Early life
Ryan Johnson grew up in the coastal town of Mount Manganui, New Zealand. As an avid sailor, rower and snorkeler, his passion for the oceans was established early. Growing up his other passion was Rugby where he gained his provincial age group colours and represented Tauranga Boys' College's 1st IV in 1993 & 1994 as a flanker.
South Africa
In 1998 he moved to South Africa, from his native New Zealand, to pursue a scientific career researching the Great White Shark. At the University of Pretoria he conducted his honours, masters and doctoral theses. During this time he spent a year living on Dyer Island where he began his research into the Great White Shark's life history. In 2007, he co-founded Oceans Research with three colleagues.
Personal life
At present, Ryan lives in Mossel Bay, South Africa with his partner Fiona Ayerst and son Finn Johnson where he conducts research as a Scientist in Residence at Oceans Research, while also directing the work of other divisions of the Oceans such as multimedia design company Oceans Interactive and great white shark inspired clothing range Carcharias.
Research highlights
Ryan was part of the first South African team to successfully attach a satellite transmitters to a great white shark on 24 July 2001.8 His major scientific discoveries have been the satellite tracking of Nicole (a 3.6m great white shark) on a return migration from South Africa to Australia and back21, and documenting the Great White Shark hunting Cape fur seal at night time, a previously unknown behavior.
Between 2001 and 2005 Ryan conducted research on the controversial practise of chumming great white shark for tourism, often called cage diving, where he discovered evidence of conditioning, however he did not link this to increased numbers of attacks on human beings.11,13
In January 2008 he led a pilot study to Ponto Do Ora (Mozambique) on the Zambezi shark, also known as the Bull shark22.
Television programs
Between 1998 and present Ryan has featured as a marine scientist in numerous documentaries including Naked Science (National Geographic)15, Earth Investigated (National geographic), Animal Camera (BBC) and After the Attack (Discovery Channel). Since 2006 he has hosted Shark Tribe with Dave Salmoni (Discovery Channel)3, Sharkville (National Geographic)5,6,7,17,18 and Shark Pit Mystery (National Geographic) 24. In 2008, Ryan was a guest on Good Morning America with Diane Sawyer, The O'Rielly Factor with Bill O'Reilly25, Fox and Friends, Inside Edition and Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld1.
Ryan has appeared locally on South African television in productions such as pasella23, 50/50, Carte Blanche and the Big Question debate show.
* Sharkville - National Geographic2
While on a study in Sharkville, a shark-infested area off Africa's coast, shark expert Ryan Johnson made the discovery of a lifetime, great whites hunting at night. For the first time on film, witness this remarkable sight
* Shark Pit Mystery - National Geographic24
The discovery of what native Mauritian diver and keen naturalist Hugues Vitry calls 'shark pits' is the origin of unanswered questions about the unusual behavior of sharks in underground caves off the coast of Mauritius. Why do dozens of sharks aggregate in these pits? Why do they act so strangely while there? In a bid to answer these questions, Hugues teams up with shark scientist Ryan Johnson. We join them as they enter the underwater world of Mauritius to explore the mysteries of 'The Shark Pit.
* Shark Tribe- Discovery Channel3
Rogue Nature's Dave Salmoni and shark scientist, Ryan Johnson, journey to the wild tribal shores of New Ireland, New Guinea, to unravel the mysterious secrets of the shark whisperers who "call" in sharks without bait and catch them by hand
* Escaping the Great White - National Geographic 24
shark shoots skyward, tackling a herd of seals, as Nat Geo expert Ryan Johnson heads to sea with researcher Alta De Vos. Join the pair as they unravel a mystery surrounding Seal Island. Explore what seals do to avoid the great whites' jaws.
* Squid vs. Whale - National Geographic3
This is the story of two marine giants - the largest toothed predator on Earth, and one of the largest of all squid. One predator. The other prey. And following them, Ryan Johnson and a team of marine biologists who want to attach a remote camera to a sperm whale to record what happens a thousand feet beneath the sea. This high seas adventure will test everything theyve got. Its a mission into the deep, a mission into the unknown. A scientific quest to understand one of the great wildlife mysteries on our plane
* Hooked: River Shark - National Geographic3
Forget the notorious Great White. Today, a different shark is making headlines with stories of sightings and attacks not in oceans but far inland: the bull shark. With its special ability to tolerate freshwater, the bull can take its jaws where virtually no other shark can go: upriver! As human populations grow and bull shark habitats shrink, where and how will people and bull sharks collide? One obsessed team -- a famed marine biologist Ryan Johnson and an expert angler - is determined to find answers and sets out to catch and explore this unique apex predator: fifty miles upriver!
