Photo: AFP via Getty Images
CHATHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A new study found Cape Cod to be one of the biggest hotspots for white sharks in the world.
The study published Thursday in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series was a collaboration between the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy, UMass Dartmouth, and the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries. It estimated that around 800 sharks swam through Cape Cod from 2015 to 2018, using a first-of-its-kind population survey for white sharks in the North Atlantic Ocean.
Researchers collected nearly 3,000 videos of shark sightings during 137 trips to Cape Cod beaches, identifying 393 individual white sharks.
According to the study, the Cape Cod estimate is "comparable to but larger than" most previous estimates for other white shark aggregation sites at South Africa, central California, southern Australia, and Guadalupe Island in Mexico.
Residents can keep track of and report shark sightings in their area with the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy's Sharktivity App.
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