Data confirms Great White Sharks migrating North
Scarborough (Canada), Aug 24: New data shows that great white sharks are spending increasing time in the colder waters off New England and Canada’s Atlantic coast, particularly Maine and Nova Scotia. While the species has long been associated with warmer climates, the rise in northern sightings has been linked to growing seal populations, which are a primary food source for the sharks.
In Maine, the Department of Marine Resources has identified 93 unique great white sharks in the Gulf of Maine between 2020 and 2024. In 2024 alone, 19 different white sharks were recorded on 47 different dates. Once rarely seen in Maine, white sharks are now being monitored closely to better understand their distribution and behavior.
Despite the rise in sightings, experts emphasize that the risk to humans remains extremely low. Only two unprovoked shark attacks have been confirmed in Maine waters since 1837. The state’s first and only fatal attack occurred in 2020 when a great white shark killed a woman swimming off Bailey Island.
Further north, in Canada, detections of white sharks have also sharply increased. Research published in Marine Ecology Progress Series reports a 2.5-fold increase in white shark presence off Halifax, Nova Scotia, from 2018 to 2022. In the Cabot Strait—between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland—shark detections rose nearly fourfold during the same period.
Maine waters are home to eight shark species, including the basking shark, porbeagle, blue shark, sand tiger, thresher, shortfin mako, and spiny dogfish. Most of these pose minimal to no threat to humans.
Globally, the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File has documented 949 unprovoked shark attacks since 1580. Of these, 351 have been linked to great white sharks, with 59 resulting in fatalities. Still, scientists stress that fatal shark attacks remain exceedingly rare.
As sharks venture farther north, scientists and coastal communities are adjusting—balancing public safety with marine conservation. (AP)