Massive Great White Sharks Currently In Waters Off New Jersey Shore

Do you remember when a boat filled with fishers encountered a great white off Point Pleasant 2 years ago? Based on intel from Ocearch, there are "thousands" of great white sharks currently passing through the east coast (including our waters) as they migrate north. Here's what you need to know.

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There's no need to panic, but there's a shark or two...or many in waters around us!  I don't expect any Jaws-like stuff, but it's still fascinating.  Take a peek at this map from Ocearch's tracker.

On June 12th, 2021 (just 3 days ago), a great white shark pinged off the coast of Wall, New Jersey (southern Monmouth county). The shark's name is Martha, named after Martha's Vineyard nearby where she was originally tagged with a tracking device. She's a 7 foot and 184-pound great white.  This comes after Andromache pinged off of Long Beach Island last month.

Ocearch tells the New York Post that the coast of New Jersey, New York, and Cape Cod is currently filled with thousands of sharks migrating north. Over the past few weeks, a couple of huge great whites have pinged as they head north.  Freya, an 11 foot and 883 pound great white, pinged today just east of Richmond, Virginia. Vimy, a 12 foot and 1,164 pound great white, pinged on May 30th just east of Columbia, South Carolina. If you go to the Ocearch tracker and go to "recent pings" you can see many pings from the past few days from up and down the coast for sharks of all shapes and sizes.

While a few big sharks may not sound like a lot, the folks at Ocearch point out that they have 70 sharks tagged and that's a minuscule percentage of the actual shark population out there. So, what are the sharks doing right now? Chris Fischer, the founder of the Ocearch research foundation, told the New York Post that, "right now the sharks are loading up on dog fish, seals, and blubber." He also says that shark attacks are not common but reminds us all to be observant of our surroundings and keep ourselves safe. "The moment you’re 3 feet in the ocean, you’re in the wild, and you’ve taken a risk."