Evidently, a great white shark decided to attack a trolling motor while a Panama City Beach charter boat captain was about eight miles out in the Gulf of Mexico.
Capt. Scott Fitzgerald said, “The shark had the entire trolling motor in his mouth, and was moving it side to side, and it was actually shaking the boat.” (See: http://www.mypanhandle.com/story/d/story/great-white-shark-attacks-local-fishermans-boat-in/26051/RWNDcQvX0UmpuD0-mABk2A)
Fitzgerald shared his encounter and photos on his company’s Facebook page (http://panamacityfishingchartermadfish.com/).
Fitzgerald wrote, “Never seen anything like it,” I’ve been chartering for nearly a decade.
It’s unclear currently just how big the shark was, but it was able to shake the boat. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission confirmed the attack had involved a great white shark.
Great white sharks encounters in the Gulf aren’t entirely unheard of, but they’re rare. Dean Grubbs, of Florida State University’s Coastal and Marine laboratory, stated, “The species prefers cooler waters; and noting that great white reports in the Gulf are more common in the cooler months,” and stating, “He’s noticed more reports in warmer months here of late.”
Grubbs also told the reporter, “What surprised him is that they’re in warm water coming to the surface, because the water is pretty warm for a white shark.”
National Geographic reports, great white sharks are normally found in “cool, coastal waters throughout the world. The creatures are considered the largest predatory fish on the planet and can grow to an average of 15 feet in length.
It’s a mystery why the great white shark attacked the boat or why it was in the Gulf, but the encounter will probably never be forgotten by Fitzgerald and his crew. He said, “It really got all of our hearts beating hard and it was very exciting for us all.”
Barbara Kasey Smith wrote this article based on a report by patch.com & MyPanhandle.