In the Mondragó Natural Park
Shark frightens bathers in the bay on Mallorca
Blue sharks actually live in the open sea, off Mallorca one specimen got lost towards the coast on Friday
© Michael Weberberger / Picture Alliance
A blue shark has suddenly appeared on the coast in the Mondragó Natural Park on Mallorca. Videos quickly spread on social networks showing the animal swimming to the beach.
A blue shark briefly scared bathers in a bay in the Mondragó Nature Park on Mallorca on Friday. The predatory fish, which is around two meters long, was probably driven towards the beach by the strong current. Blue sharks are widespread, but they actually move at a depth of a hundred meters and in the open sea.
According to WWF sea fish expert Catherine Zucco, the fact that the animal came so close to the mainland was rather “unusual”. The expert considers an attack on bathers unlikely, but you should leave the water quickly if a blue shark approaches, she explains in an interview with “n-tv“. The lifeguards on the Spanish island also acted immediately and asked visitors to come out of the sea.
Mallorca visitors film shark
Many onlookers stopped right on the bank, watched the animal and filmed how the shark circled in the shallow water. The recordings spread rapidly on social networks. After a short time, the shark found access to the open sea again and left the bay like the “Augsburg General” reported.
Blue sharks can grow up to 3.40 meters long and are among the three most common types of offshore sharks. The predatory fish is considered potentially dangerous for humans. In the past there have been some attacks on boats or people. According to Catherine Zucco, however, these are a few cases because the shark is not usually found near the coast and is not particularly aggressive. Attacks on people usually occur when the predator mistakes the person for prey.
Sharks off Mallorca not uncommon
That’s why – as with encounters with other sharks – “keep calm as much as possible”. Because hectic movements could give the animal the impression that a prey animal is swimming in front of it and awaken the hunting instinct. However, the expert points out that humans pose a greater threat to sharks than sharks pose to humans.
Blue sharks are a very popular species of fish for deep sea anglers. The sea creatures are therefore even classified as potentially endangered. Predatory fish keep appearing off the coast of Mallorca. A great white shark, which was sighted a few kilometers south of the island of Cabrera in 2018, attracted a lot of attention.
Sources: “Augsburg General“, “n-tv“, “Editorial network Germany“