When enjoying a day at the beach the last thing you expect to see is a massive great white shark. Especially if it washes up on shore. However, for beachgoers on a Cape Cod beach that is exactly what happened. A massive 12-foot great white shark washed up on this Massachusetts beach and it was so big officials need a tow truck to haul it away.
Massive Great White Washes Up On Shore
Screenshot from Orleans Police Department Facebook
While a live 12-foot shark washing up on shore would definitely be a bit more terrifying, the body of a dead great white shark still has quite the shock factor. The Orleans Police Department shared pictures of the bloodied massive great white. One photo is a close up of the shark's mouth, showcasing all of its jagged pointed teeth. The other is a view from the side showing the large lacerations in the shark's skin.
The final photo that the police department shared was of the shark being hauled off on the back of a tow truck. Seriously, this looks like a scene out of JAWS. The NY Post reports that this fish weighed in at a whopping 1,240 pounds.
In their Facebook post the Orleans Police Department joked, "Not one of our typical calls for service." From there they detailed what they saw when they arrived on the scene. "Unfortunately, this giant was located washed up on the beach, and just as with a 4x4 stuck on the outer, we called Dennis to tow it away."
What Happened To This Majestic Creature?
Image via Fiona Ayerst/Shutterstock
Great white sharks are apex predators, so any time they turn up dead it is a curiosity. While no one knows exactly what happened to this shark, it was taken to the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy where a necropsy was performed.
Dennis Reed, the man tasked with hauling the massive great shark away noted that "there were no bite marks or anything on it." He concluded that "it seemed like it had a lot of internal bleeding because there was a lot of blood around its mouth."
The Conservancy shared an update on their progress to their Facebook. Unfortunately there are currently no updates on what killed the shark. However, they did find out some interesting facts about this massive great white. First, this shark was previously identified in 2022 and was called Koala.
Second, he was a mature, male great white that was just over 12 feet long. Further testing is being conducted in an attempt to find a cause of death.
