A Spanish oceanarium has a few new residents, after a shark gave birth to eight pups.
The five female and three male sandbar shark pups were eating and responding well in their first days at the oceanarium, according to a statement Friday from Valencia’s L’Oceanografic.
Alice, who weighs 220.5 pounds (100 kilograms) and is 8 feet (2.5 meters) long and has lived at the oceanarium since 2003, gave birth to the sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus) at the oceanarium situated in the city’s science, nature and art complex. Her pups are about 18 inches (45 centimeters) long on average.
When they were born, aquarium workers were on hand to remove them from the water to weigh and check them over in a rehabilitation pool. A team of veterinarians conducted health tests and supplied vitamins and a course of antibiotics for the pups, L’Oceanografic said in a statement.
There have been two other shark births at the oceanarium, both from first-time mothers, but not with as many pups as the most recent births, according to a press statement.
Sandbar sharks typically eat fish and rays, and are not considered to be dangerous to humans. They live in coastal areas in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans.
(Edited by Judy Isacoff.)
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