While 50th Anniversary showings of Jaws were all the rage this summer on Cape Cod, a new sighting of an actual great white shark helped kick off fall near Block Island.
The summer season may be over, but warm days and even warmer waters still have people (and sharks) enjoying the local beaches. In fact, experts say fall can be the busiest season for many species of shark in Southern New England.
One such species is the great white shark. Generally elusive and difficult to research, a juvenile great white was recently caught on camera off Block Island for the first time ever.
How the Atlantic Shark Institute Captured the Footage
The Atlantic Shark Institute (ASI) recently deployed some custom-built technology, the Baited Remote Underwater Video System (BRUVs). These BRUVs use bait to lure animals in front of protected, waterproof cameras and allow researchers to capture video of them in their natural environment.
In this recent footage from off the shores of Block Island, ASI captured a young great white up close and on camera in Rhode Island waters for the first time ever. Yes, great white sharks have been spotted in RI before, but never captured camera like ASI did in September.
Other Rare Marine Life Spotted Off Block Island
It wasn’t the only “first in RI” sighting of 2025 either.
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Back in June, ASI recorded a leatherback turtle cruising past their BRUVs off Block Island as well.
Though the massive stingray in this video is also impressive, watching the huge leatherback slowly flap his way by in the background absolutely steals the show.
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Both ‘first ever’ sightings in Rhode Island are presumably just the start of exciting new finds now that underwater cameras are watching for sea life in an unobtrusive way that researchers can’t do on their own…