A massive, nearly 1,000lb great white shark known as Ironbound was spotted swimming off the Jersey Shore, the site of the infamous 1916 shark attacks that inspired the film Jaws.
Ironbound – who hails from Nova Scotia and measures 12 feet, 4 inches – made his way to the Jersey Shore as he continues traveling up north to Canada, according to OCEARCH, an nonprofit marine research group that tracks shark migrations.
OCEARCH’s chief scientist Bob Hueter said Ironbound, who weighs 998lbs and is likely 20 years old, was first tagged on October 3, 2019, in Nova Scotia and has been spotted multiple times in the U.S.
‘When we tagged him, he was impressive,’ Hueter told CNN of the shark’s first sighting.
Ironbound, who was named after the West Ironbound Island, in Nova Scotia, first pinged in the waters off the coast of New Jersey on April 28, and was spotted by South Carolina’s Pamlico Sound on Tuesday.
The sight of the great white along the Jersey shore is reminiscent of Steven Spielberg’s 1975 cult classic, Jaws, which was inspired by the deadly Jersey Shoe shark attacks of 1916.
During the 12 day siege of the shore at the start of July by a large shark, believed to be a great white or bull shark, four people were killed and one was injured.
The deadly incident came as a result of thousands of residents heading to the beach during a summer heatwave along the east coast.
Heuter said the great white has traveled an estimated 13,000 miles since OCEARCH began tracking him three years ago.
The scientist told CNN Ironbound and his fellow sharks migrate every year, spending their winters in Florida and the Gulf Coast before heading back north for the summers.
‘They’re moving north to the very rich feeding grounds off of Canada and the northeastern US,’ Hueter said.
He noted that the shark’s summer up north would likely see the fish ‘bulk up’ when he returns to the Florida waters in the winter.
Despite his impressive size and weight, Ironbound is not the largest shark swimming in the U.S. coast as Hueter said OCEARCH has tagged great whites as long as 17.5 feet and as heavy as 4,000lbs.
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