It’s not every day you get to see shark pups being released into Maltese waters, but this is what happened today for some lucky spectators.

Nine shark pups whose eggs were hatched at the National Aquarium in Malta were released in Cirkewwa to a sizable crowd this afternoon.

It was organized by NGO Sharklab Malta, which has released a total of 262 shark pups into the Mediterranean,  and by the National Aquarium of Malta.

Speaking to TVM, National Aquarium Manager David de Castro explained that the eggs were recovered from dead mothers, and then taken to the aquarium, in a safe environment that allows them to mature and hatch.

Each female shark produces two eggs, which hatch between six and eight months after being taken to the aquarium.

And while the spectacle of releasing them into the sea attracts many people, the perception of sharks is still largely negative.

“The reality in the Mediterranean is that ninety per cent of most species of sharks have disappeared through over-exploitation and over-fishing and the chances of encountering them are tiny. The sharks really have no interest in people in most cases; the sharks will see a person, identify there is nothing to look forward to and swim away long before the person has an idea that the shark was there.

Occasionally we get sightings from people, fishermen… they would have seen a shark and they gracefully swim away, they just enjoy the experience, the reality is sharks need to be understood.”

Sharklab Malta is trying to fight this and preserve shark species, by taking eggs from dead sharks that are sold in fish markets all over Malta and creating awareness about the threatened species by visiting schools and researching ways to restrict their extinction.

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