A preserved great white shark, named Rosie, is undergoing careful restoration after being found at an abandoned Australian wildlife park. Watch the restoration process below:
The whopping five-metre shark died after being caught in tuna fishing nets back in 1998 and was then kept perfectly preserved in a tank of formaldehyde.
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A video showing Rosie abandoned inside the tank went viral in 2018, racking up millions of views from across the world, with many people suggesting the giant shark should be removed.
Sadly, the video's success also meant that vandals visited the park where they managed to shatter the outer layer of two panels and chucked rubbish into the tank.
With the top of the tank removed, the liquid Rosie was held in began to evaporate leaving the tip of one of her fins exposed, while the rubbish that was lobbed in had bruised her body.
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At this point, the landlord decided Rosie needed to either go to a new home or be destroyed and it wasn't long before campaigns to 'Save Rosie the Shark' began to pop up.
One such campaign caught the attention of Tom Kapitany, owner of Crystal World and Prehistoric Journeys Exhibition Centre, who reached out to the landlord and was told he could have the shark for free as long as he covered transport and removal costs.
She moved to her new home in 2019, but Crystal World says the journey to 'save' Rosie is not over yet.
The centre has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help raise some cash to carry out careful restoration work on the shark.
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According to Crystal World, Rosie 'was not gutted like in most taxidermy, her body was completely solid and in near-perfect condition', which I think is cool and creepy in equal measure.
A post on the Rosie the Shark Facebook page read: "Rosie is saved... It's now a matter of relocation and legality along with everything else to ensure this girl gets what she deserves - a position in a prime location along with other amazing artefacts that surround her in the natural world.
"It will be done one day and it will be epic."
You can donate to the fundraiser here, or keep up with the latest Rosie developments on the Rosie the Shark Facebook page here.
Featured Image Credit: Facebook/Rosie The SharkTopics: Viral, Sharks, Interesting, Australia