Erich Ritter

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Erich Ritter (2009)

Erich Kurt Ritter (born December 30, 1958 , † August 28, 2020 in Florida ) was a Swiss biologist and behavioral scientist of sharks.

Life

Erich Ritter grew up in Zollikon . He studied zoology at the ETH Zurich and paleontology at the University of Zurich . He later received his PhD from the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School in the field of fish behavioral ecology . Erich Ritter was scientific director of Sharkproject e. V., worked in the behavioral research of sharks and dealt in particular with the shark-human relationship. He examined, analyzed and reconstructed shark accidents and made the results available to the victims and their families. The accident analyzes and reconstructions were published in the Global Shark Attack File at the Shark Research Institute in Princeton USA.

All experiments were carried out with and often in interaction with the animals "in the wild" primarily in the Bahamas and South Africa . Through his research, Ritter developed the ADORE-SANE interaction concept . As a renowned shark researcher, Ritter advised on this concept e.g. B. the German Navy , United States Navy and United States Air Force in dealing with sharks.

According to this concept there are no dangerous, i.e. H. willingly aggressive sharks but only dangerous situations with sharks. From his research results and the analyzes and reconstructions of shark accidents, Ritter derived a series of measures and rules of conduct with which dangerous situations involving sharks can be avoided. The rules of conduct should z. B. Help swimmers and lifeguards to respond appropriately in dangerous situations.

In 2002, Erich Ritter had an accident while filming the series “Shark Week” in the Bahamas. A bull shark , snapping at bait, bit into its calf ("test bite"). When Ritter broke loose so as not to be drawn into the deep water, he lost his calf. Although he lost 60% of his blood, he survived this accident.

This event gave his research work a new direction: Using the keyword “ Mental capacity oriented animal perspective ”, he tried to establish rules of conduct for people that sharks can understand. As part of the Shark School , he also offered popular science courses in which divers, swimmers or lifesavers can learn this behavior that is appropriate to the skin. In addition to the US Navy , his clientele included water rescue and diving organizations .

His research results show sharks as intelligent animals and contradict the common ideas and representations, such as. Be disseminated by the media and the film industry (e.g. bloodlust ). He accounts for the approx. 100 accidents with sharks worldwide each year, of which approx. 10 are fatal. B. Compared to the numbers of criminal homicides and accidents in cities or of rare events such as the approximately 150 fatal accidents caused by falling coconuts every year. Ritter campaigned actively and in particular through media presence for the preservation and protection of sharks and in particular against shark finning of shark fins on living animals.

In the Bahamas, Ritter ran a scientific station, the Shark Education and Research Center (SERC), in which field courses are held for students and in which Ritter taught shark courses for those interested in learning how to deal with sharks. Ritter himself was a diving instructor , PADI , Emergency First Response and DAN oxygen instructor.

Ritter died in August 2020 at the age of 61 of a heart condition in his adopted home Florida.

Publications

  • Erich Ritter: The shark's smile. Thoughts and stories from the life of a shark researcher . Publishing house Dr. Werner Steinert, 2001, ISBN 978-3-931309-07-7 .
  • Erich Ritter: About the body language of sharks . Publishing house Dr. Werner Steinert, 2002, ISBN 978-3-931309-08-4 .
  • Erich Ritter: Talk to sharks. The fascinating behavior of an endangered hunter . Kosmos Verlag, 2004, ISBN 978-3-440-09807-3 .
  • Erich Ritter, Gerhard Wegner: Shark accidents. Understand the background - recognize dangers . Kosmos Verlag, 2005, ISBN 978-3-440-10171-1 .
  • Erich Ritter, Gerhard Wegner, Andre Hartman: The white shark. Adventure, facts, fascination (a heart for animals) . Kosmos Verlag, 2006, ISBN 978-3-440-10171-1 .
  • Erich Ritter: Sharks - people - encounters . SharkSchool, 2010, ISBN 978-3-00-033388-0 .
  • Erich Ritter, Alexandra Quester: Lexicon shark-human interaction . SharkSchool, 2012, ISBN 978-3-00-036889-9 .

Movies, DVD

  • Documentary Sharkwater , Canada, 2006
  • Sharkschool - Interaction with Sharks (DVD), 2007

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Shark behavioral scientist Erich Ritter died in Florida. Accessed August 30, 2020 .
  2. ↑ a b c d e f Stefan: A life for the sharks - Dr. Erich Ritter is one of the world's most famous shark researchers. Swiss Divers, March 26, 2019, accessed on March 28, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Erich Ritter: Diving with the Sharks ( Memento from February 8, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) by Leo Ochsenbauer, accessed on May 11, 2009
  4. ↑ Portrait: Dr. Erich K. Ritter. . In: Literra. . August. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
  5. ↑ E. Ritter: Communicating with Sharks. August 12, 2001. Retrieved October 25, 2009 .
  6. ↑ E. Ritter: Divers of the Navy no prey scheme for sharks - expert teaches correct handling of predatory fish. German Navy press release, April 24, 2009, accessed September 4, 2012 .
  7. ↑ 33 questions to Erich Ritter, director of the Shark Accident Victim Network at Princeton. NZZ executive, April 11, 2009, archived from the original on June 3, 2009 ; Retrieved September 4, 2012 .
  8. ↑ Dr. Erich Ritter back home. (No longer available online.) Shark Foundation, Shark Foundation, April 12, 2002, archived from the original September 5, 2007 ; Retrieved January 13, 2011 .
  9. ↑ M. Fischer: The man who wants to become a shark . Spiegel reporter , 3/2001, May 1, 2001, pp. 68-77
  10. ↑ Dr Erich Ritter. fdu, accessed August 28, 2009 .
personal data
SURNAME Ritter, Erich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ritter, Erich Kurt (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss biologist, behavioral scientist, shark researcher
DATE OF BIRTH December 30, 1958
DATE OF DEATH August 28, 2020
Place of death Florida