The Nurse Shark

We have a canal behind our house, that leads to the Atlantic Ocean. Offshore is the only living coral reef in the Continental US. Yesterday, I was looking in the canal, and we had several tropical fish nibbling away at the treasures that grow on the dock. There was a school of brightly colored parrot fish with their comical blue lips, and a lone triggerfish, and under the boat, on the canal bottom, I saw a four foot nurse shark.

About 20 years ago, Harry built a 300 gallon salt water aquarium. He had a tropical fish supplier who lived in the Keys named Henry Federan. We would place an order with Henry, and when it was filled, he would let us know and we would wait at the Cleveland airport cargo terminal to pick it up. The fish would be shipped in plastic bags inside Styrofoam coolers. When the shipment came, it was like Christmas morning as a kid. We didn't know what to expect when we opened the shipment, because we never got what we ordered, just what Henry caught for us. There could be puffer fish, banded shrimp, sea anemones, fabulous neon gobies. But one time, there was a baby nurse shark.

Matt was ecstatic. He was a shark aficionado since age 4. He knew every shark in the sea, every statistic, every detail and here was one in his house to call his own. That shark was an equal opportunity feeder. He ate the $5 fish right along with the $20 fish. Soon, the tank was empty except for him. And, he grew, and he grew. Matt would hand feed him frozen smelt - standing on a ladder to reach the top of the tank, and that shark would snatch the fish dangling from Matt's fingertips. It was harrowing to watch!

But, the shark outgrew the tank eventually, and since he ate so much, he pooped as much. One day, the tank started to get fouled and we were in a panic. The shark looked like it was dying. So Matt created a temporary saltwater home in the bathtub with an aerator while the tank could be cleaned. Once the tank was ready, Matt hand revived that shark. It was man to shark resuscitation - Matt standing on the ladder and moving the shark back and forth to get oxygen flowing through the gills. Matt was probably only 12 years old, and must have done this for an hour. And, sure enough, the shark perked up! To this day, Matt does the same thing when he catches a prize game fish. He makes sure it is revived enough to swim away and outrun a predator.

We decided then that we had to find a home for the shark. Nigel Diggins, an Aussie at a local pet store that we frequented, bought him from us for $15.00. Today, you cannot get a nurse shark for your aquarium. I wonder what happened to our pet. We did learn that Henry Federan, our rogue fish supplier, still works down here in the Keys and we met someone who knows him and is going to introduce us to him. I will have to repeat the shark story to him...