Monster shark off holiday hotspot is largest male great white ever tagged

Experts person tagged the largest antheral shark - dubbed Contender - arsenic it continues to lurk nether the aboveground adjacent to the US and continues to determination southbound on the Gulf Stream

A monster shark spotted disconnected the seashore of a large vacation hotspot is the biggest male large white ever tagged.

The 14ft-long shark - dubbed Contender - was recovered swimming beneath the aboveground nether southwest Atlantic waters and is present being tracked arsenic it moved southbound down the Gulf Stream. Scientists said the large achromatic weighed astir 1,600lbs, which made it the largest antheral shark ever tagged successful the country by the probe group OCEARCH.

Biologists archetypal tagged the shark astatine 10:52pm section clip connected January 17 erstwhile it was immoderate 45 miles from the Florida-Georgia border. The shark past moved northbound implicit the adjacent 4 days past returned, information from Ocearch said.

Contender past remained astir successful spot for astir a week earlier it moved straight south. The shark has moved astir 168 miles implicit the past 3 weeks since the squad of experts started monitoring it. Florida formation visitors besides bash not request to beryllium acrophobic astatine the infinitesimal arsenic Contender reamins acold capable distant from the coast.

The large achromatic has remained astatine slightest 40 miles distant from the seashore since helium was tagged and appeared to stay on the eastbound fringe of the Florida platform, The Sun reported. The Florida level is simply a level slab of Earth's crust that successful crook makes up the Florida peninsula.

Scientists fitted Contender with a SPOT tag, that is simply a "smart presumption and somesthesia tag." This successful crook sends a "ping" each clip the shark's fin goes supra the water's surface.

But to get an close location, the fin needs to stay supra the h2o for astir 90 seconds. The latest ping connected February 6 showed Contender was astir level with St Augustine and appeared to beryllium continuing with its determination south.

On its website, OCEARCH described Contender arsenic being "the eventual water warrior" and added helium is simply a "mature male" specimen. The website besides revealed the shark's sanction was fixed successful honour of Contender Boats, which is an aged spouse of the probe organisation.

Great whites typically thin to determination further northbound during the outpouring and summer. This is typically due to the fact that determination are plentifulness of seals on the northbound eastbound seashore of the US and Canada.