A group of fishermen were surprised by a colossal great white shark swimming near their boat along the Jersey shore over the weekend.
The videos the fishermen took soon went viral. after one of them was shared by the Cape May Coast Guard Station.
“Look at this monster!” one of the fishermen is heard saying.
The Cape May Coast Guard Station estimated the shark to be at least 12 feet long.
But sharks are not uncommon in New Jersey waters this time of year.
A 1,000-pound great white shark named Ironbound recently made its way out of New Jersey while wandering the East Coast. OCEARCH, which tracks several tagged sharks, reported the shark in New Jersey on April 28.
While Ironbound may sound like a great shark, OCEARCH tagged and followed a 16-foot, 3,456-pound female great white shark named Mary Lee from 2012 to 2017 up and down the East Coast. The last time it was pinged was on June 17, 2017, in the waters off South Jersey.
Several factors, including warming ocean temperatures, are contributing to the proliferation of sharks along the coast in the New York City region this summer.
New York has expanded a drone program designed to track them. The state has expanded a drone program designed to track great white sharks.
The Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation purchased two drones over the winter and trained eight people in aerial surveillance. By July 4, it will have purchased three additional drones and trained 10 more operators.
Scientists say the sharks are swimming north into cooler waters earlier than usual. A resurgence in the bunker fish population is also attracting them to area waters.
Although shark attacks on people are rare, some species, such as bull sharks and tiger sharks, have been known to swim in shallow water. Last summer, several bull sharks were seen along the southern shore of Long Island.
New visitors to the area this summer could also include tropical hammerhead sharks.
Experts advise swimmers not to swim alone, in murky waters, or at dawn or dusk, and not to swim near seals or schools of baitfish.