Antonella Artuso, QMI AgencyKINGSTON, Ont. — It was bull alright, but not of the shark variety.
A video of a what appeared to be a bull shark swimming off of Wolfe Island in Lake Ontario has been revealed to be a marketing ploy for Discovery's Channel's Shark Week and its sponsor Nissan Rogue.
'Discovery wants to quell the concerns of Canadians everywhere and reveal that the widely-circulated video of a shark swimming in Lake Ontario is, in fact, not a real shark,' a news release issued Wednesday says. 'The video of the incredibly life-like prosthetic model shark is the first stage of a multi-level marketing campaign tied to the channel's iconic summer event, Shark Week.'
The viral video, posted on YouTube without reference to the marketing scheme, had experts and politicians weighing in on the long-speculated possibility that a shark could make it into Lake Ontario via the St. Lawrence Seaway.
Natural Resources Minister Bill Mauro, quizzed by reporters, said his ministry had no idea if the image caught on the video was a shark, porpoise, Asian carp, sturgeon or if it was just a hoax.
'Until it's been determined what it is, we need to ensure ... that the public is aware that there's the possibility of a shark in Lake Ontario,' Mauro said.
The video was uploaded July 10, and the poster said it was taken while fishing just off Wolfe Island, at the top of the lake near Kingston.
Frontenac Islands Mayor Denis Doyle joked at Wednesday morning's county council meeting: 'We're going to have to get a bigger ferry.'
The township has applied for a new 75-vehicle ferry to serve the route between Wolfe Island and Kingston, and Doyle jokingly said he may have to ask the province to amend the plan.
'I'm going to have to ask (Transportation) Minister Del Duca about expanding that because of all the tourists coming to see this Kingston and the Islands water beast,' Doyle said. 'I think we'll have so much traffic on the ferry that we'll need to expand the capacity.'
-- With files from Elliot Ferguson 10 publicity stunts gone wrong (Screengrab from YouTube)
Post By http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2014/07/16/21811531.html
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