SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) \u2014 A Mexican marine biologist was seriously injured after he was attacked by a shark while working off Costa Rica\u2019s Pacific coast and transferred to a hospital in the country\u2019s capital on Monday, authorities said.<\/p>\n
Costa Rica\u2019s Fire Department said it had rescued 48-year-old Mauricio Hoyos from the attack Saturday and carried him on a 36-hour journey from Cocos Island, around 340 miles (550 kilometers) off the coast. Despite the serious injuries to his head, face and arms, Hoyos arrived to the hospital in stable condition.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was tagging species for monitoring and when he tagged one of the island\u2019s shark species, the shark turned,\u201d said Luis Fern\u00e1ndez, a physician with the Fire Department. \u201cIt was about 4 meters long with an enormous bite force \u2014 it turned and bit him on the head.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hoyos was leading a scientific expedition as part of the One Ocean Worldwide Coalition, a collaborative initiative that includes the organizations Fins Attached, For the Oceans Foundation, Reserva Tortuga and the Rob Stewart Sharkwater Foundation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIncidents like this are extremely rare,\u201d said Alex Antoniou, executive director of Fins Attached, on social media. \u201cDr. Hoyos is an extraordinary scientist who has dedicated his career to shark conservation, and we are deeply grateful for the support of the Cocos Island community in this very difficult time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cocos Island is a Costa Rican national park and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site<\/a> in 1997. It is renowned for its great diversity of species, particularly sharks.<\/p>\n ____<\/p>\n