The Discovery That Shocked the World
In 2018, a group of urban explorers ventured into what remained of Wildlife Wonderland, a derelict wildlife park in rural Victoria that had been shut down since 2012. They expected to find the typical remnants of an abandoned facility: collapsed structures, peeling paint, and rusting animal enclosures. Instead, they stumbled upon something that would soon capture global attention.
Deep within a dark, partially ruined building, their torchlight revealed an eerie green glow emanating from a massive tank. As their eyes adjusted to the murky environment, they saw it clearly - a 16-foot great white shark suspended in cloudy preservative, its enormous form drifting silently behind cracked glass. This was Rosie, a female great white that had been completely forgotten after the park's closure.
From Viral Sensation to Vandalism Crisis
When YouTuber Luke McPherson uploaded his footage of the discovery, it exploded across the internet, amassing over 17 million views and drawing worldwide fascination. The video showed the shark floating in highly toxic formaldehyde, with the tank showing clear signs of deterioration including corrosion and fractures in the glass.
The viral attention had dangerous consequences. Trespassers began descending on the abandoned park, forcing their way into the crumbling shed and causing extensive damage. Some visitors smashed sections of glass around the tank, while others threw debris into the chemical-filled liquid. Several attempted to pry open the top hatch and even tried to snap off Rosie's teeth using hedge trimmers as souvenirs.
Tom Kapitany, director of Crystal World, later expressed shock at the escalation: "People opened the tank up and were using hedge trimmers to try break teeth out of Rosie's mouth. It's a 20ft long tank the size of a shipping container filled with formaldehyde and kids were throwing rocks at the glass. Had they broken the glass, they would have been killed."
Rosie's Unlikely Journey
Rosie's story began in the late 1990s when she was accidentally caught in tuna fishing nets off the coast of South Australia. Despite efforts to free her, the struggling shark had to be humanely euthanized. Her body was preserved for educational purposes and eventually purchased by Wildlife Wonderland for approximately $500,000 AUD.
During transport to Victoria in a refrigerated truck, authorities intercepted the shipment to perform an urgent autopsy amid concerns that Rosie might have consumed the remains of a missing woman from the South Australian coast. The examination found no human remains, and her journey continued.
For several years, Rosie served as one of the park's main attractions until 2012, when Wildlife Wonderland was shut down for operating without proper licenses and animal welfare concerns. While 130 living animals were relocated, Rosie remained behind in her sealed tank, forgotten as the property deteriorated around her.
The Dramatic Rescue and Renewed Purpose
By 2019, the situation had become critical. The formaldehyde had become dangerously unstable due to vandalism, and the landowner considered destroying Rosie entirely to prevent further break-ins. That's when Tom Kapitany intervened, having remembered the shark from a previous visit to the property.
Kapitany organized a complex rescue operation that involved carefully craning the entire tank out of the collapsing shed. Specialists drained and disposed of the contaminated formaldehyde, replacing it with safer glycerol preservative. The operation required 24-hour security due to the intense public interest.
Today, Rosie resides at the Crystal World Exhibition Centre in Devon Meadows, Victoria, where she continues to draw visitors from around the world, including many from India. Her dedicated Facebook page has amassed 52,000 followers, creating what Kapitany describes as a supportive community.
Kapitany emphasizes that Rosie's preservation was never about profit: "We don't charge people to see Rosie. It was never about making money out of her. If anything she's cost me a significant amount of money." He hopes her story will help people understand that "these are beautiful creatures which have lives and we shouldn't destroy their home."
While currently displayed in the Crystal World car park, plans are underway for a purpose-built educational gallery where school groups can learn about marine conservation through Rosie's extraordinary story. Several items stolen from her original exhibit have been anonymously returned and will be included in future displays alongside shark fossils and related relics.
Rosie's journey from ocean predator to educational ambassador stands as one of the most remarkable preservation stories in modern history, proving that even in death, great white sharks can continue to inspire awe and conservation awareness for generations to come.
