Large great white shark spotted near Santa Monica
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- Adult great white shark spotted via drone swimming close to Santa Monica Pier
- It’s unusual to see an adult so close to shore; they tend to prefer deeper, colder waters
A roughly 15-foot great white shark was captured on video last week swimming close to Santa Monica’s shores, providing a rare glimpse of the fully grown apex predator idling in near-urban waters.
Photographer Carlos Gauna launched a drone Thursday about a mile north of the Santa Monica Pier after hearing reports that some great white sharks had been observed breaching — launching themselves out of the water in acrobatic displays of force and fury. He figured he’d find juvenile sharks, which are known to frequent the area and can grow up to 10 feet.
Experts say that newborn and juvenile great white sharks are attracted to near-shore warm waters where there is plenty of easy-to-catch prey and few predators. Adults, on the other hand, prefer colder, deeper waters.
Soon after launching his drone, Gauna said he was stunned to see the silhouette of a 15-foot great white gliding near the surface about 50 yards off the coast.
“The Santa Monica Bay is known as a nursery ground for juveniles,” Gauna said. “But this was no juvenile. This is the real deal.”
Gauna said he later informed a lifeguard as a precaution. In California, encounters with sharks, especially violent ones, aren’t frequent, according to California Fish and Wildlife. Around 200 incidents have been verified in California waters from 1950 to 2021, with 107 resulting in injuries and 15 in deaths.
For Gauna, the shark sighting was more awe-inspiring than fear-inducing. And he said it’s a spectacular example of the magnificent kinds of creatures that lie just off our shores.
“It’s a good reminder of how a great ecosystem exists next to one of the busiest cities in America,” Gauna told The Times. “And just how rare a shark attack here really is.”
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