A great white shark named Ernst, weighing 1,009 pounds and measuring 12 feet long, has reappeared off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, months after researchers' tracking devices lost contact. The female shark's tracker registered a signal on Thursday, marking its return after a journey that spanned thousands of miles along the U.S. East Coast.
Researchers from OCEARCH, a non-profit organization focused on shark research and ocean conservation, initially tagged Ernst on October 4, 2025. Tracking data revealed that Ernst traveled through the Gulf of Mexico, circled waters near Florida, and pinged multiple times around Alabama in January before embarking on a significant northward migration. The shark's path took it past Georgia and the Carolinas, through waters off Virginia and New Jersey, and toward New England, before continuing northeast past Nova Scotia and into Canada's Cabot Strait.
Its most recent signal was detected on July 23 off the southwestern coast of Newfoundland, near the Codroy Valley. Researchers noted that the shark's proximity to the shore was unusual for typical great white behavior in that region.
White sharks commonly migrate to colder waters off Newfoundland and Atlantic Canada during the summer and fall to feed on seals. As seal populations have rebounded in the North Atlantic, sharks have access to greater prey availability, aiding their long migrations. Tracking data suggests these predators are spending more time in the region, with their average stay increasing from 48 to 70 days. Some sharks travel as far north as the Grand Banks and Cabot Strait.
During winter months, these sharks typically head south toward the southeastern U.S. and the Gulf of Mexico in search of warmer waters and alternative food sources. Ernst's winter movements included 22 detections off southwest Florida, followed by signals near Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. At one point, the shark was approximately four miles from the Alabama coast near Gulf Shores and Dauphin Island, and was also detected near Louisiana's Chandeleur Islands, providing valuable insights into the movements of this population in the northeastern Gulf.
This monitoring of Ernst is part of ongoing efforts by OCEARCH to understand migration patterns in the Northwest Atlantic. This species' northern migratory behavior is considered normal seasonal activity.
In April, another large great white shark, nicknamed Contender, was tracked along the U.S. East Coast. This male shark measures 13 feet, 9 inches and weighs nearly 1,700 pounds. Contender's tracking tag briefly reactivated near the East Coast on July 10, after having been inactive since late April 2026, when it was last detected near North Carolina. OCEARCH originally tagged Contender on January 17, 2025, off the Florida-Georgia coast. Contender is noted as the largest male white shark tagged by OCEARCH among the North Atlantic population. The recent signal provided an update on the shark's status, though its precise current location remains undetermined.