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After recent signs of shark activity, officials issue warning ahead of holiday weekend
A seal was spotted with a white shark bite in April, and a dead minke whale was seen with a bite near Chatham this week.
Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start of summer, with thousands flocking to Cape Cod beaches. But the return of vacationers also marks the return of white shark season in New England.
Officials are urging the public to be careful after receiving multiple recent reports of marine mammals with shark bites.
This week, a dead minke whale with a white shark bite was found off the coast of Chatham by a fishing charter company, according to the New England Aquarium. A scientist at the aquarium, John Chisholm, also captured photos of a seal with “fresh” bite marks in Plymouth in April.
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“Although we haven’t seen a white shark just yet this season, we know they’re here. With beach weather in the forecast and Memorial Day Weekend approaching, this is a good reminder for people to review shark safety guidelines and be shark smart,” Chisholm said in a statement.
White sharks return to New England waters around this time of year to hunt seals and other prey throughout the summer and fall. Since the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, seal populations around the region, in particular Cape Cod, have rebounded significantly. In the past decade or so, this has translated into a white shark resurgence.
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Cape Cod is now considered one of the world’s biggest white shark hotspots, alongside places like South Africa, central California, Mexico’s Guadalupe Island, and the Neptune Islands of Australia. A major study released last year estimated that about 800 white sharks visited the waters off Cape Cod between 2015 and 2018. It’s the first estimate of white shark abundance in the western North Atlantic Ocean.
Officials are once again asking members of the public to report sightings of sharks or animals that appear to have been injured by sharks. This can be done through the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy’s Sharktivity app. The app makes information on sightings widely available and can notify people when a shark has been spotted close by.
As of Thursday afternoon, the app shows two recent sightings. The minke whale with the shark bite was recorded on Tuesday near North Beach Island. The second sighting was of a white shark itself, which occurred Wednesday in the waters off Nauset Beach in Orleans. Both sightings were officially confirmed through the app, which allows experts to review entries submitted by the public.
As white sharks have returned to the area, officials have ramped up public safety initiatives. Many resources are available online to learn more about shark safety.
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