As a shark researcher, Dr. Greg Skomal knows a lot about these beasts of the ocean, but he got the surprise of a lifetime when a great white sharked breached the water and tried to bite his feet as he stood on the pulpit of a research boat.
There have been nine great white shark sightings off Cape Cod in recent days, but Skomal’s meet and greet was perhaps the most dramatic. It was so unexpected that it was enough to make the shark expert jump back, though he was more excited than he was scared of the encounter. It is rare to see a great white shark breach the surface of the water. It’s even more unlikely to capture it on video.
Skomal and other researchers with The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy were attempting to tag sharks when one attempted to make a meal of him.
The dramatic video below may just have you skipping the beach!
Wow! That was rather close. These sharks can react so quickly that they even shock the experts.
Many have believed great white sharks attack people because they mistake them for seals, but research proves this is not the case. When they attack seals, they typically do so in a quick and forceful fashion, yet when they attack people, they typically do so at a more deliberate pace. Researchers believe when great whites bite humans, they do so out of curiosity as they don’t typically consume the victims.
Great white sharks are terrifying to many people and viewed as the ultimate predator, but they aren’t exactly at the top of the food chain. Orcas have been known to hunt and kill great white sharks. Think about that the next you see Shamu!
The bodies of at least four great whites washed up on South African beaches last year. All of them were killed by orcas. Video of a great white shark being hunted by an orca can be seen in the video below.
Great whites typically feast on small whales, big fish, seals, and sea lions. Run-ins with humans are rather rare, making this close encounter rather special.
If you are interested in great white sharks, click here to watch one steal a fish from a fisherman!
Source: WHIO
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