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DE MADDALENA A., O . GLAIZOT, G. OLIVER

and vertebrae have been investigated by various after its capture (unfortunately, it has not been pos-
sible to obtain permission to reproduce them in this
authors (Randall, 1973, 1987; Gottfried et al., 1996; work). The shark was examined by M. Euzet of the
Moli et et al., 1996). However, the best and only irre- Marine Biologica l Station of Sète and Mr Baer of the
University of Neuchatel, Switzerland. Thanks to the
futable way to obtain the length of a large white interest of the latter, the shark was acquired by the
shark remains accurate measurement directly from Museum of Zoology in Lausanne (Musée Cantonal
the complete specimen, if possible following the de Zoologie de Lausanne), Switzerland. Here a good
standards presented in Compagno (1984) and Mollet cast was prepared by the taxidermist Eugène Kuttel.
The model features the originai fins and teeth, while
et al. (1996). the rest has been reconstructed by casts from the
body of the originai specimen (figure 1).
For the aforementioned reasons, the existence
of a complete cast obtained directly from a 5.89 Detailed morphometric measurements were
metres Great White Shark caught in the Mediterra- made of the Great White Shark cast at MZL by
nean Sea, preserved in the Museum of Zoology in Manuel Fischer, following the methods of Compagno
Lausanne (MZL), is of particular interest. (1984), adding measurement of total length with the
caudal fin in a "natural" position, Tln, as indicated
MATERIAL AND METHODS
in Mollet et al. (1996). Since the mould also features
On 13'h October 1956, a large female White
Shark was caught off Sète, in the Golfe du Lion, on the specimen's originai teeth , the largest upper ante-
the French coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The fol-
lowing details about the capture were reported by rior tooth was measured following Mollet et al.
the local newspaper, Midi Libre. The shark was
caught in the early morning 3 miles (4.8 kilometres) (1996), but -since the tooth bases were not visible-
offshore from Maguelone (Hérault, France). lt was only the measurements of the enamel (smaller
caught in a tuna driftnet of the fishing vessel, "Rosi- enamel height UAE1, greater enamel height UAE2 ,
na-Raphael". The shark was landed in Sète at about enamel width UAW) were recorded .
nine o'clock. lt was reported to meas ure 5.89 metres
in length and have a maximum girth of 4 metres. The Regarding the two ways in which the total
liver alone weighed 360 kg and the total weight was length was measured, since the cast was prepared
estimated to be about 2 tonnes. lts stomach contai- with the caudal fin in a " natu ral" position, the total
ned remains of two unidentified dolphins, each mea- length with the caudal fin in the natural position
suring about 1.80 metres (Anonymous, 1956). Some (Tln ) has been measured directly, while the total
good photographs of the fresh specimen were taken length with the caudal fin in the depressed position
(TOT) has been obtained by add ing the precaudal
length (PRC) to the dorsal cauda l margin (C OM).

Figure l - The cast of the 5.89 metre Great White Shark caught off Sète, France, in 1956, fea-
turing the originai fins and teeth , on display at the Museum of Zoology in Lausanne (Photo by
Guy Oliver). l Le moulage d'un grand requin blanc de 5.89 m capturé au large de Sète, Fran-
ce, en 7956, exposé au Musée de Zoologie de Lausanne. Les ailerons et /es dents sont d'ori-
gine (Photo Guy 0/iver).

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