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Tomlinson said she “finally caught my tiger shark I’ve been dreaming of.” (South Texas Fishing Association)
A woman reeled in her “dream” tiger shark off the coast of Corpus Christi, Texas over the weekend, the South Texas Fishing Association announced Monday.
Sierra Tomlinson caught the 8-foot 3-inch male tiger shark on Saturday night, she told Fox News.
“Congrats to Sierra Tomlinson on landing her dream shark,” the association said in statement on Facebook, adding the shark was “safely released” after photos and measurements were taken.
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“I just wanted to cry. I was so amazed — it’s such a beautiful animal and was really cool to see one in person,” Tomlinson told Fox Wednesday about her reaction, adding it took her roughly 30 minutes to reel in the creature.
The shark was just over 8-feet long. (South Texas Fishing Association)
Tomlinson, who catches and releases sharks with her husband on a volunteer basis for the Marine Biology Department at Texas A&M University, said she enjoys representing women in a heavily male-dominated sport.
“You rarely see women fish for big sharks,” she said, “It’s really cool to see more women do more with the fish.”
The news comes after scientists with the University of California Irvine and Florida International University announced earlier this month they have identified the first omnivorous shark species.
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In addition to eating small fish and crabs, the bonnethead, the smallest member of the hammerhead family, also eats seagrass, the experts found.
Fox News’ James Rogers contributed to this report.