A great white shark named Ernst, tracked by researchers at the non-profit OCEARCH, has resurfaced off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, after a months-long journey that spanned thousands of miles along the U.S. East Coast and into the Gulf of Mexico.
Ernst, a female shark measuring 12 feet long and weighing 1,009 pounds, had her satellite tracker activated on October 4, 2025. Initial tracking data showed her moving through the Gulf of Mexico and circling the waters around Florida. In January, she was detected multiple times near Alabama before beginning a significant journey northward.
Her route took her along the coasts of Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, and New Jersey, extending towards New England. The shark then continued northeast, passing Nova Scotia before entering Canada's Cabot Strait. Her latest transmission was recorded on July 23 off the southwestern coast of Newfoundland.
Researchers noted that Ernst's proximity to the shore during her migration was unusual compared to typical great white shark behavior in the region. During the winter months, Ernst's tracker registered 22 detections off southwest Florida, followed by signals near Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. At one point, she came within approximately four miles of the Alabama coast near Gulf Shores and Dauphin Island, and was also detected near Louisiana's Chandeleur Islands, providing valuable data on this population's movements.
White sharks typically migrate to the colder waters of Newfoundland and Atlantic Canada during the summer and fall to feed on recovering seal populations. As these prey sources have grown, sharks have access to more food, enabling them to build fat reserves for extensive migrations. Tracking data suggests these sharks are also spending longer periods in these northern feeding grounds, with some traveling as far north as the Grand Banks and Cabot Strait.
Conversely, as ocean temperatures decrease in the winter, the sharks generally head south towards the southeastern U.S. and the Gulf of Mexico in search of warmer waters and alternative food sources. Ernst is one of several sharks being monitored by OCEARCH to better understand migration patterns in the Northwest Atlantic.
In a separate but related observation, OCEARCH also tracked a massive male great white shark nicknamed Contender. Measuring nearly 14 feet and weighing approximately 1,700 pounds, Contender was tagged on January 17, 2025, off the coast of Florida. His tracking tag briefly reactivated near the U.S. East Coast on July 10, after he had been unobserved since late April 2026, when he was last detected near North Carolina. Contender has traveled extensively, migrating north along the U.S. East Coast, including waters off North Carolina, New Jersey, and Cape Cod, Massachusetts. OCEARCH identified Contender as the largest male white shark they have ever tagged within the North Atlantic population. While his continued presence has been confirmed, the exact current location of Contender remains undetermined due to satellite data limitations.