44 Days Of Freedom Took A Young Great White Shark South Of Baja
By Dee Chisamera
12:41, March 21st 2008
42 votes
Vote this story
44 Days Of Freedom Took A Young Great White Shark South Of Baja

One month and a half after the Monterey Bay Aquarium released a young specimen of great white shark into the ocean, they reported its current location south of Baja, and said it is now heading towards waters off the Mexican coast.

The thing that took them by surprise was the fact that the male shark managed to travel an impressive distance in the 44 days since it’s been released into the ocean. The shark’s journey has been tracked ever since its release with the help of a Smart Position-Only Tag (SPOT) that send information on its location, while a pop-up tag sent information on the water temperature and depths the shark prefers.

The great white shark got accidentally caught by a fisherman and was taken afterwards into custody by the aquarium, where it spent a total of 162 days before being released. It is the third time the aquarium releases a shark back into the ocean since 2004, but in this case in particular, the shark was the fastest to travel such long distances.

“It’s remarkable,” said Randy Hamilton, vice president of husbandry for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. “The shark made it to Cabo in one-third the time it took the second animal to get there. To travel that far, that fast was totally unexpected. It’s another reminder of just how little we know about what these animals do in the wild.”

The pop-up tag will continue to send information three more months from now, until it was programmed to pop free (July 2), while SPOT will continue its monitoring months after that.

“Where will this shark end up?” Hamilton continued. “Will it turn north into the Gulf of California? It’s anybody’s guess. What we’re learning adds tremendously to what little is known about the lives of young white sharks.”



© 2007 - 2008 - eFluxMedia
Share the News:
Del.icio.us Digg Stumble Upon Facebook Newsvine Mixx
dotclear

Other News in

Atlantis Arrives At Launch Pad For Final Hubble Mission

Atlantis Arrives At Launch Pad For Final Hubble Mission

NASA finally got to move space shuttle Atlantis at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39A, after multiple delays caused by unfavorable weather conditions. The managers cleared the shuttle’s move,...

Global Warming Lends Strength to Storms and Hurricanes

Global Warming Lends Strength to Storms and Hurricanes

Scientists have recently discovered that, due to global warming and its heating effect on oceans, hurricanes are likely to become both more frequent and more intense. Published in Thursday’s...

Virtual Telescope Takes Closer Look At Milky Way's Central Black Hole

Virtual Telescope Takes Closer Look At Milky Way's Central Black Hole

Astronomers at the MIT Haystack Observatory, in collaboration with a team of international specialists, have managed to take the closest look ever at a supermassive black hole at the center of the...

Massive Ice Shelf Breaks Loose In Canadian Arctic Waters

Massive Ice Shelf Breaks Loose In Canadian Arctic Waters

The summer of 2008 brought massive ice shelf reductions in the Canadian Arctic, which accounted for 23 percent of the area. According to a recent report, in addition to the July calving from the...

Rising Ocean Temperatures Supply Strengthening Hurricanes

Rising Ocean Temperatures Supply Strengthening Hurricanes

It’s easy to just look at the hurricane season intensify and blame it on the weather, but instead we should be looking at our own actions that cause the storms to become ever more violent....

dotclear
Latest videos in Science
Seals star on own web site
Bigfoot Claim Is Just a Big...
Life or death battle for baby...
Italians walk on water
Robo-rat: creepy or exciting?

dotclear
Science You are here: Science
» Science   » Health   
E-mail To A Friend Print RSS Text size: Decrease font size Increase font size
dotclear
dotclear
dotclear
Most Popular in Science
Stormy Weather Coming Up. Two Major Hurricanes Expected In SeptemberStormy Weather Coming Up. Two Major Hurricanes Expected In September

» read full story
dotclear

Interested In This Topic?

News Alert will keep you informed. Find out more.
dotclear
Photos Gallery
dotclear
Today's Latest News
Britney Spears Prepping For MTV Awards OpeningBritney Spears Prepping For MTV Awards Opening

» read full story
dotclear