12-Foot Great White Shark Tagged Near Montauk as Larger Specimen Moves North
Researchers from OCEARCH tracked a 12-foot, 1,000-pound female great white shark, dubbed “Ernst,” off Montauk in late June, while a larger 14-foot shark, “Contender,” is now observed farther south.
OCEARCH’s satellite tagging program recorded a 12-foot, 1,000-pound female great white shark, identified as “Ernst,” near Montauk on June 20. The shark subsequently moved northward along the Atlantic coast, reaching the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Canada. A second, larger great white, estimated at 14 feet and 1,700 pounds and referred to as “Contender,” was later detected near Pamlico Sound in North Carolina and is also traveling north.
Both animals appear to be following the typical migration pattern of western North Atlantic white sharks, which move from subtropical waters in the south to forage in the waters off Cape Cod and Atlantic Canada during the summer and early fall, according to an OCEARCH spokesperson.
The sightings come amid a reported increase in shark activity along the New York coastline this year, prompting local authorities to implement additional beach closures, patrol boats and drone surveillance. Environmental scientist Frank Quevedo, executive director of the South Fork Natural History Museum, said the season’s shark behavior remains difficult to predict.