Two endangered Indo-Pacific leopard shark pups with ties to Tacoma are now swimming free in the waters of Raja Ampat, Indonesia.
Their release marks a significant milestone in an international conservation effort to restore the species in the wild.
In late August, shark pups Jelly and Bestie were released near the Raja Ampat Research and Conservation Centre (RARCC) nursery on Kri Island. The releases are part of an ongoing effort to rebuild populations of Indo-Pacific leopard sharks, which have declined across much of their historic range because of overfishing and habitat loss…