Page 407 - Mexico Diving From the Caribbean to Pacific Isles

The Great White Shark

B ecause of the bad rap they got from the ultimate apex predator...the great white shark.
media and movies, these sharks were
feared by most. As more people tried it and T he great white shark is a solitary predator
came back with all their limbs and stories of that can grow to over 20 foot in length,
face-to-face encounters, more wanted to do it. but averages 12-16 feet and weighs about
Today the shark diving adventure is open to 4,000 pounds. Larger great whites have been
just about everyone. You don’t even need to be recorded up to 23 feet and other evidence
a scuba diver to do it, Making a trip to Guada- shows they could grow as large as 26 feet in
lupe Island is now a luxury live-aboard experi- some parts of the world. As with most sharks,
ence on the 112’ Solmar V. There are only a few females are larger than males. Shark pups are
places in the world where predictable shark around five feet long at birth. The heavy body
encounters can be found. Guadalupe Island, is shaped like a torpedo. Most of the shark is
off the west coast of the Baja peninsula, is by gray with a white underbelly. When hunting,
far the most popular in North America. With the great white usually strikes from below.
up to 100’ visibility and water temperatures Its grayish top coloration blends in with the
between 67° to 72° F, shark diving at Guada- dark water, allowing it to approach the prey
lupe Island has quickly found it’s way to many undetected. This shark has five gill slits, a
adventure-seekers “bucket list”. It wasn’t long crescent-shaped tail, no fin spines, an anal fin,
ago that the fishermen around Guadalupe Is- a dorsal fin and two pectoral fins. The dorsal
land complained of large sharks stealing their fin is the one that breaks the surface of the
catch before they could reel it in. The reports water. For as large and heavy as this shark is,
happened consistently year after year. Now the the great white shark is a streamlined swim-
months of August, September and October are mer, striking it’s prey with a tremendous force.
prime time to get up close and personal to the