I’m happy to report that our sandbark shark pup Chloe is thriving in our Atlantic Coral Reef exhibit – where she has been since the end of June!
Photo via Jeff Mauritzen.
In the last few months, Chloe has been enjoying a steady diet of mackerel, squid, shrimp, herring and capelin! The diet of each Aquarium resident is measured out (based on their weight) and fed carefully, to ensure that everyone is getting the right amount of nutrition. At the moment, Chloe is eating about .2 lbs of food at each meal!
Since her birth back in May, Chloe has grown to be about 10 lbs in weight and about 2.5 feet in length!
Do you have a question about Chloe, her species or just sharks in general? Ask me in the comments section!
What made you guys decide on the name Chloe?
It was the choice of our shark caretakers :)
Was Chloe born at the aquarium?
She was! She was born in our Shark Alley exhibit!
That exciting, is it rare for sharks to have babies in aquariums? i don’t think I have ever heard os this before.
We wouldn’t say it’s necessarily rare for sharks in Aquariums to reproduce, however, the reproduction rate of sharks is quite low and, on average, they don’t reach sexual maturity until they reach their teens!
All of this combined, means that most shark species produce very few young throughout their lifetime. It’s one of the main reasons they’re so sensitive to conservation issues such as overfishing, bycatch and habitat degradation.
Holly,
Great work really appreciate your efforts!