Shark Tagging Expedition Deemed a Toothy Success

Researchers gained 3 more Sharks for Adoption

WOODLAND HILLS, Calif., Oct. 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Non-profit
organization Iemanya Oceanica today announced the addition of 3 newly tagged
whale sharks to their family of sharks for research and conservation. The 3
new sharks are available to the public for adoption online and represent the
need for urgent conservation of sharks. The organization's Adopt A Shark
Program now has a total of 10 sharks that, with the aide of the tags, will
help provide data to assist in conservation of these mysterious and
misunderstood creatures.

Iemanya (pronounced ya-MAHN-ja) Oceanica's research team recently departed the
L.A. area on a 5-day tagging expedition in Bahia de Los Angeles in Mexico.
Accompanied by 2 film crews and 20 members of the Southern California public,
Iemanya was successful at tagging 3 whale sharks. These animals feed on
plankton in the surface waters which makes them particularly vulnerable to
boat collisions and overfishing.

The tags were attached by Dr. Rachel T. Graham of the Wildlife Conservation
Society of Belize. After photo identifying and determining the sex of the
sharks, Dr. Graham and the team attached the tags to the dorsal fin with a
simple device. This device or 'tag' captures large amounts of data and
transmits it via satellite back home, where it is then translated and shared
with the online community, making shark research and science accessible to
children and ocean enthusiasts.

The type of data being gathered includes air & water temperatures, diving
patterns, day-night-and-seasonal movement, calving and feeding habits. This
information aids Iemanya in more efficiently advocating for their
conservation. The tags serve a 2nd benefit to the organization. "People can
now go online and adopt a shark as an educational gift," said Laleh
Mohajerani, Iemanya's executive director. "Then every day they can track the
movement of their shark. This is a wonderful form of interactive education
that everyone can participate in and learn from," she added.

"We opened up 20 seats on this expedition to the public," said Patty
Civalleri, Iemanya board member, "and because of the assistance from the
media, we were able to fill those seats quickly with volunteers who came to us
with various levels of water skills and a general knowledge of nature and the
ocean. We couldn't have asked for a better group."

Additional details can be found by visiting www.Adoptashark.com and
www.OurOceanOurFuture.org.

Note to members of the press:
Supporting photos and footage can be found on our website at
www.Iemanya.org/news/media photos

SOURCE Iemanya Oceanica

Laleh Mohajerani, Executive Director of Iemanya Oceanica, +1-310-801-9478,
Laleh@adoptashark.com