Animals

Officials dissect stranded white shark on Cape Cod beach

A white shark was stranded and died Sunday on Nauset Beach in Orleans. Todd Pistone via Instagram

By Nik DeCosta-Klipa

1 minute to read

A 12-foot male great white shark died Sunday after getting stranded on Nauset Beach in Orleans.

The Cape Cod Times reported the shark was first spotted struggling in the tides by a beach-goer Sunday afternoon. By the time officials from the Chatham-based Atlantic White Shark Conservancy arrived at the scene, the shark had died.

Reporters and bystanders at the scene posted photos of the shark lying in the sand.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMNJ8gzB16H/

https://twitter.com/GregBryantCCT/status/792924185551048704

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMOx_pFDD1E/

Great white shark strandings are rare and seem to only occur on Cape Cod, the Cape Cod Times reported. Cynthia Wigren, the executive director of the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy, told the local paper this shark was the first stranding of the year. Wigren said the shark was estimated to be more than 20 years old.

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Scientists performed a postmortem necropsy on the shark Monday morning, of which the Conservancy posted video on Twitter.

The necropsy consisted of cutting up and dissecting the dead shark, so suffice it to say the videos below get progressively gruesome. By the third video, the shark has been pretty thoroughly chopped up.

https://twitter.com/dougfrasercct/status/793119453617586176

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