Rutzen, Mike. "Mike Rutzen". Linked In. Mike Rutzen for Linked In.
30. DeBod, Jeanre (4 March 2016). "Mike Rutzen Sharkman and Maraika van Wessem Stanford wedding". jeanrededphotography. Jeanre DeBod Photography. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
31. Tomanová, Denisa (3 October 2013). "Le TOURFILM festival explore le monde depuis 1967" – via Radio cz.
32. "Princeton Global Network".
33. "Adriatico! Un mare d'idee e non solo..." Mare Nordest. Mare Nordest. 26 March 2012.
34. "Whale Coast Cetacean Project". Facebook. Whale Coast Cetacean Project. 26 August 2015.
35. "An Integrated Mark Recapture and Genetic Approach to Estimate The Population Size of White Sharks In Africa". Researchgate.net. Research Gate. June 2016.
36. "New insights Into The Evolutionary History of White Sharks, Carcharodon Carcharias". Researchgate.net. October 2015.
37. "Risks and Advantages of using Surface Laser Photogrammetry on free ranging marine organisms a case study on white sharks carcharodon carcharias". April 2015.
38. "Effects of the Sharksafe barrier on white shark Carcharodon carcharias behavior and its implications for future conservation technologies". Researchgate.net. November 2014.
39. "A novel categorisation system to organise a large photo identification database for white sharks Carcharodon carcharias". Researchgate.net. April 2014.
40. "The use of permanent magnets to reduce elasmobranch encounter with a simulated beach net 2 The great white shark Carcharodon carcharias". Researchgate.net.
41. ^ Staff Reporter (17 August 2016). "Learn about shark conservation at Mensa meeting". IOL. Staff Reporter for IOL News.
42. Fourie Basson, Wiida. "Great White Sharks On The Brink Of Extinction". Welcome to Stellenbosch University. Stellenbosch University.
43. blogger, staff (11 August 2016). "August Talk Great White Sharks". Wild Card. www.wildcard.co.za. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022.
44. Andreotti, Sara (29 March 2017). "Mike and Dr Sara Andreotti deliver a talk at the Rotary Club of Stellenbosch". Facebook. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
45. Hudson, Pippa (24 May 2017). "The Guest Speaker series interview with Pippa Hudson from Cape Talk radio". Cape Talk Radio. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
46. Sand Solli, Ina (13 December 2017). "Mike ofrer livet for å forske på hvithai - fredag kommer han til Trondheim". trd.by.

External links

• Shark Travel and Conservation Mike Rutzen
• Mike Rutzen's Shark Cage Diving Company
• Sharkman Animal Planet
• White Shark Cage Dive in Gansbaai, South Africa with Mike Rutzen's Shark Diving Unlimited on YouTube
• CNN's Anderson Cooper with Mike Rutzen on Anderson Cooper 360
• The Sharkman meets Michael Rutzen
• Save Jaws! An interview with Mike Rutzen in TUNZA, the United Nations Environment Programme's magazine for youth

• South African conservationists
• Living people
• 1970 births