The Washington State Department of Ecology released a press announcement Friday, reporting that Angle Lake in SeaTac has been selected to host "an in-depth study into the breeding and habits of several species of fresh-water sharks." Two hundred sharks are to be released into the lake including blue sharks, hammerheads, and a few great whites. The experiment is designed to determine whether the sharks can survive the significant fluctuation in temperature experienced between the cold winter and hot summer climate of the South Puget Sound Region. The study is being sponsored by a federal government grant of $1.3 million to determine the effects that climate change will have on the sharks.
A representative from the National Biological Foundation was quoted as saying that there would probably be a noticeable decline in the populations of other fish in the lake because "the sharks will eat about 20 pounds of fish each per day, more as they get older." City of SeaTac officials were said to have protested the experiment, afraid of the hazard it would pose to fishermen and swimmers, but their complaints have been ignored by the federal government. Furthermore, it’s stated that fishermen will be forbidden from catching the sharks. Anyone caught in possession of a shark will be arrested and face up to five days in jail and/or be charged with a $250 fine.
The report concluded by again quoting the National Biological Foundation representative, who said that "We can't be responsible for people if they are attacked. Besides, anyone foolish enough to swim in Angle Lake probably deserves to be eaten anyway."
For further details about the study, please visit the National Biological Foundation Web Site at: nsf.gov/dir/index
(Postscript: This is an April Fools Joke)
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