A great white shark called Hilton was spotted in the Gulf of Mexico simply west of the Florida Keys today.( REUTERS/Seachangetechnolgy)
A real life “Jaws” called Hilton was spotted in the Gulf of Mexico simply west of the Florida Keys today. The great white shark, a Twitter celebrity with more than 22,000 fans, was tagged by OCEARCH– a non-profit company that looks into great white sharks and other peak predators.
OCEARCH scientists have actually been following the 12- foot great white’s path because March 2017 when they tagged the shark near Hilton Head Island, SouthCarolina Hilton, weighing in at 1,326 pounds, is fitted with a tag that pings to transfer his place when his fins break the surface area.
Theshark has actually taken a trip up and down along the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean — from Nova Scotia to Florida — however he’s never ever been seen in the Gulf of Mexico previously. He’s remained in the waters for almost 2 weeks now.
“Since then he’s made his way toward the Florida panhandle, a famous fishing ground for sport fishermen. No doubt Hilton’s doing a little fishing of his own, chowing down on the many fish of the canyon and shelf region there,”Dr. Robert Hueter, OCEARCH chief science consultant and mote marine lab senior sientist, stated in an online declaration.
According to OCEARCH, Hilton’s last “ping” was tape-recorded on Friday at 11: 49 a.m. The shark has actually taken a trip almost 80 miles in the past 24 hours and an overall of 10,029 miles because he was very first tagged.
“After spending last spring near the shelf and canyons off North Carolina, Hilton is spending this spring further south, along the Florida Escarpment and DeSoto Canyon in the Gulf,”Dr Bryan Franks of Jacksonville University described, inning accordance with an OCEARCH Facebook post. “The common factor: those interesting bottom features that likely hold a nice buffet of food and a range of water temperatures.”
The sighting triggered funny remarks from Hilton fans throughout the world.
“Maybe he’s headed to Mexico for Cinco de Mayo!” one Facebook user composed.
“Hilton, what are you doing way over there in the gulf? How did you travel across land in Florida? Inquiring minds want to know! Come back to South Carolina. We miss you!” another composed.
“Looks like he took a side trip to Disneyworld! Hope Ariel is safe!” one user joked.
Hilton welcomed his fans on Twitter Friday.
“Hello Florida! Anyone know where I can find some fish?” the shark’s account tweeted.
TheAssociated Press added to this report.
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