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Massive, Record-Breaking Great White Shark Detected Near U.S. Vacation Hotspot
Yahoo • • science
Key Points:
- A record-breaking male great white shark named Contender, measuring 14 feet and nearly 1,700 pounds, has been detected off the Outer Banks in North Carolina, marking the largest male great white ever tagged in the western North Atlantic.
- Contender was last tracked in April and is believed to be migrating northward toward Cape Cod or Atlantic Canada, where white sharks typically spend summer and early fall foraging.
- Scientists track the shark using a device that emits signals when its fin breaks the water surface, though recent signals have been weak or brief.
- While Contender holds the regional record for size, he is not the largest great white shark known globally; that title belongs to Deep Blue, a 20-foot, 4,500-pound shark seen off Hawaii.
- Deep Blue inspired the iconic 1975 film Jaws directed by Steven Spielberg.
