Shark exhibit swims into the Bullock History Museum

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A new limited-time exhibit on sharks, "the ocean's most magnificent and misunderstood species," opens at the Bullock Texas State History Museum on Saturday.

Bullock Museum curator James McReynolds explains that several factors go into selecting temporary exhibits like "Sharks."

"We want to have the highest quality exhibitions that we can on display here at the Bullock Museum," McReynolds said. "We think about our audience, what would be best for Central Texas in this community. And then we also like to mix it up."

The museum has already planned the next few years of special exhibits.

"Sharks" is one of the fun ones for the museum — previous temporary exhibits have included guitar collections, themed art collections and more. The new exhibit comes from the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

"This is one of those exhibits where you come through the door, and your jaw drops because the quality of the exhibition...is just astounding," McReynolds said. "We hope that people are amazed by the variety of different sharks that are out there in the world and that are represented here in the gallery. I think when you really get to see the life-size creatures right there next to you, it changes your whole perspective."

The exhibit features models of several shark varieties, which range from the tiny Dwarf Lantern Shark to the massive Megalodon, as well as interactive stations, videos and a wall of teeth.

McReynolds' favorite shark? The Goblin Shark—a deep-sea shark with extendable jaws.

"It's really amazing stuff. If any of you are fans of the "Alien" movie franchise, apparently, the shark was one of the creatures that inspired the aliens in that movie. It's a really nice example of the different kinds of adaptations that sharks have evolved over the course of their 400 million years of evolution," McReynolds said.

The exhibit is on display until March 24, 2024.