'I Love Sharks To Pieces'

Annapolis-born Expert Talks Up The Predator On Discovery's Shark Week

Annapolis native Andy Dehart has always had a thing for sharks, in a good way. That makes him a perfect match with the Discovery Channel, which celebrates its 22nd annual Shark Week this week with seven days of afternoon and prime-time programming dedicated to everyone's favorite ocean predator. As Discovery's official "shark expert," the Severn School graduate has been spending a lot of time lately talking up the big fish. We caught up with Dehart, whose day job is director of biological programs for the National Aquarium in Washington, as he was headed for a TV appearance in New York.

Question: : Twenty-two years into it, why does something like Shark Week still attract so many viewers? What is it about sharks that keeps people so fascinated?

Answer: : Sharks have always fascinated people. A lot of it has to do with the fact that they are large predators, they have attacked humans from time to time - although it's extremely rare, less than 100 attacks per year worldwide. People are somewhat afraid of bears and mountain lions and tigers, but sharks generate a lot more fear than those animals because they live in the ocean, out of our comfort zone, where a lot of our senses are taken away, where we oftentimes can't see what's at our feet or what's coming at us.

I think the combination of being a large predator and also living in the ocean adds to the mystique and the fear.

Question: : What is it about sharks that attracted you? Obviously, you're not scared of them.

Answer: : I love sharks to pieces. I will dive with sharks every chance I get, and every time I see a shark, it's extremely special to me.

For me, it started very young. I saw my first shark at age 5. I was snorkeling in the Florida Keys with my father, and realized then and there that I wanted to work with sharks my whole life. I've really single-mindedly chased down that dream my entire life. Working at the National Aquarium in Baltimore [in high school] kind of kick-started my life in the right direction.

Question: : What is the biggest myth, as far as sharks are concerned?

Answer: : A lot of people think that sharks are mindless eating machines. The reality is that they're neither. Sharks are fairly intelligent, as far as fish go. They have a large brain-to-body-weight [ratio], in comparison to other fish species.