Sharks at Shedd—Oceans Gallery

Here, in the ocean primeval—well, one of Shedd’s original saltwater galleries—live two species of catshark, family Scyliorhinidae.

One is known as a dogfish, and the other barks like a dog.

Chain dogfish (and interchangeably, chain catshark) perfectly describes this little shark’s stunning pattern of dark brown links on a pale gold background. Look for three in the habitat. The largest—about 15 inches long—is the female. “We’ve had these since about 2003,” Ernie says. “When they came in, they were about the length of a cigarette.” The sharks are fully grown now.

Sharks at Shedd—Caribbean Reef

Can sharks be cute? The trio of bonnetheads cruising the Caribbean Reef certainly come close. The smallest species in the hammerhead family, bonnetheads (Sphyrna tiburo) have a flattened, crescent-shaped head, more like a rounded shovel than a hammer. And, in fact, they dig rather than hit when hunting.

Foremost among the bonnetheads is a 6½-year-old female born at Shedd. Michelle Sattler, collection manager of the Caribbean Reef, quickly points out that “No Tag,” as the shark is referred to, was conceived as well as born and raised here. While it’s not unusual for one of these livebearers to be pregnant when acquired from the wild, successful breeding in an aquarium or zoo is still a rarity.

Sharks at Shedd—Wild Reef

Wild Reef is home to more than 20 sharks. They range from the blacktip reef sharks and sandbar sharks that constantly cruise in the mid- to upper-level waters of the exhibit’s central 400,000-gallon habitat to the slow-swimming zebra sharks and sedentary bottom-dwelling bamboo sharks and wobbegongs.

Spring Break at Shedd

Warm sun, white sandy beaches, snorkeling in crystal clear waters – yes, its spring break time! Can’t get away for a Caribbean island adventure? Don’t worry, you can still see much of the breathtaking wildlife you would expect to see at some of the best dive locations right here in Chicago. Shedd’s Caribbean Reef habitat contains approximately 900 animals representing 80 species commonly found in the Caribbean. So if you can’t snorkel away this spring break how about a quick dive highlighting a few of the amazing animals you’ll see here at Shedd! We are even extending our hours to give you more opportunities to enjoy Shedd, for a full listing of our spring break hours click here.

Marine Debris - Where do all those plastic bags go?

When the winds kick up in Chicago, I often see plastic bags take flight from where they lie discarded on the ground. They lift higher and higher until they disappear against the clouds or behind a high rise. Have you ever wondered where they land?

More often than we might expect, the answer is the Great Lakes. In other places, rain and urban runoff sweep those bags into stormwater drains and out to sea. The natural flow of ocean currents and the almost eternal life span of plastic trash even mean that there are huge floating skeins of garbage, such as this Texas-sized "garbage patch" in the Pacific Ocean.

Shark pups update

Many of you have asked for an update regarding the four blacktip reef sharks born last fall at Shedd (check out the video). Animal care is our top priority, which means we carefully manage our entire animal population. Given that our current collection of blacktip sharks is predominantly male, we have relocated the three male pups to other AZA-accredited aquariums or zoos, while caring for the female pup here at Shedd. We are pleased to report that all pups are growing fast and are in good health.

Snorkeling in Cat Cay

More from Shedd's High School Marine Biology participants studying in the Bahamas:

Today we journeyed to a part of Cat Cay that is under construction. It intrigued us to snorkel on this part of the island because we were unsure as to the affect that the construction had upon the natural habitats. Jumping into the water, we began surveying the area and were shocked to see that as we drew nearer to the alleged shore, we could barely see any signs of life at all. We also noticed that the shallow water was quite foggy, which made it hard to see. As we got closer to the shore line we began to notice that dredging that had already occurred from construction. Recognizing this, we were able to decipher from the apparent dredging that most animal life had vanished from the area.

Visiting a shark lab

The second group of High School Marine Biology students have landed in the Bahamas. Here is a blog by two of the participants:

Today we visited a shark research lab on Bimini. We met a researcher named Kat who worked on not only protecting lemon sharks, which is the main species that they study, but also identify a number of other shark species that live in Bimini. She took us out to a pen and showed us some of the baby lemon sharks that they were studying. Some other shark species that live on Bimini are the tiger, bull and the occasional hammer head.

Last day in the Bahamas

The High School Marine Biology program participants share their discoveries from their last day in the Bahamas, and reflect on their entire experience. Here’s a blog post from two of the participants:

We can’t believe that today is our last day in the Bahamas! It has been an amazing trip that none of us will forget. Today we went to Cat Cay to do a beach seine, and had the opportunity to look at the homes being built on the island. Each of us wondered how the building development will affect Cat Cay’s surrounding environment.

Snorkeling above a shipwreck

The High School Marine Biology program participants are in their first week of study in the Bahamas. Here's a blog post and video from two of the participants:

This afternoon we headed to Turtle Rocks and saw starfish, conch shells, laughing gulls, and tons of crabs. After a short ride to the other side of the rocks, we got in the water for a late afternoon snorkel to start our fish ID research project.