”Īnother theory is that TI is somehow involved in a shark’s mating process, making it easier to fertilize the females eggs. Sharks usually enter TI in less than a minute and, if left alone in tonic immobility, they can remain in this state for up to 15 minutes before eventually righting themselves and swimming away. The animal displays relaxation in muscle tone and deep rhythmic respiration. This unnatural posture is thought to alter the animal ’s sensi-motor interchange with the environment, causing a ‘limp ’ response. This behavior has been reported to occur in a variety of animals – including insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals and fish. “Tonic immobility (TI) is an unlearned reflex, characterized by a state of immobility and torpor. So what could make a shark zone out? Apparently, flipping it upside down.Īccording to conservation website Shark Trust: Its also been used to test the effectiveness of shark repellants by inducing tonic, then exposing the shark to the repellant being tested to see if it “wakes”them from the state. Researchers who study sharks will often purposely induce them to stop their movement, then tag them before releasing them back into the wild. It can last minutes before the shark will rouse itself and start swimming again. Once the effect is triggered, the shark will immediately zone out and become unresponsive, as if it were sleeping. The effect of tonic immobility on sharks is similar to a catatonic human. If “tonic”reminds you of “catatonic”, you’re very close.
Zombie deep blue shark professional#
More specifically, a professional diver getting very close to sharks and touching them to induce this state on camera. The show focuses on a state called “tonic immobility”that researchers have been using for years to study sharks both in the wild and the laboratory.
The name makes it seem like it should be on the Sci Fi channel right after ‘Sharknado 2’, but its not actually about zombified, undying sea predators. Discovery’s special from Wednesday night, ‘Zombie Sharks’, is a perfect example of that vicarious thrill. We squeal in terror, then laugh as a great white gnaws a cameraman’s GoPro because we know we’re in no real danger. Our fascination with Shark Week seems to be rooted in the same thought process behind why we enjoy scary movies so much: its fun to freak ourselves out from the comfort of our couch. In a tradition almost as revered as the Super Bowl, Discovery channel is filling every minute of it with over-the-top programming about the dorsal-finned apex predators of the ocean. Unless you live under a rock (or at the bottom of the Marianas Trench) you’re aware that it's Shark Week.
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