Monterey Aquarium Shark Killed in Baja

A great white shark that used to call the Monterey Bay Aquarium home has died in Baja.

People at the aquarium said the shark was killed in a fishing net.  They know this because of an electronic tracking tag that put on the shark when they released him last November.

It is the first of five sharks exhibitied at the aquarium known to have died following release.  The shark was recovered by Mexican researchers for a necropsy.

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_whiteshark/whiteshark_ours.aspx

The shark lived at the aquarium for 69 days last year and was seen and enjoyed by thousands of visitors.

Aquarium executive Randy Hamilton says the death underscores the threats young sharks face in the wild.

"Though they’re legally protected in both California and Mexico, they are still caught accidentally by commercial fishermen on both sides of the border. Not all of them survive," Hamilton said.

Because of a renovation project the million-gallon Outer Bay exhibit, there won't be any new sharks on display until next summer at the earliest.

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