Shark experts speak on sightings off Cape

BOSTON -- Shark experts who spotted and tagged a great white shark off of the coast of Chatham, spoke on their efforts on Wednesday.

Researchers from the Division of Marine Fisheries said the great white sharks are back off the Cape, and warning beachgoers to stay at least 100 yards away from seals.

The researchers spotted five or six of the sharks in the waters on Tuesday, and tagged one, 12 to 15-foot long shark.

Last year, five sharks were tagged off the Cape, and should be coming back in search of food.

The sharks prey on seals, which are growing in population off of the Cape; particularly off of Chatham and the Eastern Shore of Monomoy Beach.

“You can usually see the seals, they are fairly large, but they are certainly close to shore at certain times; they may be closer to shore when sharks are nearby. The sharks are obviously attracted to the seals, it is certainly a high prey item on their diet, so in any case you want to use extreme caution when the seals are there. Keep away from the seals, and you’re likely keeping away from the sharks,” said Paul Diodati from the Division of Marine Fisheries.

The researchers said they are not sure whether the increased sightings of the sharks means that there are more of them out there, or just more attention to them. The increasing number of seals off the Cape may be the reason more sharks are coming in to feed off of them.

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