Tea with Sharks
Aquarists at The SEA LIFE London Aquarium today (Thursday 9th February) joined a large shoal of sharks in the attraction’s Pacific Reef Display for an underwater tea party. The event marks the opening of a new experience that aims to challenge perceptions of them as monsters of the sea.
Sitting happily at a brightly coloured fully laid up tea party table in the midst of five newly arrived Black Tip Reef Sharks, Nurse Sharks, Brown Sharks, Sand Tiger Sharks, a Zebra Shark and Bowmouth Guitar Shark were aquarists Gareth Calvert, Rachel Wicks and Peter Williams.
“We wanted to challenge the terrible – and undeserved – reputation sharks have as blood thirsty killers,” explains Deputy Curator, Jamie Oliver, who was also in the water recording the gathering. “What better way of doing it than by joining all of them for tea! The team was very excited to throw the party and the Sharks didn’t blink an eye.”
The party welcomed the new Black Tip Reef Sharks to the dramatic Pacific Reef Display and celebrated the opening of Shark Reef Encounter, a new experience that immerses guests in a positive celebration of the creatures and challenges what people think they know about them.
“The fact is sharks are far more at threat from humans than humans are from sharks,” said Aquarist, Rachel Wicks, who attended the party. “Despite media hype, sharks do not target humans as a food source and attacks can usually be attributed to them mistaking humans for their usual food source or reacting to them as a protection instinct. I know I am far more likely to die from a faulty toaster or being bitten by a dog than by a Shark, so taking a dip with these beautiful creatures was a totally thrilling experience. I loved it”
As well as the opportunity to get face to fin with these powerful sharks, the new experience features a 5 metre glass walk way allowing guests to literally walk above their heads. There is also an interactive shark academy revealing the true facts about them and the threats they face; 100 million sharks are killed for their fins, which can fetch up to $300 per lb.
TEN ANIMALS THAT ARE DEADLIER THAN SHARKS
Tagged in Travel