Swimming with sharks

                  

By Adrian Lim, My Paper | Thu, Nov 1 2012

Since early last month, maintenance divers have been collecting leathery-like egg cases from the sandy bottom in the Shark Seas habitat, which is in the park's South-east Asia Aquarium.The presence of the browncoloured eggs - no larger than an adult's palm - is a good sign, said Mr Grant Willis, senior curator of the aquarium.

The reason? Egg laying shows that the sharks are adapting well to their new habitat - an indicator that the water quality and temperature are ideal, and the sharks are being fed right, said Mr Willis."The more we can create the habitat to be like (the sharks') real world, the happier and more content they will be."To achieve this, state-of-the- art technology found only in some of the world's newer aquariums are used in Shark Seas, he said.A combination of computercontrolled devices like sand filters and ultra-violet sterilisers help keep the water clean. Beneficial bacteria in the water also help to remove harmful chemicals, replicating what occurs in the natural ocean system.Mr Willis added that in some other big public aquariums "that run well", it usually takes "a bit longer" for newly introduced sharks to the aquariums to start laying eggs."We are pretty happy (our sharks) are doing it so soon." My Paper was given an exclusive preview on Monday of Shark Seas, which contains three million litres of water and is up to 6m deep.There are over 50 sharks in the exhibit at the moment but the plan is to double that number, with the introduction of shark species such as the hammerhead and the Australian whaler.The sharks are procured from aquariums which breed the animals in captivity, or from reputable suppliers which may also catch them from the wild, said Mr Willis.Visitors can view the sharks through a large viewing panel, or in a glass-roofed tunnel about 30m long, with the sharks swimming overhead.Marine Life Park will open by early next month and is said to be one of the world's largest oceanarium when it opens. It contains more than 60 million litres of water, as well as 100,000 marine animals from over 800 species.The Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, in the United States, is believed to be the largest aquarium in the world currently, with more than 10 million gallons (45.5 million litres) of water.Mr Biswajit Guha, the park's director of education and conservation, said Shark Seas will be a classroom for children, where they can learn not just about the sharks, but also the need to protect them.He added that the recent finding of shark eggs will help further the aquarium's message of conservation.As to whether aquarium staff will have their hands full with juvenile bamboo sharks when the eggs hatch in three months' time, Mr Willis said the females lay the eggs regardless of whether they have been fertilised - not unlike chickens."So, if there are ten egg cases, we may end up with two little ones? (Or) eight? It depends on how busy the male has been."   Source:
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