If Jaws taught us anything, it’s that great white sharks are the stuff of nightmares.
Armed with around 300 terrifying teeth, these gigantic ocean beasts can detect a tiny drop of blood from a quarter-mile away. Lurking in shallow waters, they ram themselves at their prey and chomp into flesh for a taste test before tucking in.
But you might think we’re safe from these marine monsters here in the UK, right? Think again. Last year, the Utah-based Ocearch, which has 437 marine animals tracked, claimed that Ireland and Cornwall were perfect for the sharks in the summer.
With our sea temps often hovering around a cosy 16C, they are prime for the hungry great whites. And what’s more, spots like Cornwall and Ireland are chock-full of seals – top menu items for great whites along with dolphins, turtles, other sharks, and occasionally humans.
Chris Fischer, founder of Ocearch, previously told The Times: “We believe that Mediterranean white sharks should be moving north to feed on seals, like all the other populations we have worked on. We believe they should be moving up past Brest [in Brittany] and Cornwall.”
However, Gavin Naylor, the Director for the Florida Program for Shark Research, isn’t convinced. He told The Mirror: “White sharks likely venture into UK waters from time to time but not into coastal areas with a lot of beach goers. [This is] unlikely to change much into the foreseeable (decadal) future.
“But in a thousand years – who knows?”
These views come following several unsettling shark videos that have been circulating on social media, including the sighting of a tope shark at Bournemouth beach in June. Over the past 15 years there have been more than 100 reported sightings of great whites around the British Isles.
However, wildlife conservationist Richard Peirce, who led an investigation on this, claimed that just 12 of those sightings remain credible – some of which may have concerned the same shark. For now, basking sharks, blue sharks, shortfin mako sharks and Greenland sharks are among the main species to swim in UK waters.
Greenland sharks, the second largest carnivorous shark after the great white, typically reside in deeper waters, so there’s no need for alarm.
Shark experts at the University of Plymouth previously explained: “So why aren’t they [great white sharks] in our waters?…The truth is nobody really knows.
“Some hypothesise they have not just yet discovered our shores. Whereas some say their migration is not worth the energy it would take. While others believe they are in fact here but remaining hidden, apart from the occasional speculative sighting.”
What do you think? Let us know in the comment section below