Rodney Winston Fox (born 9 November 1940) is an Australian film maker, conservationist, survivor of an attack by a

great white shark The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans. It is nota ...

, and one of the world's foremost authorities on that species. He was inducted into the

International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame The International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame (ISDHF) is an annual event that recognizes those who have contributed to the success and growth of recreational scuba diving in dive travel, entertainment, art, equipment design and development, educa ...

in 2007. He was born in Adelaide.

Shark attack

On 8 December 1963, whilst participating in the 1963 South Australia Spearfishing Championship at

Aldinga Beach __NOTOC__ Aldinga Beach is an outer southern suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It lies within the City of Onkaparinga and has the postcode 5173. At the , Aldinga Beach had a population of 10,557. It lies about a kilometre west of the smaller ...

, Fox was attacked by a great white shark, and badly bitten around the chest and arm. His story of the attack and escape has been published many times. He is regarded as a miracle survivor of one of the world's worst non-fatal shark attacks. In the attack, Fox's

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

was fully exposed and all his

rib In vertebrate anatomy, ribs ( la, costae) are the long curved bones which form the rib cage, part of the axial skeleton. In most tetrapods, ribs surround the chest, enabling the lungs to expand and thus facilitate breathing by expanding the ches ...

s were broken on his left hand side. His

diaphragm Diaphragm may refer to: Anatomy * Thoracic diaphragm, a thin sheet of muscle between the thorax and the abdomen * Pelvic diaphragm or pelvic floor, a pelvic structure * Urogenital diaphragm or triangular ligament, a pelvic structure Other * Diap ...

was punctured, his

lung The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of t ...

was ripped open, his

scapula The scapula (plural scapulae or scapulas), also known as the shoulder blade, is the bone that connects the humerus (upper arm bone) with the clavicle (collar bone). Like their connected bones, the scapulae are paired, with each scapula on eithe ...

was pierced, his

spleen The spleen is an organ found in almost all vertebrates. Similar in structure to a large lymph node, it acts primarily as a blood filter. The word spleen comes .

was uncovered, his

artery An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pul ...

was exposed, and he was minutes away from his

vein Veins are blood vessels in humans and most other animals that carry blood towards the heart. Most veins carry deoxygenated blood from the tissues back to the heart; exceptions are the pulmonary and umbilical veins, both of which carry oxygenated b ...

s collapsing due to the loss of large amounts of blood. The

tendon A tendon or sinew is a tough, high-tensile-strength band of dense fibrous connective tissue that connects muscle to bone. It is able to transmit the mechanical forces of muscle contraction to the skeletal system without sacrificing its ability ...

s, fingers, and thumb in his right hand were all cut and to this day he has part of a shark tooth embedded in his wrist. His wounds required 462 stitches after the attack.

Later life

Fox went on to design and build the first underwater observation cage to dive with the great white shark, and for over 40 years has led major expeditions to film and study his attacker. He arranged and hosted the very first great white shark expedition to welcome sport divers, and has run hundreds of expeditions in the thirty years since. Fox is regarded as a world authority on the great white shark and has a great reputation as an expedition leader and producer of shark documentaries. He has been involved in some way with most great white shark films made in the 20th century. He has hosted expeditions for over 100 major feature and documentary films with film makers and shark researchers from 16 different countries.

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...

IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme F ...

, Cousteau Society, and

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

have enlisted his help and have filmed and studied the great white shark from his cages. Fox's life since the attack has involved consulting and co-ordinating film crews and arranging and guiding

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds ...

adventure trips and expeditions specialising in great white sharks and other marine creatures. He also travels the world giving talks to people about his experiences with sharks and the need for conservation efforts to continue. His talks and films on the great white shark have educated swimmers and divers to the realistic potential of a shark attack. He delivers a firm message that "sharks are not all that bad, we have very few confrontations with them and we should look after all our fishes especially the great white". He positions it as an important "keystone predator" directly controlling the diversity and abundance of other species in the great web of life. Fox has a large private collection of displays and items from 40 years film making on the ocean which are on tour around Australia and the world. They feature great white shark models,

shark proof cage Shark cage diving is underwater diving or snorkeling where the observer remains inside a protective cage designed to prevent sharks from making contact with the divers. Shark cage diving is used for scientific observation, underwater cinematograph ...

s from the film ''

Jaws Jaws or Jaw may refer to: Anatomy * Jaw, an opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth ** Mandible, the lower jaw Arts, entertainment, and media * Jaws (James Bond), a character in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' and ''Moonraker'' * ...

'' (which he was one of the consultants for along with Ron Taylor and Valerie Taylor), giant and ancient

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

shark teeth, plus photos and video highlights from many films that he has been involved in. Fox, along with his son, Andrew, after more than 40 years, still continue to run Rodney Fox Great White Shark Expeditions, a shark cage diving operation to view great white sharks in the wild off Southern Australia. This operation also acts as a platform for much needed further research of great white sharks as well as encouraging quality natural history documentaries on the species. Fox and Andrew, along with shark researcher Dr. Rachel Robbins, founded the Fox Shark Research Foundation (FSRF) which is devoted to the study and conservation of the great white shark. The great white shark is listed by the IUCN as a vulnerable species. The Fox Shark Research Foundation is endeavouring to expand our understanding of great white sharks, using the latest technologies and methods of research and working in collaboration with other scientific institutions. Fox currently strives to further raise public awareness of the plight of all shark species through his dive operation and research foundation, via publications, public speaking, and the films his operations facilitate. In 2009, Fox was nominated for the 2010

Indianapolis Prize The Indianapolis Prize is a biennial prize awarded by the Indianapolis Zoo to individuals for "extraordinary contributions to conservation efforts" affecting one or more animal species. Overview The Indianapolis Prize was established by the Ind ...

, the world's largest individual monetary award for animal species conservation. The Rodney Fox Shark museum is in

Mile End Mile End is a district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London, England, east-northeast of Charing Cross. Situated on the London-to-Colchester road, it was one of the earliest suburbs of London. It became part of the m ...

, South Australia.

Bibliography

*''Sharkman'',

References

External links

Picture: shark bite injury

Rodney Fox's web site

Shark Survivor And Saviour:Rodney Fox Interview 2007

Shark And Awe: Cage Diving With Rodney Fox 2007
* http://www.diveplanet.co.nz/gwdivfox/index.asp Shark Diving Rodney Fox
Great White Sharks Cage Diving with Rodney Fox
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fox, Rodney Australian underwater divers Australian conservationists Living people 1940 births People from South Australia Australian documentary filmmakers Shark attack victims Shark attacks in Australia People from Adelaide

Shark attack

Later life

Bibliography

See also

References

External links