Jim Abernethy, a shark and wildlife ecotourism operator, conservationist, photographer, author, publisher, and Emmy award-winning cinematographer shared some great footage of reuniting with a shark that he’s had a 20-year relationship with after being separated for a year.
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Emma the Tiger Shark is the name he gave her after having multiple friendly encounters with her out on his daily trips to the ocean. Every time he would dive at her location she would some swimming to him like a happy puppy waiting to get rubbed.
“I had absolutely no idea that sharks were affectionate creatures,” Jim tells The Dodo. “These are, without a doubt, sentient creatures that thrive on affection. Which they’ve never had before!”
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He said when he first met Emma, she had a hook in her mouth and it took him two hours to gain her trust so that he could get close enough to remove it. Over the years Jim has removed four other hooks from her mouth, each time gaining her trust and affection for him even more.
“My relationship with Emma has grown exponentially every time I’ve been able to remove a hook,” Jim said.
Due to the pandemic, Jim was not able to get out in the ocean and interact with her but it did not make her lose the sense of who he was. After a year of not seeing him, she was still able to recognize him and swam right up to Jim for an affectionate nose rub. Jim speaks about his relationship with the shark in the video below.