[UK] Great White sighting 'possible'

Didn't find this posted already but if I missed it then my apologies

A Great White shark is believed to have been spotted by a holidaymaker off the Cornish coast.

Richard Fletcher, from South Yorkshire, filmed a shark breaching in the water near a pod of dolphins about 200 yards (182m) from Porthmeor Beach, St Ives.

news.bbc.co.uk...

Experts have clashed over the existence of Great White Sharks off the UK coast.

Speculation is mounting amid a series of claimed sightings by holidaymakers and fishermen and a new documentary on BBC One on Sunday.

news.bbc.co.uk...

I have not been able to find the video online so if anyone comes across it then please post the link I am a big fan of all living things aquatic and I think the shark is just an amazing creature. I believe a great white was reported a few years back further along the coast.

I've seen a couple of videos on TV that appear to show a basking shark, and one other that was said to show a mako.

There's lot of shark types around the UK, particularly cornwall - apparently because of cornwalls sub tropical climate.

Worldwide numbers of great whites have apparently decreased by 80% - so it would seem to make sense that they are not off cornish shores.

Having said this, I'd be really excited to see a great white - provided I wasn't in the water at the time!

I live in Penzance and get out on the water fairly often and I've seen basking sharks, blue sharks and dolphins - but none quite grabs the attention like a great white.

It could, however, seriously damage the tourist industry if these sightings were confirmed.

White sharks have a enormous range that that they live in. Studies have shown that alternate from pelagic to coastal animals. They can be found in the tropics and in cold waters. I have also seen footage of them at the bottom of the ocean a few miles down. They truely are the kings of the seas.

White sharks can be easily mistaken as Mako sharks. Which could be the case in this UK report. The shark was reported as only being 8ft long, which would make it a juvenile white shark. At this size they still only eat fish, not mammels yet. Dolphins usually school with tunas, so I wouldn't be surprise if it was a white shark feeding on tuna.

First time tried to post a link, don't know if link works etc, please let me know

uk.news.yahoo.com...

Originally posted by Freeborn
First time tried to post a link, don't know if link works etc, please let me know

uk.news.yahoo.com...

Ah a picture. It looks big, so it probably a basking or white shark. The dorsal fins on both fish are pretty similiar. I probably say its a basking shark. Basking sharks usually are pretty close to the shore, and hang out on the surface.

But, it would be nice to see if it was a white shark.

I've just been having a look, and there's quite a difference in the dorsal fins of this photo and great white sharks.

uk.news.yahoo.com...

www.naturalhistorymag.com...://www.naturalhistorymag.com/1006/1006_feature.html

and here's a basking shark for comparison
(link not working-Send me a u2u with the link and ill re add it- Asala)

There's a claim that fisherman in newlyn (about a mile down the road, fishing port) but that's been rubbished apparently.

Hope we find out soon - very interesting.

[edit on 1-8-2007 by asala]

Heres a link to the video of the shark...

Great white spotted off Cornwall

CX.

It's most definitely a basking shark and thank god it's not a great white

Bit dissapointed really, was hoping it was a Great White.

Do you think it would have encouraged people to go and see it or would it have stopped people from going there on holiday?

A friend of mine is due to go to that area next week and he was bricking it!

Originally posted by Freeborn

A friend of mine is due to go to that area next week and he was bricking it!

He can still brick it
You ain't seen it here on a saturday night - great white sharks are called poofs and get their heads kicked in by locals for chatting their birds up

seriously though, hope he has a great time - it's a lovely part of the country

He can still brick it
You ain't seen it here on a saturday night - great white sharks are called poofs and get their heads kicked in by locals for chatting their birds up

seriously though, hope he has a great time - it's a lovely part of the country

Good to see that some good old British traditions are still getting acted out throughout towns and cities the length and breadth of Britain

Always wanted to go there myself; are Zennor Tor and Men-Al-Tol nearby?

personally speaking it wouldnt surprize me in the least that a great white was spotted, the climate is going screwy and the waters are getting warmer.

THat dorsal fin looks a whole lot like a Basking Shark to me. Good thing too. Although it would have been cool for a juvinille white shark to have followed some migratory yellow tail. I've seen mako sharks feeding off the back of a chartered fishing boat in San Pedro once and that shark was aggressive. glad it's not a mako.

originally posted by Freeborn
Always wanted to go there myself; are Zennor Tor and Men-Al-Tol nearby?

Yes, both are pretty close to where I am, and so pretty close to St. Ives as well - where the alleged shark sitings have taken place.

There are lots of interesting sites in the district of West Penwith, including some bronze age burial mounds and a few stone circles.

The area has a rich and diverse mythology as well.
Check here for a brief listing of some of the sites:
www.megalithictours.com...

This sighting has been great for the local economy so far - you couldn't get into St. Ives today, and local fishermen and boat owners have been running trips from Mounts Bay, which is the other side of Lands End to St. Ives.

[edit on 31/7/2007 by budski]

I was reading the paper today apparently it's a fully grown female Great White and it's "boy friend" is close by lurking about lol keep your feet out the water people.

[edit on 02/014/200 by SE7EN]

Well if it is a white shark, the people of the UK should embrace it. This is somthing similiar to what happened where I live a few years ago, a 15 ft white shark got stuck in a estuary for a few weeks. It became such a huge tourist attraction police needed to put up restricted zones so people wouldn't get too close.

Here are some pics and video.

Mystery solved? While it was probably not this shark there could be another there.

An animal charity has thanked holidaymakers who helped it move a dead porbeagle shark which washed ashore in Cornwall at the weekend.

Cornwall Wildlife Trust believes the 5ft (1.5m) juvenile shark found at Gunwalloe on the Lizard, may have died after being caught in fishing gear.

It said many of the onlookers expressed their sadness at the shark's death.

news.bbc.co.uk...

Thanks Bud,

Will get there one day,

My mate still bricking it, thinks he's going to either get eaten by a great white or savaged by a beast on the moors

Respect.

Aww poor thing, Well im just glad at least it brings attention to our waters and hopefully will help people gain more interest in to whats going on in them,

there are many projects ongoing to help protect our oceans and the amazing creatures that dwell there,

Good point asala,
but this also brings other problems which we are already starting to see, in that porbeagles, blue sharks and occasional mako sharks are being caught and killed in the hunt for the alleged great white, as well as other sea creatures which would not normally be hunted.

I've also heard local rumours that dolphins are being caught and killed, and then thrown back.

Bit of a double edged sword this one.