The Two Oceans Aquarium is set to release another two ragged-tooth sharks on 4 March 2009 as part of an ongoing shark research programme in conjunction with leading ragged-tooth shark scientist, Dr Malcolm Smale of Bayworld in Port Elizabeth.
These sharks will join other Aquarium ragged-tooths - Maxine, Val, Dee and Elle - which were tagged and released previously as part of the SaveOur Seas Foundation Maxine, Science, Education and Awareness(M-Sea) Programme which is an AfriOceans Conservation Alliance initiative.
Sam and Roy, the two sharks destined to return to the ocean off Struisbaai, were recently removed from the I&J Predator Exhibit. Before being transferred to a temporary holding pool, they were weighed and measured. Records revealed that Sam weighed 95kg when she arrived at the Aquarium in July 2007, but had increased to 194kg when she was weighed on 23 February 2009. Roy weighed in at 113kg when he was removed from the I&J Predator Exhibit – he arrived at the Aquarium in July 2007 weighing only 70kg! Judging by the significant weight increase in both sharks and the fact that Roy in particular rarely took food from Aquarium divers, it is apparent that they were feasting on the other inhabitants in the display!
Both sharks will be tagged with spaghetti (standard) tags. Spaghetti tags carry a tag number and an address. Should fishermen catch one of these sharks, they are encouraged to make note of the location and date on which they caught the shark, the tag number and also record the length of the shark if possible. This information should then be sent to the address on the tag (in this case Bayworld in Port Elizabeth). When Dr Smale receives the information, he is able to determine how far the shark has travelled and how much it has grown since it was originally tagged and released. This information enables scientists to learn more about sharks and their lifestyles which is vital if they are to be protected and conserved. Dr Patrick Garratt, Managing Director of the Two Oceans Aquarium says “We strongly believe that sharks need all the help that they can get. We are committed to tagging all ragged-tooth sharks released from our Aquarium in the hope that the information obtained from the tags will add significantly to our knowledge and understanding of their lifestyles and vulnerability along our coast.”
Sam and Roy were collected in July 2007 off the beach at Sea Vale, which is approximately 30 kilometres south of East London. Roy Martin, the official “tagger” for Bayworld in Port Elizabeth, assisted the Aquarium’s staff in collecting the sharks and was given the honour of naming them. Sam was named after one of Roy’s daughters, Samantha, and the male is named after Roy himself.
For more information on the release and tagging of the other sharks, please log on to http://www.aquarium.co.za/ or http://www.aoca.org.za/
