Video: Great White Shark Chases SUP Surfer in SoCal
Are great white sharks playful?
If Hollywood was a behavioral barometer of the ocean’s apex predator, or the constant barrage of headlines from mainstream news, capitalizing on shark attack tragedies, then the answer would be a resounding, blood-splattered ‘no.’
But, thanks to a handful of drone operators who have emerged recently, who specialize in monitoring marine life with an eye in the sky, and a curious mind, the behaviors of great white sharks might be a little more complex than previously believed.
Like the video above, captured by Carlos Gauna, aka The Malibu Artist.
It shows a standup paddleboarder and an innocuous, somewhat playful, encounter with a sub-adult great white shark in Southern California. The shark inquisitively follows the SUPer, like a dog to a stranger with an interesting scent. And then, when the SUPer turns around, the shark gets scared.
Captioning the clip, Gauna commented on this curious behavior:
“I don't usually see white sharks appear to actively pursue stand up paddleboarders for but this one did have an interest, at least momentarily. Notice how it stopped once the board turned.”
It flips the typical narrative about great whites – that they’re bloodthirsty, aggressive, human killers – on its head. Maybe they’re more innocent, playful even.
And, in fact, science backs this perspective. In a recent study from CSULB’s Shark Lab, they used drones to monitor popular surf spots in Southern California, and they found that sharks were present 97% of the time…often without the surfers even knowing.
“I think people will be shocked by these findings — we never expected to see so many encounters every day with no incidents,” said Chris Lowe, director of the Shark Lab. “We’re also using drones to examine how white sharks behave when they are near people and how they may tell the difference between surfers and swimmers.”
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