Guy Harvey, Georgia Aquarium Celebrate International Whale Shark Day

Marine scientist, artist and conservationist Guy Harvey will present his latest documentary, Whale Sharks in the Yucatan: A Guy Harvey Expedition, at  Georgia Aquarium on Friday, Aug. 30 at 6:30 p.m. The premiere is scheduled to help commemorate the Aquarium's observance  of international Whale Shark Day.  Dr. Harvey will introduce the film and lead a Q&A session following its presentation as part of the Georgia Aquarium's Science on Tap lecture series.

The film highlights Dr. Guy Harvey's scientific encounters with whale sharks off Isla Mujeres during their spectacular, annual feeding aggregation. George Schellenger, a two-time Emmy winning producer, will also cohost the lecture alongside Dr. Guy Harvey and Dr. Al Dove, director of research and conservation at Georgia Aquarium.

The footage from Dr. Guy Harvey's documentary closely relates to both the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation¹s and Georgia Aquarium's conservation mission. Over the years, the Aquarium has focused its research on the migration and feeding behaviors of whale sharks in the Yucatan through the use of satellite and tags. Research has shown the Yucatan is a significant place for hundreds of whale sharks to gather and feed on plankton and fish eggs. Recently, the Aquarium has placed more effort on the aerial survey to view the gathering of whale sharks relative to geographic features and distribution.

In addition to the lecture, Georgia Aquarium is also giving away exclusive 4R (Rescue, Rehabilitation, Research and Responsibility) reusable shopping bags to the first 200 guests on Friday morning. The Whale Shark Weekend celebration will continue on Saturday, Aug. 31, where guests will see the stretchers that brought the Aquarium's whale sharks from Taiwan to Atlanta as well as learn about their eating habits.