According to CNN, Florida woman vacationing in the Keys was struck by a spotted eagle ray (Aetobatus narinari) after it leaped out of the water. The eagle ray weighed and estimated 300 lbs. and struck the woman in the chest and landed on top of her. Jenny Hausch was aboard a charter boat with her children and husband. Hausch was taking photos of the spotted eagle ray when it jumped out of the water and landed on her. Fortunately, Hausch and her family were relatively unscathed from the bizarre encounter.

Two Florida Fish and Wildlife officers were nearby when the incident occurred and came over to assist the woman. The officers also managed to wrangle the spotted eagle ray and returned it to the water unharmed.

Houston’s ABC 13 is reporting that an 8′, 375 lbs. shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) landed in a fishing boat after leaping from the water. The fishermen were approximately 50 miles offshore from Freeport, TX when the shark landed in the boat.

None of the men aboard the boat were injured. The shark died after being out of the water for 4 hours. The owner of the boat plans to have the shark mounted for display.

With all of the cliches that appeared in the video report, it’s surprising that a certain movie wasn’t referenced.

YouTube user dnahoghunter recently posted the above video to demonstrate how NOT to handle a juvenile blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus). The video description points out that this incident was the result of improper safety and the shark was “simply doing what nature intended.”

While the blacktip shark is generally viewed as harmless toward humans, this video shows that even small wild animals can inflict quick damage on a person, given certain circumstances.

The clip above is an edited version of the incident. The full clip can be seen here.

India’s NDTV recently ran the feature above on Gujarat’s campaign to save whale sharks(Rhincodon typus). Fishermen who once viewed the the whale shark as a lucrative catch are now putting their efforts towards conservation of species. According to NDTV, the government has now placed a ban on killing the species, and fishermen who have to cut nets to release whale sharks are compensated for their financial losses.

The change in perspective about the species was brought on, in part, by a religious appeal to the fishermen. A Gujarat spiritual leader compared migrating whale sharks to daughters returning to their families after a journey. He encouraged local fishermen to welcome the species rather than kill them, and the fishermen have responded to the appeal.

A surfer injured in a shark attack off of Crowdy Head, New South Wales, is recovering after 5 hours of surgery, according to The Telegraph. Dave Pearson suffered injuries to his arm and forehead after being bitten by a shark while surfing around dusk on Tuesday evening.

Fellow surfer and friend, Aaron Wallis, helped Pearson to shore after the attack happened. Wallis used the a surfboard leash as a makeshift tourniquet, and Crowdy Head surf club caretaker, Adam Eady, administered oxygen to Pearson, while they waited for emergency medical help to arrive.

Pearson’s wife told Australia’s Ten News, he was able to move his fingers as of yesterday. Eady told Ten News that the attack “won’t stop” Pearson and that he would be back in the water.

Australian shark scientists are investigating the injuries to Pearson, as well as bite marks on his surfboard, to determine the species and size of the shark involved.

The story of a set of Megalodon jaws being up for auction in Dallas hit the news a couple of weeks ago. Recently, the AP released a video about the sale of the jaws, which contain 182 fossilized Megalodon teeth, 4 of which measure over 7 inches in length. The jaws “bones” themselves are actually fiberglass replicas.

The replica jaw was designed by Vito Bertucci a professional jeweler. An ABC News report about the auction notes that some scientists have disputed the accuracy of the jaw size and tooth placement. The jaw size is over-exaggerated due to larger front teeth being overly-repeated coupled with an unnatural slow decline in the progression from large to small teeth, according to shark fossil expert Kenshu Shimada. Despite conflicting opinions about the jaw size, the collection of teeth were still regarded as “beautiful specimens” by one of the scientists interviewed.

The shark jaws are set to go up for auction in June and are currently on display at Museum of Nature & Science in Dallas until they are sold. They are expected to sell for $700,000.

Not much information was provided with this video other than it was uploaded by YouTube user MrFricki123 and was filmed at Kuredu Island Resort, Maldives. The man seen in the video frees what appears to be a juvenile blacktip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) that had become trapped in a small plastic bag. Someone can be heard saying “plastic is everywhere” off-camera (presumably the man who freed the small shark).

Kudos to the gentleman in the video for rescuing the young shark.

Researchers are working to create a complete whale shark DNA library.

Live Science is reporting that researchers from Emory University and the Georgia Aquarium are working on a whale shark (Rhincodon typus) genome sequencing project, using the aquarium’s captive whale sharks as subjects for the project. By mapping the whale shark genome, scientists hope to learn more about the species, including its lifestyle and the genetic roots of the whale shark’s large size, according to the Live Science.

The sequencing project is expected to take months to complete.

Canada’s CBC News Network will air the documentary “Red Sea Jaws” on March 21 at 10 pm (ET/PT). The documentary will air additionally on March 26 at 10 pm (ET/PT) and March 27 at 8 pm (ET). The documentary focuses on the string of shark attacks that occurred off the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, in December of 2010.

“Red Sea Jaws” originally aired in the UK on Channel 5 in January of 2011.

HEPCA recently put together a video focused on their shark protection campaign in response to the illegal killing of sharks in the Red Sea, following a spate of shark attacks in November, 2010. HEPCA managing director, Amr Ali, referred to the illegal shark killings as “criminal insanity” that has to be “stopped immediately.”

In addition to addressing the legal issues associated with shark fishing, the video also points out that the presence of sharks in the Red Sea is a tourist draw for a lot of diver who wish to see sharks, particularly Oceanic Whitetip sharks (Carcharhinus longimanus), in the wild. Elke Bojanowski, HEPCA shark specialist, points out that sharks over their entire life span can bring in “huge amounts of money” for the tourism market.