Sprigg Salon | Book launch - The Secret History of Sharks by John Long

The definitive history of sharks, as told by a foremost world expert.

Join a conversation with Professor John Long as he discusses his latest book - The Secret History of Sharks: The Rise of the Ocean's Most Fearsome Predators

From ancient megalodons (Otodus megalodon) to the fearsome Great White (Carcharodon carcharias), this book tells the complete, untold story of how sharks emerged as Earth's ultimate survivors, by world-leading palaeontologist John Long.

Sharks have been fighting for their lives for 500 million years and today are under dire threat. They are the longest-surviving vertebrate on Earth, outlasting multiple mass extinction events that decimated life on the planet. But how did they thrive for so long? By developing superpower-like abilities that allowed them to ascend to the top of the oceanic food chain.

John Long, who for decades has been on the cutting edge of shark research, weaves a thrilling story of sharks' unparalleled reign. The Secret History of Sharks showcases the global search to discover sharks' largely unknown evolution, led by Long and dozens of other extraordinary scientists.

As the tale unfolds, Long introduces an enormous range of astonishing organisms: a thirty-foot-long shark with a deadly saw blade of jagged teeth protruding from its lower jaws and bizarre sharks fossilized while in their mating ritual. With insights into the threats to sharks today, how they contribute to medical advances, and the lessons they can teach us about our own survival, The Secret History of Sharks is a riveting look at scientific discovery with ramifications far beyond the ocean.

EVENING PROGRAM

6:00pm - Doors open and welcome drinks served

6:30pm - Presentation begins  

7:15pm - Presentation ends and Q&A begins

7:30pm - Signing begins

7:45pm - Event concludes 

8:00pm - Museum closes 

Books available for purchase and signing after the presentation - preorder your book at the checkout.

About the author

John Long is the strategic professor of palaeontology at Flinders University, one of Australia's largest palaeontological research groups. The former vice president of research and collections at the Museum of Natural History of Los Angeles County, Long has published more than 200 peer-reviewed papers, some 25 books and over 150 popular science articles. His groundbreaking research work on the evolution of fishes and the origins of sex has appeared in the magazines Nature, Science, and Scientific American.

This book launch is in collaboration with Flinders University and supported by our series sponsors Beach Energy and Inspiring South Australia.