Mall shark nearly eaten by bigger shark

MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 1 (UPI) -- Staffers at the aquarium at Minnesota' s Mall of America had to act fast to prevent one of its resident sharks from winding up as lunch for a larger shark.

Staff members at Underwater Adventurers had to use a pair of feeding tongs to yank a small reef shark out of the jaws of Jesse, a sand tiger shark that weighs in at around 300 pounds.

"It wouldn't have been too much longer before she would have been gulped down," aquarium official Reid Withrow told the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

The smaller shark, identified only as Little Shark 54, was cut up in the luncheon encounter and was getting antibiotics Friday and seemed no worse for wear.

The drama began when a child who was watching the fish saw Jesse grab the unsuspecting reef shark by the head and clamp down. The youngster told a staff member who sounded the alarm. Other workers got into a small boat and staged a rescue.