Bursting from the Dorset waters, a 15ft soaring Jaws
NORMALLY it’s dolphins or killer whales that like to put on a display of aquatic gymnastics.
But this monster from the deep, delighting sightseers with its breathtaking leaps, is a 15ft thresher shark.
The 350lb fish propelled itself into the air off Dorset using the awesome power of its long, whip-like tail.
The group of ten tourists who were treated to the rare spectacle had taken a boat tour in the hope of spotting dolphins, whales and seabirds in the Channel.
As highly reclusive predators, thresher sharks are more common in the deeper, warmer waters of the east Atlantic or north Pacific. Tour guide Dr Tom Brereton grabbed his camera from the wheelhouse of the charter vessel Spot On after spotting the shark breaking the surface about 200 yards in front of his ship.
‘We were on a Naturetrek wildlife trip into Lyme Bay looking for dolphins, whales and seabirds,’ he said. ‘It has already been an interesting year in Lyme Bay with sightings of minke whale, Risso’s dolphin, basking shark and ocean sunfish as well as the more usual common and bottlenose dolphins, so expectations were high. Then in the deeper waters about 25 miles out I saw a big animal leaping clear of the water ahead of the ship. Assuming it was a bottlenose dolphin I alerted the group.
‘It jumped out again and our skipper, Ross Parham, who is a keen fisherman, immediately identified it as a thresher shark.
‘I hastily went into the wheelhouse to get my camera and the shark continued to jump clear of the water right beside the boat, giving awesome views to everyone on board. Seeing the shark leap out of the water really was a surreal and breathtaking experience.
‘I just had time to take two pictures and luckily managed to get some great shots.
‘It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It was a very big fish, probably around 15ft long and weighing more than 350lb.’
Mr Parham, who is based in Brixham, Devon, said the sighting was very rare.
‘ I have seen three thresher sharks leaping out of the water in the 25 years I have been at sea but the other two weren’t as big as this one,’ he said.
‘It was pretty much just having fun, leaping clear out of the water, it had no style of grace to it.’
Dr Brereton, who is also a research director for conservation charity Marinelife, said the shark was spotted in an area which has been proposed as a Marine Conservation Zone in a bid to protect rare white-beaked dolphins in the Channel.