Great White Shark Eats Seal Near Chatham Beach

CHATHAM, MA — Researchers on Monday morning captured a great white shark eating a seal a few miles from Lighthouse Beach in Chatham. The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy team captured the shark meal near Monomoy Island, about 3 miles south of Lighthouse Beach.

The sighting happened a few days after six great white sharks were seen feeding on a dead whale near beaches in Truro on Cape Cod's northern tip. Three beaches were closed but have since reopened.

Truro is the site of the last great white attack on a human in Cape Cod. On July 30, 2012, a great white bit a man on the leg. He survived.

It's been another active summer of great white shark sightings on the Cape. Last week, Truro beaches were closed after six great white sharks were seen feeding on a dead seal close to shore. There have been more than a dozen more shark sightings; a 6-year-old boy even hooked a great white in Cape Cod Bay (The shark was cut free.).

The last close encounter in the region was September 2014, when a great white chomped a kayak with two women aboard off the coast of Plymouth. They were not hurt. The sharks might have mistook the kayak for a seal, which they prey on.

In 1916, a shark killed four people and seriously injured a fifth off the New Jersey coast—providing the inspiration for “Jaws,” which was filmed on Martha's Vineyard.

Great White Sharks on Cape Cod 2016

• 6 Great White Sharks Force Cape Cod Beach Closures
• App Alerts Boaters to Great White Shark on Cape Cod
• Great White Shark Returns to Cape Cod After Dramatic Rescue
• Boy Catches Great White Shark in Cape Cod Bay
• 3 Great Whites Spotted on Eastern Edge of Cape Cod