Additional Coverage:
- Largest male great white shark ever recorded spotted off New Jersey coast providing new migration clues (irishstar.com)
Atlantic City, NJ – The ocean’s gentle giant, Contender, the largest male great white shark ever recorded in the Atlantic, has made a triumphant return to the New Jersey coastline! This colossal creature, weighing in at a staggering 1653 pounds and stretching 13 feet long, was recently pinged just miles off Atlantic City on Tuesday.
Contender, estimated to be around 32 years old, was initially tagged in January off the Florida/Georgia coast by OCEARCH, a global nonprofit dedicated to tracking marine life and ecosystems. Since then, he’s been on an epic journey, migrating north along the East Coast all the way into Canadian waters, and is now making his way back south for the fall.
His travels have been quite the adventure! From April to mid-June, Contender was spotted off North Carolina’s Outer Banks, even venturing about 22 miles off Cape Hatteras.
July saw him further north, pinged off the coast of Massachusetts. Then came a few months of silence, leaving shark enthusiasts wondering about his whereabouts.
But Contender resurfaced with a splash in late September, detected south of Pointe-Parent in Quebec. Since then, he’s been consistently pinging as he cruises southward. OCEARCH scientists believe he’s heading back to the warmer waters of Florida, where food sources are more abundant.
“Each ping adds another clue to the puzzle of white shark migration in the Western North Atlantic-and our team is tracking every move,” shared a representative from OCEARCH.
For those eager to follow Contender’s incredible journey, and keep tabs on other fascinating marine life, OCEARCH offers a Global Shark Tracker app for real-time tracking. It’s a great way to stay connected with the incredible creatures that call our oceans home!