Killer Whale Image for Bottom of Kayak

The zebra pattern makes sense to me a few different ways... one is it is supposedly patterned off of non-prey fish.. okay... the other is looking up at it from underwater I would think it may just help the silhouette of the yak or surfboard blend into the rippled look of the surface... No practical experience or anything, just seems to make sense.

Oh yeah, Frank... I wasnt barking at you or anything with my last post... Im just saying that I personally dont need anyone, expert or otherwise, to tell me whether or not a GWS will target and eat a dead baby (or adult for that matter) Killer Whale.  Of course they will... Big Whites eat marine mammals.. PERIOD.  Fish are opportunistic feeders... PERIOD.
'nuff said... I have convinced myself.. LOL

The zebra pattern makes sense to me a few different ways... one is it is supposedly patterned off of non-prey fish.. okay... the other is looking up at it from underwater I would think it may just help the silhouette of the yak or surfboard blend into the rippled look of the surface... No practical experience or anything, just seems to make sense.

Oh yeah, Frank... I wasnt barking at you or anything with my last post... Im just saying that I personally dont need anyone, expert or otherwise, to tell me whether or not a GWS will target and eat a dead baby (or adult for that matter) Killer Whale.  Of course they will... Big Whites eat marine mammals.. PERIOD.  Fish are opportunistic feeders... PERIOD.
'nuff said... I have convinced myself.. LOL

Alright then...glad your ON BOARD!  where are you planning to test-out this theory first? 
iGOTtoSEEthisINperson! 

I want my kayak to look like a kayak.  At least one GWS out there knows kayaks aren't edible.

I want my kayak to look like a kayak.  At least one GWS out there knows kayaks aren't edible.

 

Adam... I plan on implementing my plan in the big blue during great white breeding season... of course to fully test the validity of the theory I require that YOU be paddled up along side of me to act as the control for the study..LOL

Adam... I plan on implementing my plan in the big blue during great white breeding season... of course to fully test the validity of the theory I require that YOU be paddled up along side of me to act as the control for the study..LOL

DEAL! count me in!
I've decided i'm gonna do mine with a baby KW print though...
I'VEneverSEENhornyGREATWHITESupclose!

We are much more likely to get in a car accident while driving to and from the launch.  I'd be honored to be eaten by an orca, and if a GW ever bothers me, I'll punch it direct in the nose.

We are more likely to suffer limb loss or horrific death from a run in with the flesh shredding teeth of a great white than the plastic bumper of Honda.  

When we took Joel diving in Stillwater he followed me in his yak for a while.  When I was on the bottom looking up, his yellow hull appeared only as a dark silohuette, color made no difference nor was the color apparent at 20' with great vis.  Whats being overlooked is that the hull is blocking light from penetrating the water and that is the reason you can see the silohuete as just a large dark object.


Check out Angel, freedive extroidinaire and president of the Handsome Boys Modeling School, as he demonstrates the do's and dont's of modern concealment.

Here he is mid surface snorkel sporting a snug fitting Omer dive camo in Mimetic Med coloration....size husky.  The dual layers of 7mm rubber provide both warmth and comfort while still screaming, "Hi everybody, here I am" exactly what you want when chasing tail but not what you're looking for if you don't want the tail chasing you.  

(this shot was taken at a range of about 7', note that color pattern has no affect on the siohuette)

Look on now as he demonstrates the propper use of patterns and color variations to match surroundings and break up the silohuette of what might otherwise be mistaken as a Bull Elephant Seal.....during mating season.....guarding a haram of females......lookin to make babies....to carry on his fine genes.    

(this shot was at a range of about 5 feet, angel was roughly 17 feet from the bottom but the greens in the suit do manage to break up the silohuette.....somewhat.  IMO wearing the speedo on the outside kind of killed it but who am I to critique a fashionista.)  

Here he is completely concealed





Moral of the story....paint your patterns but its still not gonna hide the fact that your blocking light and looking like a lumbering snack sized baby beluga with no momma around     FWIW, my next hull will be white....cause its so much cooler than yellow




 





 

another great point of Arts' veiws.....now, as the GW is heading up from the deep depths, locked in on a mother-less beluga and right as his mouth openning and jaws-extended out, it realizes it's NOT a food source and puts on the E-brake before smashing it....not being sure what it is.
....i'm still doing a Youtube search just incase!

I was wondering about the effect of colors on the silhouette... thanks for the info...

So what we need is either a translucent kayak material that allows light to penetrate thereby turning us and our yaks into some quasi-predator-esque light bending camo kayak merchant of fish death on a scale never before witnessed by man, or a mini sub kayak combo that is painted to look like the bottom of the ocean so that the Landlord can only see us from above...LOL

I'll put in a call to the guys at the Hobie skunkworks alah area 51 and tell them to get on it!

And far as being honored to suffer the horrific death of becoming part of the food chain, I hope the bastard chokes on me!

oh yeah!....an Email to MythBusters should solve all questions and theories...stand by!

And far as being honored to suffer the horrific death of becoming part of the food chain, I hope the bastard chokes on me!

...and then coughs me up! that's the winning spirit!   
 iDON'TthinkPLASTICpassesEASILY....could block her up.

That is a great post ag. I like your theory. Let's go a little further.

When you were under Pacifico you were looking at him w/ human eyesight. Most shark's eyesight, including the GWS, are 10 times more sensitive to light than a humans. So it's possible that even from a backlight subject, that the shark could still make out a pattern. Also you were looking straight up at the prey (sorry Pacifico ) while GWS are well known to circle their prey and look very carefully before a vertical strike. So when the prey isn't backlight it's possible the shark could see a possible threat (maybe a pattern) and call off an attack. Lastly, when hunting, sharks use their sense of smell when far from prey but when they get closer they rely on their eye sight. I think it's possible that the shark relying on it's sight and taking slow steps could see a pattern and decide it's not a good target. But now we have to see if that fingerprint pattern really does relay that message.

Again nice post AG!

Z

When you were under Pacifico you were looking at him w/ human eyesight. Most shark's eyesight, including the GWS, are 10 times more sensitive to light than a humans. So it's possible that even from a backlight subject, that the shark could still make out a pattern. Also you were looking straight up at the prey (sorry Pacifico )

Wouldn't some sunlight show through a bright yellow kayak to show black stripes painted on the bottom?

When I've stored drybags or rods in my yellow Prowler, I can see the shadows from underneath.

If that is the case Chuck, then yes, the pattern would show... at least it would if the stripes where in high contrast to the translucent yellow, black, like you said.

Then again, I was just sitting here thinking: If the lot of us are actually concerned enough about the possibility of a GWS attack on our yaks, that we are taking the discusion of deterrence to this level, why would any of us in our right minds EVER go in the ocean.  Hearing us talk, a bystander would envision an ocean literally packed with circling Great Whites planning their next step... constantly surveying us from below.  Hell, they are probably waiting for us to fill up with bottom fish so that they get a little extra bang for their buck in the food department when they do decide to drop the hammer on us!

Of course I have nothing to back this up, but I don't think that scenario is too far from the truth.

Of the one attack in our group, you gotta figure there were plenty of times He was around checking us out from below while we happily fished on, oblivious...  maybe even danging our feet, (as I was on The Day).