<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A lost satellite tag that washed up on a </span><a href="http://www.9news.com.au/gold-coast" rel="" target="" title="Gold Coast"><span>Gold Coast</span></a><span> beach has been reunited with scientists after detaching from a great white shark.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The device detached from a four-metre female shark nicknamed Davenport near Rainbow Beach, initiating an unexpected international scavenger hunt.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Scientists routinely collect DNA samples from sharks and then tag them to enable the monitoring of their movements and behaviour.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/cremorne-north-sydney-woman-sent-threatening-letter-mentioning-erin-patterson-over-dogs/c510324d-ae69-4616-9623-3d212999ffc5" target="_blank"><strong><span>Letter threatens to poison woman's dogs with 'Erin Patterson mushroom recipe'</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>These tags, while providing valuable data, are not without their vulnerabilities.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Shark scientist Riley Elliot explained the detachment of the tag is "a normal process, it's the least invasive to the sharks but it's an expensive tag and hopefully you can get them back because you can reuse them".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The tag's journey was tracked using the Great White app.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/scientists-shark-tag-washes-up-on-gold-coast-beach-news/21ad2762-dde0-4d40-b9ca-9a22f87e9fe7" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The tag was floating down past Fraser Island past a bunch of coastline, and you're just waiting for a current to push it into shore," Elliot said, describing the anxious wait for the device to make landfall.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The tag eventually washed ashore at Mermaid Beach, prompting a social media appeal for its recovery.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The appeal proved remarkably successful.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"An ex-girlfriend from high school texted me and said, I'm going down the beach for my kid's nippers and they found it on the beach by the showers, " Elliot said, illustrating the unexpected role of social connections in the recovery.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Ironically, my best friend is coming up for my birthday next weekend and they gave it to him, and he's flying it back."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/city-sydney-council-new-planning-controls-no-gas-appliances/23c7918e-2bea-42b4-bbc4-8465818b2df8" target="_blank"><strong><span>Gas to be outlawed in Australia's biggest city</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Attention has now turned to another tag, this one detached from a great white shark nicknamed Deep Blue, which is in waters off Bundaberg.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>There is hope that this tag will also be recovered.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I'm hoping because that's where Davenport's started, that this one too might end up on a populist beach and someone else might find it," Elliot said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The recovery of these tags is crucial for the continuation of the shark tracking program.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>This article was produced with the assistance of</span></em><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/technology/9express/16480c33-636a-461f-9c4f-d0e2522c722a"><em><span>9ExPress</span></em></a><em><span>.</span></em></div></div>