EXTINCT OR ALIVE: THE LOST SHARK (TV)
Summary
One in this series of science documentaries in which wildlife biologist Forrest Galante attempts to determine if certain animal species have gone extinct – or not.
In this edition, Galante travels to the Fuvahmulah Atoll in the Maldives to hunt for the Pondicherry shark, recognizable by its unique teeth and black-tipped fins and last officially spotted in 1979. Following the potential evidence in a recent photograph, Galante and his team explore a "cleaning station," a reef in which smaller fish, particularly wrasses, remove dead skin and parasites from sharks' bodies. The divers use a number of underwater cameras and spot a variety of wildlife, including silvertip and bigeye thresher sharks, though no Pondicherrys. They are then suddenly surrounded by tiger sharks, however, one of whom takes particular umbrage with a baited remote underwater video (B.R.U.V.) camera, and the divers quickly depart.
The team then travels to Port Mirissa, Sri Lanka, where a fisherman confirms that he has seen a Pondicherry nearby, and Galante discovers a group of "super-aggressive" bull sharks, highly similar to the Pondicherry, as well as blacktip reef sharks. Galante, an expert free-diver, then explores an underwater cave and encounters a large stingray and an ill-tempered moray eel, but finds only a whitetip reef shark, not a Pondicherry. A giant whale shark and a blue marlin also make appearances, but Galante begins to fear that they have reached a dead end with their quest. Galante's partner Jessica Summerfield continues exploring and talks to some other locals, noting that fishing is unregulated in Sri Lanka; she takes some DNA samples from a dead shark.
Next, Galante and his team visit Yala National Park, a wildlife sanctuary, though the first creature caught in their net is a highly dangerous saltwater crocodile. Following the water's rapid flow rate, they travel downriver and place a tracking tag on a bull shark, hoping it will provide information about the other sharks' movements. Galante admits that they are running out of time on this particular expedition – but Summerfield then announces that the tissue samples she procured from the dead shark have confirmed that it was indeed a Pondicherry. Galante is overjoyed and sets off to find a live example of the shark, while the dead one is taken off for study and display in a local museum. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: Discovery
- DATE: November 30, 1999 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:39:04
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 137319
- GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries
- SUBJECT HEADING: Public affairs/Documentaries; Science/Nature; Sharks
- SERIES RUN: Discovery - TV series, 2018-
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Eric Evangelista … Executive Producer
- Shannon Evangelista … Executive Producer
- Forrest Galante … Executive Producer
- Patrick DeLuca … Executive Producer
- Paul Matusheski … Executive Producer
- Ben Haslup … Executive Producer
- Keith Hoffman … Executive Producer
- Joseph Schneier … Executive Producer
- Howard Swartz … Executive Producer
- Jessica Summerfield … Producer
- Gayan Gamage … Producer
- Nadika Hapuarachchi … Producer
- Donald Schultz … Field Producer
- Aude Temel … Line Producer
- Andrew Carder Nastri … Story Producer
- Kevin Conroy … Narrator
- APM Music … Music by
- Forrest Galante … Host
- Jessica Summerfield … Interviewee