The Two Oceans Aquarium has removed two male ragged-tooth sharks from its Predator Exhibit and will be releasing these sharks near East London early next week. The sharks have been moved to a holding pool on the Aquarium’s roof, where they will receive a health inspection from a veterinarian prior to their release in the ocean near East London, which is where they were collected.

These sharks were introduced to the Aquarium’s Predator Exhibit in late-July and now, after about two months with us, we have decided to release them. Male sharks are known to be more inquisitive, and these two are more dominant in the exhibit and have tended to get a little too close to our divers for comfort.

The Aquarium’s policy is to always put an animal’s well-being first, and whenever we notice any signs that an animal has not settled into its home, we routinely return animals to where they were collected. Two large male ragged-tooth sharks - Buck and Jeff - have not settled into the exhibit as well as we would have liked and we know it is better to release them now, rather than to keep them for much longer. Both sharks have gained about 10kg since moving into the Aquarium and both are in good health. 

The two sharks being released will be tagged so that they can contribute to important ragged-tooth shark research studies. You can still come and get an eyeful of the seven remaining ragged-tooth sharks at the Aquarium! Feeding time is every Sunday at 3pm.