Scoliosis is a condition that is known to occur in grey nurse sharks, where they experience a curvature of their spine. It is not yet clear whether this condition is genetic, or caused by injury or stress, or caused by pollution. Lumpy appears to have a severe form of scoliosis but is commonly sighted in Sydney. Videos of him by drone were captured as recently as 2024 by Drone Shark App. As seen in these photos, Lumpy does appear to be progressively getting worse over time, but he is seemingly thriving with his disability.

Over a period of 8 years, divers captured photos of Betty as she suffered and recovered from a number of injuries. Photos told us her story of being hooked multiple times by fishing lines and by being struck by a boat and losing a portion of her tail. The final photo of Betty made the community excited, as not only had she dislodged all hooks, and her tail had healed, but she appeared healthy and pregnant!

Divers have helped prove the mass migration of these sharks. Divers helped us track Kim the shark as she travelled from Montague Island (NSW) to Wolf Rock (QLD). In a single direction this distance is over 1500km!

In just over a year, Peter Simpson documented Halo at Magic Point, who was injured by a fishing rope. With the support of Sea Life Sanctuary, a government approved rescue took place to remove his rope. However, over the following months it appeared that Halo had stopped eating (possibly due to stress) and became skinnier over time.

Shark nets have been used in NSW since 1937 and despite all scientific evidence suggesting that they do not protect bathers, are merely offering a false sense of security to beachgoers (arguably more dangerous), and year after year data proving that the animals that suffer most in the nets are non-target species like dolphins, rays, seals, whales and turtles, they continue to be installed every year in NSW and QLD. Here is Mary the grey nurse shark who was found dead in the shark net program of QLD in 2024. To help us gain vital protection for the grey nurse sharks please contact your local MP and share your support for the removal of the shark net program to prevent situations like this from occurring again.

Over the course of two years, Peter Simpson documented the life and eventual death of this shark. Levi was spotted over the course of many months at Magic Point, Sydney. At this site it is sadly common to see fishermen. Levi was seen with multiple hooks over a series of months, and showed signs of not eating (algae like substance on teeth). Eventually Levi was so skinny that it was evident that he had digested some of the fishing hooks and was dying a slow agonising death.

Do not be fooled by the name! When sharks are young it is often hard to determine the gender, and so when Harrison was first spotted in March 2007 in South Solitary Islands (near Coffs Harbour, NSW) this shark was wrongly assumed to be a male. It later became evident that Harrison was a female! She was sighted again in Fish Rock (South West Rocks, NSW) in November 2010. The most recent sighting was at Cherubs Cave (Moreton Island, QLD) undeniably looking pregnant!

Since April 2012, Winston has been spotted in and around Sydney. He has been spotted hooked and tagged. He seems to have a love of Sydney and whilst he may migrate around so far divers have only spotted him in Sydney.

Divers have spotted Doc the shark up and down the East Coast of Australia as he travels up and down. Doc was first sighted in July 2007 at Wolf Rock (Rainbow Beach, QLD). He has also been spotted at Big Seal (NSW) in May 2009. When he was spotted again in Wolf Rock in August 2010 he had a fishing line hanging out of his mouth. Most recently Doc was spotted in July 2024 at Cherubs Cave (near Laurieton, NSW).

First spotted in the South Solitary Islands (near Coffs Harbour, NSW) in July 2008. Xena was last sighted in Wolf Rock (Rainbow Beach, QLD) in April 2024 looking healthy and pregnant.

Up and down the East Coast of Australia divers have spotted Shiraz. She was first sighted in Big Seal (Seal Rocks, NSW) in February 2008 looking healthy and happy. It is unclear exactly what may have caused it, but some time over the next 9 years Shiraz suffered an injury where she lost a portion of her left pectoral fin. She has been spotted carrying fishing lines from her gills in April 2017 at Montague Island (Narooma, NSW). The most recent sighting was in Wolf Rock (Rainbow Beach, QLD) in June 2024 looking healthy and pregnant.

One of our oldest sharks in our database, first sighted at Henderson Rock (Moreton Island, QLD) in November 2004. Wilma was last seen at Wolf Rock (Rainbow Beach, QLD) in April 2004 looking healthy and pregnant.

First seen in Nov 2009 at Wolf Rock (Rainbow Beach, QLD), Madonna has been on a journey up and down the East Coast of Australia. In June 2024 she was spotted in Seal Rocks (NSW). She is another example showing how the spots fade over time.

First seen in July 2005 at Fish Rock (South West Rocks, NSW), Marcus was a young adult male with very visible spots. He was sighted again in July 2024 in Nurse Rock (Mooloolaba, QLD).
His spots have faded over the years, and he appears to have suffered an injury leaving him with large scratches down his body, but his smile stays the same!

• Lumpy (GNS-1634)
• Megan (GNS-1372)
• Rogerina (GNS-1134)

• Carly (GNS-1618)
• Charlotte (GNS-0265)
• Iris (GNS-0871)
• Karen (GNS-1587)
• Kim (GNS-0717)
• Maeve (GNS-1612)
• Sylvie (GNS-1643)