Shark remains at North Port Waterfront Park for fifth straight day... A “Bukkang-i” game also emerges

[Financial News] The shark that has remained in the waterway at Busan Port North Port Waterfront Park for five days has attracted considerable attention. It has been turned into game content, while the local government in whose jurisdiction the park lies is running related events on social media.
According to reporting as of the 22nd, a web game titled “The Way Home for Bukkang-i” is spreading primarily through online communities. Bukkang-i is the nickname of the shark that lost its way and entered the waterfront park. The game is an arcade title inspired by the shark.
The game’s objective is to return Bukkang-i safely home while avoiding unfamiliar obstacles. Players use keyboard keys to dodge obstacles such as trash and move as far as possible while eating mackerel. Eating a wolf-shaped item called “Neukgu’s Energy,” which appears at various points in the game, adds 5 meters to the distance record.
Busan’s Dong-gu district has been running a shark-related event through social media since the 21st. Under the event titled “Receive the shark’s energy and make a Chuseok wish,” 100 winners will be selected at random and given convenience store coupons worth 5,000 won. The district is also providing information about prime viewing spots where the shark can be seen clearly.
The shark entered the waterway at Busan Port North Port Waterfront Park on the 18th and had not left the park by the fifth day, the 22nd. With a brown appearance and a body length of up to 3.5 meters, it is believed to be a copper shark, a species in the requiem shark family.
Huge crowds have flocked to the park to see it. Nearly 20,000 visitors reportedly came over the past weekend. Considering that the park normally receives an average of around 2,000 visitors per day on weekends, the figure was about five times the usual level.
Experts believe the shark lost its way. According to the National Institute of Fisheries Science (NIFS), it is presumed to have followed warm-water fish, its prey, into the waterway and begun circling after failing to find a way out.
However, the waterway is not an ideal habitat. Copper sharks inhabit waters from the surface down to a depth of 100 meters and have a wide range of movement, so the confined waterway could have negative effects on the shark. Its prey cannot be assumed to be abundant either.
An NIFS official said, "The shark does not appear to have any health problems, and its swimming ability also seems fine." The official added, "The shark can identify objects in front of it through the Ampullae of Lorenzini around its mouth, so it is capable of leaving the waterway on its own."
[email protected] Baek Chang-hoon Reporter