A yearling great white shark that went on temporary display at a US aquarium prompted attendance at the attraction to increase by 30 per cent, with 43 per cent of customers saying that the shark influenced their decision to visit.

The wild shark was inadvertently caught by fisherman in waters off Huntington Beach, Orange County, in August 2004 and was first exhibited at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California in late September.

The shark became the first great white to survive more than 16 days in an aquarium and the first to consistently take food offered by aquarium staff.

Exhibited for a total of 198 days in the aquarium’s million-gallon Outer Bay, she grew from 5ft in length and 62 pounds to 6ft 5inches and 162 pounds and attracted more than one million visitors for the duration of her stay.

She was released into local waters shortly before sunrise on 31 March after beginning to show clear hunting behaviour toward her other creatures in the tank.

Fitted with an electronic satellite pop-off tag, the shark was monitored by the aquarium for the first 30 days after her release.

Associate curator, Manny Ezcurra, said: “When the shark arrived, no one knew if she’d survive. Now, she’s done so well that we’re releasing her because she’s grown so much. From all we’ve learned, a second shark could do even better than the first.”

The aquarium will begin a fourth field season of shark research this summer before attempting to bring another young shark back to Monterey. Details: www.mbayaq.org