Great White shark sightings in European waters ?

thecommietommy

Watched a program a few years ago where an Italian man and his (very frightened !!! ) young son filmed a Great White off their boat in the Mediterranean. They had been baiting the water earlier to go angling and hence attracted the Great White which circled their boat several times and can clearly be seen. Their also was an alleged sighting off the coast of southern England http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-14657123

I had a Google but it didn't come up with any more possible sightings, anyone have any information ??

Mickeroo

Here's a map from the wiki page. The blue is where they are common, so anywhere from south western france/spain down is commonplace:



I've heard about the sightings off cornwall and I've also heard about sightings off the north of scotland too. I wouldn't be surprised if the odd one has strayed into irish waters and gone unnoticed. Its always struck me as strange that we don't have them as they are resident in areas with colder water than here and there's plenty for them to eat here too!

Kess73

There were a few threads that revolved around sharks and the possibility of certain species being in Irish waters OP.

Could not find the one I was looking for, but here is a link to one from a number of years back. You might notice that it is a topic I am quite fond of


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=62554278

thecommietommy

Kess73 wrote: »

There were a few threads that revolved around sharks and the possibility of certain species being in Irish waters OP.

Could not find the one I was looking for, but here is a link to one from a number of years back. You might notice that it is a topic I am quite fond of


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=62554278

Fantastic link, thank you.

CJhaughey

Mickeroo wrote: »

Here's a map from the wiki page. The blue is where they are common, so anywhere from south western france/spain down is commonplace:
I've heard about the sightings off cornwall and I've also heard about sightings off the north of scotland too.

I think that map shows where they may occur, not where they are common.

Kess73

Mickeroo wrote: »

Here's a map from the wiki page. The blue is where they are common, so anywhere from south western france/spain down is commonplace:



I've heard about the sightings off cornwall and I've also heard about sightings off the north of scotland too. I wouldn't be surprised if the odd one has strayed into irish waters and gone unnoticed. Its always struck me as strange that we don't have them as they are resident in areas with colder water than here and there's plenty for them to eat here too!

Two of the Scottish sightings are regarded as being credible. One was in 2003 and one was in the 1970's. In each incident the witnesses were fishermen who worked on the sea for most of their lives, and in one of the incidents there was a full on attack on a seal in fromt of the fisherman so a very good look was got of the shark.


Most of the Cornwell sightings were basking sharks and Porbeagle sharks being mistaken for GWS.

But there are also two sightings in and near the Cornwell cost that are regarded as being credible. One was a close encounter with a great white that was witnessed and reported by two journalists who work for a sea angling magazine, and the other was by a lobster boat when the fishermen were dumping fish guts etc overboard and the GW is reported to have come alongside the boat.

slowburner

If they are not around Irish shores, you have to ask why not.
Great Whites are notable for their ability to tolerate a wider range of temperatures than most other sharks.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=-1]
[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=-1]"As the sharks moved offshore to the southwest, they increased their diving activity and experienced a broader range of ambient temperatures," wrote the authors -- from 79 F (26 C) at the surface to 41 F (4.8 C) at their maximum diving depth some 2,000 feet (667 meters) below sea level.[/SIZE][/FONT]

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2002/january9/sharks-19.html

A temperature variation of more than 21º C is massive.
Irish coastal waters usually have a temperature range which varies between around 7º C (winter) and around 12º C (summer)

http://www.met.ie/marine/marine_climatology.asp

So clearly, the temperature of Irish waters is not an obstacle to the presence of Great Whites.
This leaves the question of would they come to our shores for food?
What are their dietary requirements and would their appetites be satisfied in Irish waters?

This map estimates the probability of their occurrence in Irish waters at between 0.40 - 0.59 off the south coast and 0.01 - 0.19 in the cooler waters of the Atlantic seaboard and the northern Irish Sea

http://www.aquamaps.org/receive.php

Pigeon Reaper

Considering Orca where considered to be a rare visitor to Irish shores only a few years ago I wouldn't be surprised if other species where present but not recorded. Species around our shores aren't well recorded excluding commerical fisheries. There have been a number of reported sightings of GW in recent years around the coast but these could not be comfirmed as shark spotting and indentification is harder than cetaceans. I'm sure some would appear in bycatch but again without recording it would be almost impossible to ascertain the numbers. The environment and food sources are conducive to them. Does anyone wish to write a phd proving the presence or lack of great whites in Irish waters as it does appear to need more research.

slowburner

That would be a challenging PhD for sure.
It would be very tough to get evidence, one way or t'other.
It would be a bit like the chap who asked the lad to check if his indicator light was working properly -
" 'Tis/'tisn't. 'Tis/'tisn't. 'Tis/'tisn't. 'Tis/'tisn't..... "

It's pretty clear that the Great Whites' temperature tolerance is suited to Irish waters, but is there enough prey in Irish to attract Great Whites,
and where there is, are the conditions suitable for predation?

Kess73

slowburner wrote: »

That would be a challenging PhD for sure.
It would be very tough to get evidence, one way or t'other.
It would be a bit like the chap who asked the lad to check if his indicator light was working properly -
" 'Tis/'tisn't. 'Tis/'tisn't. 'Tis/'tisn't. 'Tis/'tisn't..... "

It's pretty clear that the Great Whites' temperature tolerance is suited to Irish waters, but is there enough prey in Irish to attract Great Whites,
and where there is, are the conditions suitable for predation?

Just to give an idea of the size of shark (outside of the harmless Basking shark) that have been confirmed to be in Irish waters.

This guy, a bluntnose six gill shark, was caught off the Clare coast a few years back.


http://www.boattest.com/images-gallery/News/joewaldis_large.jpg

Now there are enough prey items in Irish waters to support Six gill shark which grow to close to Great white size.

slowburner

Kess73 wrote: »

Just to give an idea of the size of shark (outside of the harmless Basking shark) that have been confirmed to be in Irish waters.

This guy, a bluntnose six gill shark, was caught off the Clare coast a few years back.


http://www.boattest.com/images-gallery/News/joewaldis_large.jpg

Now there are enough prey items in Irish waters to support Six gill shark which grow to close to Great white size.

They are deep water feeders though (300m +). Maybe the Whites are down there with them, if the feeding is good enough to support a beast that big.

slowburner

I wonder if these guys are in Irish waters.

hidinginthebush

Pigeon Reaper wrote: »

Considering Orca where considered to be a rare visitor to Irish shores only a few years ago I wouldn't be surprised if other species where present but not recorded.

Hang on, does that mean orca are actually quite common in Irish waters?

Kess73 wrote: »

There were a few threads that revolved around sharks and the possibility of certain species being in Irish waters OP.

Could not find the one I was looking for, but here is a link to one from a number of years back. You might notice that it is a topic I am quite fond of


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=62554278

that's a great thread, thanks!

Pigeon Reaper

hidinginthebush wrote: »

Hang on, does that mean orca are actually quite common in Irish waters?
!

There is mounting evidence that Orca are common visitors to Irish Waters with the possiblity of a Pod being resident. They appear to Range from the Irish Sea up around Scotland. The individuals have been indentified repeatedly over the past number of years within the Irish sea. There may also be other pods that haven't been indentified as being resident yet.

Kess73

slowburner wrote: »

They are deep water feeders though (300m +). Maybe the Whites are down there with them, if the feeding is good enough to support a beast that big.

The six gill are deep water shark but they come into more shallow waters to feed especially at night. The one caught in Clare was got at a depth of about 40m.

They have also been recorded in water that is only 20 to 30 foot deep.

Kess73

slowburner wrote: »

I wonder if these guys are in Irish waters.

They are listed as a species that enters Irish and British waters. They are another huge shark that managed to find plenty to sustain their size. Usually a deep water shark but, like the six gill, do feed closer to the surface and they have been found with all sorts of interesting snacks inside of them.

Mickeroo

Pigeon Reaper wrote: »

There is mounting evidence that Orca are common visitors to Irish Waters with the possiblity of a Pod being resident. They appear to Range from the Irish Sea up around Scotland. The individuals have been indentified repeatedly over the past number of years within the Irish sea. There may also be other pods that haven't been indentified as being resident yet.

Plenty of Orca's sighted of the west coast the last few years. The the Irish Whale and Dolphin group's website and you can see where. There was 2 or 3 sightings of large pods in mayo in the last couple of years alone.