Cocktails and Fishtales- Life at the Sixgill Shark Capital of the World
Life at the Sixgill Shark Capital of the World with Malik Johnson, Lead Aquarist at the MaST Center
Wednesday, March 11
5:30pm doors open, Presentation 6-7pm
Upstairs event space of Ocean5
5268 Point Fosdick Dr, Gig Harbor, WA 98335
Presentation:
Did you know that there are large, elusive, prehistoric sharks that live in our own backyards here in the Salish Sea? Bluntnose sixgill sharks (Hexanchus griseus) grow to lengths upwards of 16 ft and are the largest sharks in the Puget Sound. These deep-sea predators are found in waters around the world at staggering depths from 6,000 to beyond 8,000ft. Despite calling dark deep waters home, these sharks are regularly documented by local SCUBA divers, researchers, and fisher folk at depths as shallow as 60-100ft. This makes Washington State one of the few places in the world where people can regularly observe sixgill sharks. In the late summer months at Redondo Beach in Des Moines Washington, you are bound to find at least one pair of divers heading out into the dark inky waters on a night dive in hopes of catching a glimpse of these large cryptic creatures. Sixgill shark sightings are so common at Redondo Beach dive site that in 2025 the city of Des Moines was titled the Sixgill Shark Capital of the World. This year, legislatures are advocating for the Bluntnose Sixgill shark to be named the state shark of Washington. Join Malik Johnson, Lead Aquarist at the MaST Center Aquarium, in a conversation about sixgill sharks and how you can support efforts to preserve and protect this important species for future generations to come.
Malik is a devoted science educator, SCUBA diver, and animal care professional with a range of experiences, from working with hammerhead sharks at Point Defiance to Giant Pacific Octopus at Seattle Aquarium and now as the Lead Aquarist for the MaST Center Aquarium at Highline College. As Lead Aquarist, Malik manages all aspects of animal care at the MaST Center, such as maintenance to the habitats and life support systems.
For those attending in person, the doors open at 5:30pm and the presentation will begin at 6pm. Please purchase your beverages in the Cocktails & Fishtales event space rather than at the bar so we can reach our drink minimum. If you’re planning on dinner, food must be consumed in the restaurant, so plan to eat either ahead of the event or after the presentation.
For those who can’t make it in person, we will plan to stream this in person presentation to the Harbor WildWatch Facebook page. To access Facebook Live Events, simply search Harbor WildWatch on Facebook at the scheduled time (6pm for the presentation) to find the live feed on our page. The videos will always post in full once the live stream ends, so feel free to catch up with any content you miss by scrolling through our Facebook page. These videos will also get posted to YouTube at a later date. All times are posted as PST.
If you are not a member, please still come and see what we’re all about! This event is free for members and volunteers, and a suggested donation of $10 for non-members. No RSVP is required.