Rescuers got the shark out. Then she swam back into the canal.
Busan is considering another approach after Bukangi returned beneath a barrier net. Her reasons remain uncertain.
Busan’s most watched canal resident has returned after a rescue operation appeared to have guided her out. The shark nicknamed Bukangi left the canal on Wednesday, lingered nearby and then slipped beneath an outer barrier net that night.
By Thursday, October 22, officials in the South Korean city were considering another approach. According to an Associated Press report, the roughly three-metre female dusky shark was between the outer net and a second barrier, about 50 metres inside the canal mouth.
The return made for an irresistible headline. It did not explain why the animal has remained around the North Port canal since mid-September—or establish that a shark was deliberately outsmarting its rescuers.
An exit that did not last
Wednesday’s operation involved dozens of workers using a floating platform, oars and nets to encourage the animal toward open water. It was the third major attempt to move her after earlier operations on September 29 and October 2 failed.
Those earlier efforts used boats, water sprays and nets. The shark avoided boats and went over nets, according to the AP account. This time she was guided out, but remained in the vicinity for hours before getting back beneath the outer barrier.
Officials had not announced a date for another operation in the Thursday report. A new method being discussed should not be confused with a completed rescue or a plan guaranteed to work. The immediate outcome was that the animal was still close to the canal rather than safely established far out at sea.
A crowd favourite, but a welfare concern
The prolonged stay has drawn enormous attention. City officials cited by AP put visits at more than 1.7 million. That is an official visitor figure, not an independently verified count of unique people, and popularity does not tell researchers whether the shark is thriving.
Authorities have concerns about falling water temperatures and the lack of evidence that she is feeding regularly. The water was around 20°C on Thursday. A shark continuing to swim is not, by itself, proof that its long-term condition is good.
The animal’s size also makes this more complicated than moving a fish from a garden pond. Workers must consider both human safety and the risk of injuring or further stressing a large marine predator during an intervention.
Why might the canal feel preferable?
National fisheries researcher Kim Hyun-woo suggested that noise, lights and electric fields around the busy port could interfere with the shark’s senses, with the canal potentially acting as a refuge. These are possible explanations, not a confirmed account of what caused her to return.
Kim recommended giving the animal time to adjust, suggesting roughly a week. That is an expert proposal reported by AP, not evidence that all officials have adopted a single settled strategy.
It is tempting to describe the return as a shark choosing fame over freedom. The more useful scientific question is what conditions outside the canal may be affecting its behaviour—and whether another intervention would improve those conditions or simply repeat the same sequence.
A vulnerable species behind the spectacle
Dusky sharks can grow to about 4.2 metres. They occur in temperate and tropical waters and reproduce slowly, factors that make losses difficult to replace. The AP report identifies the species as endangered, citing the international conservation assessment.
That background changes the meaning of the rescue effort. The objective is not to produce a satisfying viral ending, but to get a vulnerable animal into suitable conditions without creating a new danger.
For now, the clearest update is also the simplest: Bukangi did get out, then came back. The next operation remains a question of animal behaviour and welfare, not merely stronger nets. Until officials confirm a lasting outcome, the canal’s unlikely celebrity has not completed her return to the open sea.
