“Shark Lady” of Mote Passes Away after Nearly 75 Years of Marine Research
February 25, 2015
“Genie” Clark — the famous “Shark Lady” who founded Mote Marine Laboratory in Southwest Florida — died at age 92 on Feb. 25, in the company of family at her home in Sarasota, due to complications from battling lung cancer for years. She undertook her last ocean dive in 2014 in the Gulf of Aqaba, and her latest research was in review for publication when she passed away. Clark, an ichthyologist, was a world authority on fishes — particularly sharks and tropical sand fishes. A courageous diver and explorer, Clark conducted 71 submersible dives as deep as 12,000 feet and led over 200 field research expeditions to the Red Sea, Caribbean, Mexico, Japan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Thailand, Indonesia and Borneo to study sand fishes, whale sharks, deep sea sharks and spotted oceanic triggerfish. She wrote three popular books and more than 175 articles, including research publications in leading peer-reviewed journals such as Science and a dozen popular stories in National Geographic magazine.
