The health of "Bukangi," a dusky shark trapped for more than a month in an artificial channel at a waterfront park in Busan's North Port, is deteriorating rapidly. After the shark was seen ramming its head into the channel wall and showing damaged fins, an expert warned that it may have as little as two weeks left to live.
According to maritime authorities, the roughly 3-meter shark was seen striking its head hard against the concrete wall of the channel on the morning of the 19th. One day earlier, on the 18th, footage filmed by residents showed the tip of its right pectoral fin had turned white and was torn.
Experts view such behavior as a warning sign of declining physical function caused by prolonged isolation and malnutrition. Choi Yoon, an emeritus professor of marine biological resources at Kunsan National University and a shark specialist, said the animal's strength has fallen sharply, dulling its senses and sense of balance, which likely caused the hard collision with the wall. "Even though dusky sharks can go without food for as long as one to two months, Bukangi now appears to be at its limit, with almost all of its stored energy depleted," the professor said.
Choi also warned that water temperatures are falling quickly as autumn sets in, and that in its current condition the shark may survive only about two weeks.
The National Institute of Fisheries Science, which has been monitoring the shark, has not officially observed it feeding at any point since it entered the channel. Wounds have appeared across its body. The institute determined that the shark's snout and pectoral fins were damaged by friction with barnacles, oyster shells and other sharp organisms attached to the walls as it swam pressed close to the narrow channel. There is no bleeding, so the injuries do not pose an immediate threat to its life, the institute said, though the risk of the wounds worsening or becoming infected in an exhausted animal is difficult to rule out.
Stress from the surrounding environment is another concern. The shark has thrashed after being startled by strong lights, including flashlights shone by residents at night, and has been observed moving away from the area near the international passenger terminal, where it had mostly stayed, toward the Jungang-dong district.
Bukangi was first spotted in the artificial channel at the North Port waterfront park on the 18th of last month. After the dusky shark, a temperate and tropical species that lives in relatively warm waters, became trapped in the shallow urban channel, authorities made two attempts to guide it back to open sea — deploying boats and water-jet equipment on the 29th of last month and a large net on the 2nd of this month. Both failed.
Authorities have since continued to observe the shark, weighing the possibility that forced rescue operations could cause it greater stress against the chance that it would leave the channel on its own. But with the shark likely having gone a month without food, water temperatures dropping and injuries mounting, officials say the window for a rescue is effectively closing.
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, the National Institute of Fisheries Science, the Busan Metropolitan Government and the Korea Coast Guard plan to conduct a detailed assessment of the shark's health and then finalize and announce a plan for another capture attempt and release into open sea, possibly as early as this week.