ReShark Gallery header.jpg
Reshark by Mark Erdmann
The images in this gallery, all by Dr. Mark Erdmann, covers the first ReShark release in 2024 of Leopard sharks into the wilds of Raja Ampat. Three sharks each were released from their two respective nurseries, located in SE Misool at Misool Resort and the RARCC nursery at Sorido Resort in the Dampier Strait. Misool’s sharks are named Taran, Charlotte and Dawn. RARCC’s sharks are Seren, Camille, and Buddy. Buddy is the oldest shark released so far at 1.2 meters. At this size the “zebra” stripes with which he was born with have morphed into the distinctive “leopard” spots he will wear the rest of his life.
Mark Erdmann, Vice President of Asia Pacific Marine Programs at Conservation International, first conceptualized a leopard shark recovery program in Raja Ampat using offspring from adult breeders in large public aquariums back in 2015. It took 5 years before the plan “grew legs” at a seminal workshop at the Georgia Aquarium in late 2019, which eventually led to the launching of the StAR (Stegostoma tigrinum Augmentation and Recovery) project in early 2020. Mark now serves on the Steering Committee of the StAR project and on the ReShark Council (the StAR Project is the first such shark recovery project under the ReShark initiative, which now counts nearly 100 international partners within the coalition).
Mark says, “Having the opportunity to photograph six leopard shark pup releases in a week in Raja Ampat was an exceptionally satisfying moment nearly a decade in the making!”
