Monterey Bay Aquarium Puts Live Great White Shark on Display
Monterey, Calif. (KCBS) -- The Monterey Bay Aquarium announced today it has put a great white shark on display in the Outer Bay exhibit for the second time in the aquarium's history.
In 2004 and 2005, a female white shark was on display in the aquarium's Outer Bay exhibit for approximately six months and then was returned to the wild.
Christina Slager, one of the curators at the aquarium, said during a live interview on KCBS today that there is "so much more that we need to learn about sharks. There's still so many questions that need to be answered about how sharks grow, their behaviors and of course, he will serve as a great ambassador for a species."
In contrast to the first shark, which was accidentally caught by fishermen and turned over to the aquarium, the new shark was purposely caught by aquarium animal husbandry experts for display.
"Contrary to their press, there is very little that we know about great white sharks. We know they are not the voracious predators they are portrayed to be in terms of seeking out humans with violent and malicious intent. But really, so much of their life history is a completely unknown," Slager said. "A big apex predator like a white shark says a lot about the health of our oceans and the marine environment, so it's really important that we understand how they survive and in many cases, how they don't survive."
For information of how to see the shark check out the aquarium's website.
The new shark on display is a 5-foot-8-inch male weighing approximately 104 pounds. He was caught on Aug. 17 in Santa Monica Bay.
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