Busan shark remains unsighted for 11 days after monthlong stay in canal
BUSAN — Bukang-i the shark, which drew more than a million viewers while staying in a coastal canal in the southeastern city of Busan for over a month, has not been seen for 11 consecutive days, raising the possibility that it has finally headed out to the open sea. According to the National Institute of Fisheries Science and relevant agencies, no sightings of Bukang-i have been reported since…
BUSAN — After spending over a month in a coastal canal in southeastern Busan, the shark known as Bukang-i has gone missing for 11 consecutive days, prompting concerns that it may have ventured out to the open sea. The National Institute of Fisheries Science and other agencies have not recorded any sightings of the shark since October 27 near the canal's exit leading to Busan's North Port, roughly 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul.
Marine experts believe a decline in water temperatures near the canal's exit may have contributed to the shark's sudden disappearance. The ideal water temperature for sharks ranges between 18 and 26 degrees Celsius, but surface water temperatures off North Port have dropped to 18-19 degrees Celsius. Bukang-i, affectionately named after Bukhang, Korean for North Port, was first observed in the canal on September 18.
Since then, the canal park has become a major tourist attraction, attracting nearly 1.7 million visitors by October 29. Local authorities attempted to guide the shark out of the canal on three separate occasions.
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