June the 12th, 2019 – Sharks are truly stunning creatures and a chance to see one for ourselves is a rare and amazing opportunity. While some still aren’t over Jaws and the somewhat over the top message it sent out, many people have managed to get over Quint’s premature and very bloody death at the hands of an obviously mechanical Great White shark and move on with their lives, even daring to swim where we can’t see the seabed.
Two pieces of footage of a beautiful Mako shark have surfaced over the last few days, one video was taken by a German tourist sailing with his family near Makarska, and the other was taken by a Croat accompanying tourists on a boat in the Korčula channel.
Both pieces of video footage from Dalmatia are of a Mako shark. These sharks do live in the Croatian Adriatic, as do other types, but it’s rare that we get the chance to get up close and personal, much less take relatively clear video footage of them going about their days. Mako sharks, much like the majority of other sharks, prefer to stay well out of the way of humans, avoiding potential meetings and opting instead to hunt for food.
The Mako shark lives primarily on fish, such as tuna and swordfish, but it will also tackle sea turtles and even sea birds should the opportunity arise. It is classed as a dangerous shark, but Mako sharks are aloof, and attacks on humans are incredibly rare.
As Morski writes on the 12th of June, 2019, experts from the Split Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries commented on the recent video footage of the Mako sharks in the Adriatic. They confirmed the claims made by Pero Ugarković, who first revealed that the shark in question is indeed a Mako shark.
The experts stated, among other facts about Mako sharks having become a bit of a rarity in the Croatian Adriatic, that this is a threatened and protected species, and stressed that there is no need to panic. Although there are cases of human attacks carried out by this species, they are extremely rare, and in the last 120 years, only 10 have been recorded worldwide.
If you happen to be sailing in Dalmatia, keep your eyes peeled and your cameras ready! Make sure to send us any footage of any Mako sharks you see.
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