Visit Discovery Channel's Web site during Shark Week, and the fish you see there might look familiar.
For the first time in 23 seasons, the TV channel's popular mini marathon, which host Craig Ferguson calls his "favorite holiday of the year,” will include a live shark cam. And it will be pointed at the Georgia Aquarium’s Ocean Voyager exhibit, streaming video 24-7.
The exhibit's four whale sharks sealed the deal, aquarium spokeswoman Francesca Allegra said.
The aquarium is partnering with the channel in other online Shark Week events, including live dive shows and feeding sessions. An online chat wrapping up the programming each evening through Wednesday will include local aquarium and Discovery Channel shark experts.
The Georgia Aquarium also is celebrating Shark Week Monday-Friday with shark-themed arts and crafts, interactive underwater dive shows, and question and answer sessions with shark experts.
Fish curator Chris Coco, who’s worked with the aquarium’s 14 species of sharks for the past six years, talked with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution about some of the biggest shark myths.
Myth: Sharks are killing machines that target people to eat.
Fact: Not the case. "People are more likely to be hit by a bus, gored by a deer in deer season or electrocuted by a toaster than killed by a shark," Coco said. There are less than 2,000 shark incidents a year worldwide and only one or two where someone is killed by a shark.
Myth: Kicking in the water attracts sharks and makes them think you are a seal.
Fact: Making lots of noise and swimming in a group of boisterous people in the surf is a good way to repel sharks.
Myth: If you are attacked by a shark, you should punch it in the nose.
Fact: "That one's actually true," Coco said. "You want to put up a fight. You need to defend yourself and flail about and indeed try to make contact with the shark if you can't quickly get out of the water." You want to make the shark uncomfortable, so, yes, hitting it on its nose or poking it in the eyes is a good idea. The bottom line is you need to get out of its space. "We've never had anyone bitten here at the aquarium," Coco said, "and we've logged tens of thousands of dive hours from staff, volunteers, paying guests. It reinforces the message these kinds of interactions are unusual."
SHARK WEEK PREVIEW
"Shark Week," 9 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 10 p.m. Wednesday, Discovery Channel. Georgia Aquarium on the Web through Wednesday at discovery.com/sharkweek:
•live dive shows at 12:30 p.m.
•live feeding sessions at 1:30 p.m.
•live whale shark feeding sessions at 3 p.m.
• live Q&A sessions with Discovery Channel shark experts and Georgia Aquarium biologists and researchers at 11 p.m. Monday andWednesday and 10 p.m. Tuesday.
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