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A famous great white shark known as Ironbound has been spotted swimming of the U.S. coast again.
The huge shark, which measures 12 foot, 4 inches, and weighs 1,189 pounds, was tracked swimming off the coast of South Carolina on May 18 by ocean research organization OCEARCH.
OCEARCH tags sharks to learn more about their behavior. It tracks "pings" when they come close to the surface.
Ironbound belongs to a population of Atlantic great white sharks that spend the winters in the south, then migrate along the East Coast to Canada.
Great white sharks are a solitary species, meaning they do not travel with others or follow each other. Some sharks may stray from the migration route occasionally.
Gavin Naylor, director at the Florida Program for Shark Research, told Newsweek: "While many white sharks head south [in the winter] not all do. Patterns of movement in these animals show a lot of individual variation."
"In the same vein, while the majority of black-tip sharks move north from South Florida to the Carolinas every spring, not all do. Some stick around in South Florida for the entire summer."
A few other OCEARCH great whites have been tracked in other areas of the U.S. recently.
Rose, a shark measuring 10 foot and 5 inches, was recently tracked swimming off the coast of Florida.
Two other sharks—Breton and Anne Bonny—were tracked off the coast of North Carolina.
Most Atlantic great whites will be off North Carolina at this time of year.
Scientists believe that this population of great whites comes to Carolina waters for their mating season during the spring months.
One of OCEARCH's main aims is to learn more about the mating of great white sharks, as this still remains largely a mystery to scientists, who also know very little about where they raise their young.
There are many other aspects of great white shark behavior that remain a mystery to scientists. The species is largely elusive, and rarely seen in its natural habitat.
Before Ironbound arrived in South Carolina, he pinged off the coast of Florida and the Bahamas in April. Prior to that, Ironbound had been spotted just off the coast of Florida, northeast of Fort Lauderdale, on January 22, 2023.
He had also been tracked southeast of Miami Beach, after arriving in Florida from Maryland, where he had been tracked 40 miles off the coast.
Great white sharks prefer the waters of temperate regions, but they can be found all over the world.
Although great white sharks often swim in shallow waters, they pose little danger to humans. However conflicts tend to occur more regularly in the summer months, when more people are in the water.
Ironbound was first tagged by OCEARCH in October 2019. He was found in the waters off Nova Scotia.
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About the writer
Robyn White is a Newsweek Nature Reporter based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on wildlife, science and the ... Read more