Welcome to Shark Week!! Every year since 1988, the Discovery Channel has devoted a week each summer to sharks. What started as an attempt to educate the public that there was more to sharks than just what they saw in Jaws has since become a cultural phenomenon. InspectorCacheIt227 got into Shark Week about 4 years ago and we regularly record about 60 hours worth of shows each year on our DVR. Last year while watching Shark Week, EmmaBoo227 started to write the names of sharks on log sheets she created and stuck them in a handful of containers we had won at a raffle and the idea for a shark week series was born.
But where to hide a shark week series? In the ocean would be ideal, but not realistic. But we have a body of water nearby. And while the caches can’t really be hidden in the lake, we could make them all puzzles and hide the caches around the lake. So that’s what we did. We hope you enjoy learning a little about some sharks you have probably heard of and learning a little more about some sharks you have probably never heard of.
These hides are all placed around Folsom Lake. Care was taken to avoid poison oak as much as possible, but it is still out there. Also beware off all the other hazards of the lake including, but not limited to, ticks, snakes, other animals, heat and uneven footing.
Cache is located at N38 43.BDC, W121 05.AEF
Leopard Shark
The leopard shark (Triakis semifasciata) is a species of houndshark, in the family Triakidae. It is found along the Pacific coast of North America, from the U.S. state of Oregon to Mazatlán in Mexico. This slender-bodied shark is immediately identifiable by the striking pattern of black saddle-like markings and large spots over its back, from which it derives its common name. Large schools of leopard sharks are a common sight in bays and estuaries, swimming over sandy or muddy flats or rock-strewn areas near kelp beds and reefs. They are most common near the coast, in water less than 4 m (13 ft) deep.
Active-swimming predators, groups of leopard sharks often follow the tide onto intertidal mudflats to forage for food, mainly clams, spoon worms, crabs, shrimp, bony fish, and fish eggs. Most leopard sharks tend to remain within a particular area rather than undertaking long movements elsewhere, which has led to genetic divergence between populations of sharks living in different regions. This species is aplacental viviparous, meaning that the young hatch inside the uterus and are nourished by yolk.
The first scientific name applied to the leopard shark was Triakis californica, coined by British zoologist John Edward Gray in the 1851 List of the specimens of fish in the collection of the British Museum. However, Gray did not furnish the name with a proper description, rendering it a nomen nudum. In December 1854, American ichthyologist William Orville Ayres gave a lecture describing the species as Mustelus felis, which included the first scientific description of the species. His lecture was reprinted first in The Pacific, a San Francisco newspaper, and then in the journal Proceedings of the California Academy of Natural Sciences. In April 1855, French biologist Charles Frédéric Girard published another description of this species, naming it Triakis semifasciata.
Despite M. felis being the senior synonym, an error in recording the dates of publication resulted in the widespread use of T. semifasciata as the leopard shark's scientific name. As a result of this long-standing error, Triakis semifasciata came to be recognized as the valid name (as a nomen protectum) and Mustelis felis was invalidated (as a nomen oblitum). The specific epithet semifasciata comes from the Latin words semi ("half") and fasciatus ("banded"), describing this shark's dorsal pattern of saddle-like markings.
A. In San Francisco Bay, what beds do female leopard sharks drop their pups into? +3
B. What is the average length of a leopard shark (feet)?
C. What was the weight of the heaviest known leopard shark (first digit, pounds)?
D. What is the soonest it takes for a replacement tooth to move into place in a leopard shark (first digit)?
E. In Tomales Bay, at what water temperature does a leopard shark start heading south (first digit, F)? +3
F. How much does a male leopard shark grow each year during their first 3-4 years (inches)?
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