8 September 2005: Another Megamouth Shark seen:
A 2 METER LONG MEGAMOUTH SHARK came checking out Aris and his buddy Suzanne on 48 meter during their deep dive on the Sophie Rickmers Wreck!! And then it disappeared into the deep again. Unfortunately there was no camera down there to prove this extra ordinary encounter.

Gapang Beach 13 MARCH 2004:
rare MEGAMOUTH SHARK (Megachasma pelagios) washed ashore
This is just the 21st specimen recorded in the world so far!!!!!!!

The first picture taken of it today, is with our dive centre's neighbor, Syukur, who discovered it in the intertidal zone between the beach and Gapang's fringing reef, just 10 m away from his house and the diving centre. He'd just found it and immediately called Marjan and me over. We picked it up from the waterline to have a first better look at this strange fish.
It's a shark no doubt, but with it's mouth opening quite far to the end compared to the usual position with sharks. It's got tiny teeth only, an unmistakable and remarkable wide tongue and inside the top of the mouth it's silvery.

This photo, clearly shows the black rimmed "gums", the white line above it, and the big tongue, as well as the silver lining along the top inside of the mouth, all as mentioned on the Megamouth's Biological Profile on the extensive Ichthyology website of the Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH): www. flmnh.ufl.edu. Also clearly distinctive are the spots on it's chin, as can be seen on other Megamouth specimens found.
See more pictures of this juvenile on the Megamouth page in the fascinating world of the Sharkman: www.sharkmans-world.com/mega.html

So indeed it proved to be the extremely rare Megamouth shark (Megachasma pelagios), only first recorded in the world in 1976, and only reported worldwide 20 times since, making this the 21st reported sighting ever. This specimen is the smallest found or sighted so far, the second Megamouth reported in Indonesia, and Indonesia's first specimen available for further research (the first reported from Manado swam away).

Photo: Lumba Lumba's crew member Rama is helping measuring; total length is 177 cm, standard length (precaudal) 115 and caudal length 62. Pectorals are 33. It's got 5 gill slits, about 9cm long. And it's a boy.

While being busy getting advise from all over the world regarding the specimen and its further preservation, and looking for a suitable research organization or museum to take further care, we preserved the shark temporarily in ice and deep frozen thereafter.

Covered in ice, "Memo Jr" - as some have started nicknaming this cartoon faced young shark specimen- flew to Jakarta on the 1st of April (no joke) and without any hiccups in the logistics, within 14 hours from leaving the freezer in Gapang, it arrived still solid as a rock in Jakarta, at the Indonesian Academy of Sciences (LIPI), Research Centre for Oceanology (RCO).

In collaboration with scientists of the Australian CSIRO, examination will take place later in April.

The continuing story of Memo, latest episode

Jakarta: Final preparations before Memo Jr. will be put on public display in the Cibinong Museum, situated between Jakarta and Bogor, on Java, Indonesia.

Photo copyright Fahmi / RCO - LIPI