There Goes the Neighborhood

[Chaser]

Looks like Whitey is quickly traveling north up the Boston's south shore......Keep an eye out....

TOWN OF SCITUATE BEACH ADVISORY 1
SEPTEMBER 5, 2014
On Thursday evening, September 4 the Scituate Harbormaster's Office received a call of a shark taking a seal approximately 400 yards off the Third Cliff/Peggotty Beach area. THIS SIGHTING HAS NOT BEEN CONFIRMED AS A GREAT WHITE SHARK, but given recent activity in the area the Town is exercising an abundance of caution and notifying beach patrons. There have been no further sightings at this time.

[stoneaxe]

I've heard a few S.S. surfers say they won't go to the Cape anymore in summer/fall. Wonder what they think now? I don't think there is any question that Monomoy and environs are the epicenter here but they will spread out more and more with time. Both predator and prey are protected species now. People will have to get used to the idea that they are just visitors when on/in the water. First serious attack here is going to cause a shitstorm.

[Weed]

Dr. Greg Skomal said at a fundraiser last winter in Chatham that the big females show up in the Chatham area right about now late August early September and the males disappear. Maybe the males go and hang out in your neck of the woods?

[stoneaxe]

I was wondering if the territoriality was pushing the mid sized ones further from the prime hunting areas. That's actually a little worrying. In the good hunting areas they have plenty of tasty seal blubber to keep them occupied. The ones getting pushed out are going to find the hunting harder. That might lead to more exploratory bites testing to see if something tastes good....

[Chaser]

More detail on the Scituate siting....This guy is classic.

http://norwell.wickedlocal.com/article/20140905/NEWS/140907884

David Garfield was not expecting to cross paths with a shark in the waters off of Peggotty Beach, but that is exactly what happened Thursday (Sept. 4) night. According to Garfield, it was about 6:15 p.m. and he was heading home from Scituate Harbor in his 21-foot Seacraft boat alone."I was almost on the south side of Peggotty Beach, Third Cliff," he said. "I was probably about 400 to 500 yards out, in about 30 feet of water." As he was going along, Garfield said suddenly this shark "came flying out of the water with something in its mouth." "It was right in front of me, in the direction I was headed," he said.  Garfield said he was startled, and was trying to get to his cell phone. "He came all the way out of the water," Garfield said, adding that he estimated the shark to be from 12 to 15 feet in length. "He had a really white underneath."  Garfield said it's possible the shark was a great white.

He also said he believes the shark had a seal in its mouth.


"I didn't see any seals in the water beforehand, but the way the thing jumped completely out of the water, and with something in it's mouth, makes me think it was a seal. I've seen the shows when sharks attack seals and they do that." He said that while the shark was airborne he couldn't tell for sure what the shark had, but that it was black.  Once back under the water, Garfield said the shark remained near to the top of the water – Garfield figured the shark hovered at about 4 feet down. "He only stayed near the top because he was eating that seal," Garfield said. "He was very close to the boat. I was trying to take pictures."  Garfield said he wasn't worried about the shark attacking his vessel, and that the shark did not display any aggressive behavior towards the boat.  "I had slowed down, and I saw his fin - he was right by the boat. He was too busy eating," Garfield said. "But he did see me. He looked right up at me and then moved away."  Garfield said he couldn't entirely tell if the shark had black eyes like a doll's eyes – a famous line from the movie "Jaws." "He had a monster head, and I could see his teeth. I was singing the theme from 'Jaws' while this was happening," he said.  Garfield said he scuba dives in the area with his sons, but he has never seen a shark there before.  "I did see a much bigger shark about 10 miles out off of Scituate in 2009," he said.  After the shark disappeared, Garfield said he stayed in the area just in case the shark returned, but he said he didn't see the shark again.  "I saw this oil-like stuff floating on the water, and I saw a piece of meat floating there," he said.  Garfield said a lot of people go paddling out in that area, and that anyone out there should be careful.


"The way that thing came out of the water like that, if you had been swimming you'd be done," he said. "I wouldn't go paddling out there now."

[johnysmoke]

Missed this somehow. That is getting a little close for comfort, New Inlet is one of my favorite play spots, and it's just around the corner from Peggotty. Have spent much time surfing/suping/swimming out there. Peggotty has been on my to do list as well. Sounds like they're probably going to be around until the water gets cold in a few months. I wish they would chip them all so you could get an idea of where they're at, or put bells on them so you know they're around.

[madmax]

We had a tagged one visit FL this year.  We're used to sharing the water with the landlords.  Great Whites are another story.  I would have never thought...