The largest male white shark ever tagged in the western North Atlantic has emerged near a major East Coast tourist destination.
Known as “Contender,” the 14-foot, nearly 1,700-pound predator triggered a GPS alert Thursday evening off the coast of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. The shark’s tracking device pings a satellite whenever its dorsal fin breaches the water’s surface.
While the tag wasn’t exposed long enough to pinpoint his exact coordinates, an OCEARCH spokesperson confirmed the shark is on the move. Contender is actively participating in an annual summer migration up the eastern seaboard.
Following the Food Source
“White sharks in the western North Atlantic typically migrate north and spend the summer and early fall foraging in the waters of Cape Cod or Atlantic Canada,” the OCEARCH spokesperson stated.
These northern regions offer ideal water temperatures and an abundance of prey. The sharks frequently target grey seals and large fish, including schools of menhaden near New York’s Long Island.
Contender was last recorded in the Outer Banks region in April. During that pass, his tag remained above the surface long enough for researchers to log a precise location.
7,000 Miles of Tracking Data
Researchers first tagged Contender in January of last year off the coast of Florida and Georgia. He was named in honor of Contender Boats, a corporate partner of the marine research non-profit.
Since his initial tagging, the massive fish has logged over 7,000 miles in the Atlantic Ocean. His recorded journeys stretch from the warm waters of Florida all the way to Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence.
The GPS unit attached to Contender is designed to transmit real-time movement data for five years.
“Every ping from Contender gives us a window into the life of a mature male white shark — how he moves, feeds and contributes to the population’s recovery,” Chris Fischer, founder of OCEARCH, explained in a press release last year.
A Lightweight Compared to Deep Blue
While Contender holds the tagging record for western North Atlantic males, he is easily dwarfed by other members of his species.
Deep Blue, a female white shark famously spotted off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii, measures an estimated 20 feet in length and weighs a staggering 4,500 pounds.
These apex predators—the real-life inspiration behind Steven Spielberg’s 1975 blockbuster film Jaws—routinely swim thousands of miles across global oceans. Viewers can learn more about their behavior when the Discovery Channel kicks off Shark Week on July 26.
