Woman Attempts to Pet Great White Shark, Inciting Aggressive Response
A veteran's close encounter with a large shark highlights the risks involved in marine wildlife interactions.
A woman recently had a startling encounter with a great white shark when she reached out from a fishing boat to pet the marine apex predator, causing the shark to thrash and lunge.
According to Jimmy Armel, founder of Knot Lucky Fishing, the individual was never in significant danger as the crew maintained control of the situation. A video shared by the organization depicts the moment, with a statement noting, "One second Jen, one of our veterans, is laying her hand on a wild white shark like it’s the family dog, and the next second that shark whips around and lunges toward her."
The footage originates from Knot Lucky Fishing's White Shark Tagging Program, a collaboration with Starbrite, Project SeaSafe, and Gray FishTag Research. Based in Savannah, Georgia, the organization provides free fishing trips for veterans, active-duty service members, and their families.
The program's mission involves catching, tagging, and releasing great white sharks off Tybee Island. Each shark is named in honor of a fallen service member to gather migration data. "We’ve tagged ten so far, and with the whites heading back to Tybee now, more are coming this winter," Armel stated.
In the incident captured on video, the shark was not tagged due to safety concerns for both the crew and the animal.