Great White Shark Tracked Heading Up Jersey Shore Coast Toward Ocean City
OCEAN CITY, N.J. (CBS) -- A great white shark is creating quite a buzz down the shore. Scientists are tracking an 800-pound shark named Miss May that's been spotted off the coast of Cape May County.
After Miss May was pinged about 10 miles off the coast of Cape May Tuesday, she has appeared to go a bit more out to sea on Wednesday, providing a little comfort to those who are not too fond of sharks.
The shallow waters off 9th Street in provided some much-needed relief from the heat for some Ocean City visitors Wednesday. But not far beyond the horizon is one of nature's most perfect predators: a great white shark.
"I didn't really know that they would come around this area," Ocean City visitor Mark Royer said.
Sealife researchers from the group Ocearch report that a 10-foot-long great white named Miss May they tagged in February is traveling along the Jersey Shore right now.
Great White Shark Detected Off Cape May Coast Tuesday Morning
Her tracker pinged less than 10 miles off Cape May Tuesday night and a ping Wednesday morning shows she's heading north toward Ocean City.
"I asked her to please check her phone earlier to see where it was. I said I'm not going in the water because I want to know where it is," Ocean City visitor Alycia Kohn-Reed said.
Ocearch says Miss May is about 800 pounds, which means she's not fully grown. She is one of several great whites they track in the Atlantic Ocean, trying to learn more about their feeding and travel habits.
Where Is Miss May Now? How To Track Shark Detected Off The Coast Of Cape May
Ten miles off shore is closer than she usually roams, but it's not out of character for a great white. She's not close enough to close the beaches, but depending on your perspective, maybe too close for comfort.
"I wouldn't be out there," one woman said.
"I'm more afraid of the $15 we had to pay to get on to the beach, $5 a person for beach tags. What's up with that?" visitor Grace and Ben Alexander said. "Yeah the beach tags are killing us, the sharks not so much."