SOLOMONS, Md. — Excited shark fans lined up on Saturday, July 12, for the chance to pet a real live shark. Sharkfest is one of the most popular events at the Calvert Marine Museum. This year’s visitors got the opportunity to see sharks up close and learn about these incredible ocean predators.
Sharks were everywhere on Saturday, from the giant megalodon jaws to tiny fossilized teeth to the mechanical fin “chasing” boaters around the marina. Kids enjoyed crafts and got the chance to check out special shark education exhibits that explained how sharks live and eat.
And if you’ve ever wanted to touch a shark vertebra, it’s the place to be.
Volunteers and staff were everywhere, ready to answer all shark questions. In addition to special shark exhibits and talks, the museum’s regulars were popular with visitors. Otters Chessie Grace and Calvert, as well as jellyfish, stingrays and more made the event full. Plus, a gift shop that was absolutely stacked with shark goodies.
Kathrin Bizzarro, a museum educator, said the event helped people get to know what sharks are really about.
“Jaws made people really fear sharks,” she said. “To the point where people wanted to go out and hurt them. This helps people learn what sharks do. They are apex predators, but they’re not necessarily apex predators to us.”
Bizzarro added that sharks aren’t interested in humans as food. If a shark bites a human, it’s most likely a case of mistaken identity. Sharkfest, she said, is a way to spur interest in sharks and quell ignorance about them.
One of her personal favorite parts of the event was that the paleontology team was so involved and got to be out talking to visitors.
“It’s so cool for them to be out front and get to show off what they do since they’re usually behind the scenes,” she said. “People get to learn about what they do and access all their knowledge about fossils and sharks. It’s pretty special.”
Mike Ellwood, a volunteer with the paleontology team, shared Bizzarro’s hope that event-goers would be encouraged to keep learning. A retired geology professional, Ellwood had some of his fossil collection on display and shared his knowledge with visitors to the table — his collection includes hundreds of teeth that he’s found in the area.
“If a kid finds a tooth, they want to learn about it,” Ellwood said. “Fossils like this help spark that scientific interest.”
Ellwood lives near the museum. Calvert County is a renowned fossil-finding location, particularly the Calvert Cliffs. Shark fossils can be found all along the Calvert shoreline — one paleontologist said that if you’re patient enough to sit and sift through the sand in North Beach, you’ll find “dozens” of tiny shark teeth.
The museum was packed with visitors, and the two main talks of the day, “Meet the Aquarist” and “The Meg Talk” with Dr. Victor Perez, each attracted plenty of spectators. But the main draw was the live sharks on site. There were several species present, and visitors lined up in the hot sun to get their chance for a coveted two-finger pat on the shark’s back.
“The best part was touching a shark,” said Tom Hudson, who brought his family to the event. “You don’t get to do that every day.”
Hudson lives nearby and is a regular at the museum. He was there the day before and decided to come back just to see the sharks. It’s also not their first time at Sharkfest — and he expects they’ll be back next year, too.
Sharkfest may be over for the year, but Calvert Marine Museum offers educational events and family-friendly activities throughout the year. Hopefully, shark enthusiasts everywhere are busy diving into 400 million years of knowledge about these incredible creatures.
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