The Protective Oceanic Device (POD), developed by Dr. Graeme Charter and Norman Starkey, is the first successful electronic shark repellent for scuba divers. By producing an electromagnetic field, the POD irritates the ampullae of Lorenzini of a shark. The POD has proven itself successful in deterring sharks. It is a personal mobile protection for one person and can therefore not substitute shark nets that are used to protect whole beaches. The original "SharkPOD" was developed and marketed by the Natal Sharks Board in South Africa. It was tested for eight years off Dyer Island with mainly great white sharks. An Australian company has bought the rights and produces the compact "Shark Shield".[1] Ron Taylor and Valerie Taylor tested the first POD on sharks in Australia and South Africa with positive results. Video footage of the first generation PODs may be in use today to promote the second generation PODs ("Shark Shield"). Norman Starkey has since "vanished" following his unsuccessful royalties dispute with his former employers. Starkey was negotiating for payments for his invention. He took with him his original technical electronic specifications for the device. Spear fisherman Rob Torelli appeared on Australian TV current affairs in August 2006 with video footage of a 2.5 meter blue pointer (mako shark) ignoring the Shark Shield, (its teeth scratching the lens port) and a large bull whaler shark bumping the camera lens port during the same dive. A representative of the Shark Shield interviewed on the same program said "the device worked 90% of the time on sharks but not when sharks were in a highly agitated disposition". He also said the blue pointer in the video film had an obvious (but not serious) shark bite on its body. A previous example where the Shark Shield may also have failed was another Australian incident. A professional abalone diver was attacked and killed by a white pointer shark while wearing the Shark Shield - thought by the distributor to have been "turned off" at the time of the attack.
