Check Out This Rare Footage Of A Great White Shark Breach In Mexico

https://youtu.be/E_6RpK7W2vU

A photographer taking video and images in the Guadalupe Islands of Mexico has captured some wonderful footage of a great white shark leaping clear out of the ocean next to a submerged cage full of divers. Gerardo Del Villar shot the video and uploaded it to the internet. What is unusual is that in Mexico, great white sharks rarely breach for reasons which are poorly understood unlike off the coast of South Africa where they hunt in shallower waters.

Trying to establish dominance

Mr. Dell Villar thinks that sharks breaching in Guadalupe could be trying to establish their dominance or they could be trying to remove parasites. Martin Graf a shark diver disagrees, saying that it is the smaller sharks that breach and the larger sharks are actually the dominant predators.

“There’s no rhyme or reason to it. Usually they breach without any chum or hang-baits in the water. Early morning and dusk seem to be their preferred times, but it can happen anytime.” Mr. Graf said

President of the Marine Science Conservation Institute Michael Domeier has spent decades studying the great white sharks of Guadalupe Islands says he has only ever seen four breaches.

 “It’s very rare. I think the lack of breaching behavior has more to do with the topography of the ocean floor at Guadalupe than it does individual hunting behavior. The bottom drops off very steeply at Guadalupe, while in South Africa the water is very shallow for miles. So the seals at Guadalupe can dive deep as they swim away from the island, using the rocks, etc, for cover as they move away. Seals in South Africa can’t go deep and they get nailed by the sharks at the surface.” Mr. Domeier said.