Brits have been safe from great white sharks. However, experts warned them that the man-eating fish could soon be seen in the U.K. waters as they migrate for food.
Great White Sharks Could Be Seen in Britain
Great white sharks are reportedly planning to visit Ireland and Cornwall this summer, according to the US-based Ocearch, which has 400 sharks under surveillance. In addition to the water being the ideal temperature for this time of year, both regions are teeming with sea lion populations.
Chris Fischer, the founder of Ocearch, told The Times that these characteristics make for a perfect hunting habitat where sharks might stay year after year.
Like all the other populations they have studied, they think Mediterranean white sharks should migrate north to feed on seals. They think they ought to advance past Cornwall and Brest in Brittany.
Although great whites are generally linked with South Africa and Australia, they can be found in many places worldwide.
A wildlife conservationist, Richard Peirce, asserts that over 100 "sightings" have been documented in the U.K. over the past 15 years.
Only 12 incidents, including six on the Cornish coast, are considered genuine.
U.K. Coastline Is Ideal for Great White Sharks
The U.K. coastline is thought to have optimal conditions for great white sharks, notwithstanding their rarity. The said species prefers temperatures between 57.2°F (14°C) and 68°F (20°C), which is consistent with the summertime temperatures of British water.
Gavin Naylor, the Director of the Florida Program for Shark Research, claimed that although they occasionally swim close by, there is no convincing modern evidence of their migration toward the U.K.
According to him, the environment in the U.K. waters is suitable for these predators, and food is abundant.
Predators travel largely in search of prey or partners. White sharks are happy with the tried-and-true food sources they now exploit, although there is a lot of potential food for them in the waters around the U.K. However, things could alter in the future.
Gregory Skomal, a marine biologist whose new book Chasing Shadows charts the resurgence of great white sharks along the U.S. east coast, said he would be "surprised" to find any of them in the U.K.
According to Skomal, there are no known white sharks near Cornwall. He added that they ought to be there, but they aren't, and they have no idea why, Independent reported.
Although there are few great whites in the Mediterranean, and not much is known about them or how they got there, they exist. In 1908, an Italian fisherman caught a female great white, measuring 4.5 meters off the coast of Capo San Croce.
The great white, the largest predatory fish on Earth, may be found throughout the world's oceans. They are typically seen in South Africa and other regions of Africa, California, and New Zealand.
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