Leigh Cobb knows sharks. She runs Shark Diver Travel, a company that takes tourists on a boat trip to the Bahamas to dive with them. She’s on a mission to change people’s perceptions of them, and back in 2017, she probably convinced more than a few that sharks aren’t the blood-thirsty killers they’re often made out to be.
In April of 2017, Cobb and Christian Torres were diving at Tiger Beach in the Bahamas. It’s a sharky area, so it was perfect for the shark-loving divers. When a large tiger shark swam up to her, Cobb remained calm, reached out, hypnotized it.
“In the video,” Torres said to The Sun, “my friend and mentor Leigh Cobb is feeding and rolling the most famous Tiger Shark from Tiger Beach named ‘Emma’ who is 16′ long.”
Cobb triggered something called “tonic immobility” in the shark. It’s a well-known phenomenon—but perhaps not all that easy to perfect. According to The Shark Trust, “tonic immobility is a reflex that causes a temporary state of inactivity in an animal, similar to hypnosis.”
It’s often used by researchers who are handling sharks. “When the shark is gently turned on their back,” The Shark Trust explained, “it’s thought to disorientate them, causing them to enter the state. The shark’s muscles relax and their breathing becomes deep and rhythmic. When released the shark snaps out of this state.”
