Sharks in Captivity

Sharks in Captivity

All over the world there are many different types of animals that anyone can go see in their natural habitats, but also in captivity. Most likely, you would want to see an animal in captivity, because it is far more easier and safer to see these animals. Captivity is nothing like the animal’s natural environment, it can only be mimicked to a certain degree. Currently there are many types of animals that you can see in captivity, but there are quite a few that are not. Most of these would be giant marine life animals like a great white shark. There is records of a great white being in captivity but ends up dying after a short time. The Great White Shark is one of the most aggressive predators in the ocean and is also an animal that is on the endangered species list. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the Great White is on the endangered species list which includes over 100 more different mammals and marine life.

When I think of an animal in captivity I think of it not living to its full potential. Animals should not be in captivity, because it shortens their life span and they lose their natural instincts. On the website Curiosity it states, “researchers have observed African zoo elephants with life spans of about 17 years, whereas wild ones in Amboseli lived 36 years”. It is proven that the life span of animals does decrease, but it also says on the website that some animals do live longer in captivity. These animals that live longer are probably the prey to some predators, which causes their life span to increase while in a cage. Since the 1950’s people have been wanting to have a shark in an aquarium. Many great whites were captive, but none survived being in a tank. Another website called Sharks World mentions, “great white shark are susceptible to stress if they do not execute physical activities”. Sharks are well known to travel far distances and being in a closed off cage doesn’t allow them to have enough exercise.

Although it is bad to have animals in captivity for many reasons, it could also help the endangered animals. For examples, if we made a sanctuary big enough in the ocean for the great white, we could possibly help repopulate their species. To keep animals from being extinct we need to make measures to protect and preserve them.

In conclusion, great white sharks are not “made” to live indoors, and like any other animal they deserve to have space and live freely. When in captivity animals do not follow the usual behavior that they would in the wild. Which means observing them to learn more about the species should occur in the wild.