2 great white sharks tracked to Gulf of St. Lawrence
Two great whites have made their way to Quebec waters just in time for shark week.
A specimen named Jekyll was last pinged on Tuesday near the shores of Percé, on the tip of Quebec's Gaspé Peninsula.
Meanwhile, Simon is also hanging out in the Gulf of St. Lawrence a little further inward.
Their voyages are being tracked by Ocearch, an American nonprofit that monitors the movements of Earth's ocean giants.
The organization has tagged hundreds of animals, including turtles, whales, dolphins and, of course, sharks.
Jekyll and Simon are still in their juvenile years, but you might not guess it by looking at them. Jekyll is eight feet eight inches tall and 395 pounds, while Simon is even bigger at nine feet six inches tall and 434 pounds.
The pair were named after Jekyll and St. Simon's Islands, both in Georgia, where researchers first tagged them in December 2022.
The Ocearch map shows the great white shark Jekyll's journey towards the Gaspe Peninsula. (Ocearch)
Ocearch's map shows the young sharks travelling northward, cruising past the sights of Myrtle Beach, Atlantic City and Long Island before hitting Canadian waters around June of 2023.
After a brief detour around Nova Scotia, they took the Cabot Strait up to the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
It's not the first time great whites have been spotted in Quebec; in 2019, a shark named Brunswick made headlines after he turned up near the Magdalen Islands, and four more sharks followed suit in 2020.
CONSERVATION EFFORTS
Fred Whoriskey, executive director of The Ocean Tracking Network, a global aquatic research, data management and partnership platform at Halifax's Dalhousie University, said recent conservation efforts explain how the two large fish ended up near Quebec.
"What's happening, we think, now is the population is growing, the animals that had pulled back to a southern distribution — mostly south of the Canadian border — are now beginning to occupy Canadian waters. We're beginning to see them much more frequently," he said in an interview.
Whoriskey said other measures have protected the sharks from dying off in cases of accidental kills when they get snagged in halibut or swordfish lines, for example.
"Now, we're protecting them from that kind of thing and they do seem to be bouncing back," he said.
Going for a dip in the St. Lawrence? Whoriskey offers these tips for what to do when encountering a shark:
- Don't panic — don't begin to flail or show other signs of panic that might excite attention
- Move backward — move toward a shallower end of the water, and hopefully out of the water
- Keep an eye on it — don't lose sight of the shark so that it can see that you're watching it
"They are very cautious in what they're doing when they're attacking because they also can get hurt in this process," he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING 122 active wildfires burning across Canada, 32 considered 'out of control'
The 2024 wildfire season has begun, and it's shaping up to follow last year's unprecedented destruction in kind, with thousands of square kilometres already consumed.
B.C. parents sentenced to 15 years for death of 6-year-old boy
A British Columbia Supreme Court judge has sentenced the mother and stepfather of a six-year-old boy who died from blunt-force trauma in 2018 to 15 years in prison.
Veteran TSN sportscaster Darren Dutchyshen has died
Veteran TSN broadcaster Darren 'Dutch' Dutchyshen, one of Canada’s best-known sports journalists, has died. He was 57. His family says 'he passed as he was surrounded by his closest loved ones.'
'More aggressive': Tocchet shifts lineups as Canucks get ready to take on Oilers in Vancouver
As the Canucks prepare to take on the Oilers for Game 5, Vancouver head coach Rick Tocchet is making changes to the team's lineup.
Think twice before sharing 'heartbreaking' social media posts, RCMP warn
Mounties in B.C. are urging people to think twice before sharing "heartbreaking posts" on social media.
Police issue Canada-wide warrant for Regina homicide suspect
Police have issued a Canada-wide warrant for a man wanted in a homicide which occurred in Regina on May 12.
Trudeau calls New Brunswick's Conservative government a 'disgrace' on women's rights
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau assailed New Brunswick's premier and other conservative leaders on Thursday, calling out the provincial government's position on abortion, LGBTQ youth and climate change.
Kevin Spacey receives star support as he fights to get his career back
Kevin Spacey is pushing back on the 'rush to judgment' against him and is being backed by some big names as he seeks to reclaim his acting career.
Speaker cuts ties with Sask. Party, alleges he faced threats, harassment from gov't MLAs
The Speaker of the Saskatchewan Legislature Randy Weekes has severed ties with the Sask. Party after accusing some members of harassment and intimidation tactics, including a situation he claimed saw the Government House Leader bring a hunting rifle to the legislative building.