A crested horn shark happened to have become stuck in an ocean pool in Sea Life Sydney Aquarium on Saturday after being stranded by low tide in Fairlight Rockpool, but the story has a happy ending: the shark was saved by wildlife rescuers and even given a nickname - "Gerry the Gentle Shark".
The heart-warming story was reported by The Sydney Morning Herald, with the outlet revealing that ocean pools sometimes trap wild animals because of big surfs or high tides.
“It happens quite a lot, especially in the netted swimming areas and ocean pools, this is the main thing we respond to,” aquarist Emily Best, who ended up as a shark savior, told the outlet. “Once they’re in, it’s very difficult for them to get out of there; generally it takes someone to actually take them out again."
The animals are usually discovered when the pools are being cleaned or drained.
Gerry received his nickname for a reason - crested horn sharks are harmless and very "docile," as Best puts it. However, not every animal is as gentle as Gerry.
"But if it were a stingray or something I wouldn’t handle it, I would use a net and have multiple staff with me,” she said. “Other shark species, like the dusky whaler, are a lot quicker and I wouldn’t be able to catch that without the help of multiple people and by setting up a bit of a corral."
The crested horn shark lives off the coast of eastern Australia, usually found in rocky areas of Sydney harbor. It never harms humans, preferring to hunt for sea urchins and other small creatures.