South Korea: Lost shark draws over half a million visitors

The South Korean port of Busan says that a stranded shark has drawn in more than half a million visitors in recent weeks. It's also named the stranded predator an honorary ambassador to the city.

A shark stranded in a canal in the northern port city of Busan has become South Korea's latest celebrity, tourist magnet and ambassador, as authorities' attempts to guide it back out to sea have so far faltered. 

What do we know about the stranded shark?

The shark was first spotted in a narrow waterway in Busan's North Port on September 18. 

Reports on its possible species vary but seem to suggest it's a type of requiem shark, possibly a bull shark or a bronze whaler.

It's a fairly large shark, appearing to be roughly 3.5 meters (around 11 feet, 6 inches) long. 

It's been nicknamed "Bukangi," derived from the Korean name for the North Port in Busan, Buk Hang. 

Trapped aquatic tourist trap

Busan city authorities say roughly 600,000 people have flocked to see the creature over the past two weeks. 

During the four-day Chuseok bank holiday weekend, Busan city authorities said that almost half a million people visited the waterfront park where the shark was stranded, compared to an average of around 2,000 visitors on weekends. 

City Mayor Chun Jae-soo thanked the involuntary visitor for publicity that would otherwise have cost "trillions." 

Local media reported a spike in sales of shark-shaped ice creams at nearby stores.

The city named the lost predator an honorary ambassador after 91% of participants in a social media poll approved of the notion. 

Shares in the Pinkfong Company, the studio behind the viral "Baby Shark" song, also rose by around 7% at one point amid the hype. 

The excitement has also led to false rumors of a second sighting, or even of it being the shark's own spawn, with AI-generated dross inevitably following.

How are authorities trying to guide it back out to sea? 

A rescue operation earlier this week failed.

The Coast Guard and other agencies deployed vessels that sprayed jets of water behind the shark, trying to encourage it to swim back towards the ocean.

Instead the shark simply evaded the streams without heading in the desired direction. 

South Korea's Chosun Daily newspaper reported that a fresh attempt, this time seeking to use a net to guide the shark out, was being planned for Friday.

The shark is the latest unlikely animal celebrity craze to grip South Korea, not least following the excitement in April over Neukgu, a young wolf that escaped from a zoo. It spent nine days at large before being recaptured. 

The incident is also somewhat reminiscent of the German frenzy this year over a beached humpback whale, who was in turn given the place-based nickname of "Timmy" — after the Timmendorfer Strand beach on the Baltic coast — the site of its first stranding. 

Edited by: Elizabeth Schumacher

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