Shark Week: See fish from all around the world at American Dream’s Sea Life Aquarium
If you’re looking to see some apex predators from the safety and comfort of an aquarium, Sea Life Aquarium at American Dream in East Rutherford has it covered.
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It’s Shark Week! If you’re looking to see some apex predators from the safety and comfort of an aquarium, Sea Life Aquarium at American Dream in East Rutherford has it covered.
News 12 New Jersey’s Jim Murdoch visited the aquarium Monday to learn all about the sharks, plus fish and animals from all around the world. From nurse sharks to zebra sharks, huge sting rays and their newest collection, a family of chain catsharks – the aquarium has about 20 different sharks from seven species.
“We feed our sharks a couple times a week using a set of metal tongs and what that does is trains them to associate food with tongs, not their neighbors,” said aquarist Allison Kelton.
Allison and the staff help prepare breakfast for the sharks. On Monday, breakfast consisted of mackerel and shrimp.
Watch shark feeding and more below
There are sharks in the surf zones at beaches in New Jersey. Experts at Sea Life Aquarium say if you see a large amount of bait fish, there could be a shark chasing them. Or if you see the stereotypical fin breaking the water, it’s time to get back onto the beach.
Sea Life Aquarium Curator Rich Weddle says sharks are harmless to humans in New Jersey.
“You have a better chance of getting hurt on your way to the beach than getting bitten by a shark,” Weddle said. “Since records were kept, there have only been 25 shark attacks so it’s very, very uncommon.”
