Day 10: Leopard Sharks

Biology, migration, and behavior of a true La Jolla local.

By Justin Pirigyi

On day 10 of Oceans class, we started off the day meeting with one of the very few Leopard Shark experts, Dr. Andy Nosal.

The distinctive leopard shark patterns.  They always have 14 saddles but the spots vary by age (ie. older = more spots)

We drove to his lab and looked at leopard sharks and horn sharks that he experiments. He taught us all about the behaviors of leopard sharks and why he studies them. We drove from the lab to La Jolla Kayak and then walked to La Jolla shores to go snorkeling. The water was murky but we saw fish and stingray. We all had a great time snorkeling and learning about different species of animals and sharks.

Leopard shark expert, Dr. Andy Nosal, explains how sharks become paralyzed when they are tipped over on their backs. He taught us how smaller sharks are harder to get into this position while bigger sharks are easier to.

The experimental aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.  Scientists are testing what sharks do when the water either gets colder or hotter.