A 1.5-meter-long juvenile white shark was filmed by a drone off the coast of California, covered in a strange milky white substance.
(Video: Carlos Gauna)
Filmmaker Carlos Gauna and researcher Phillip Sternes, a doctoral candidate at the University of California, Riverside, tracked sharks using a drone on July 9, 2023, off the coast of Santa Barbara. After filming several larger white sharks, they were surprised to see an unusually shaped shark emerging from the mud. The creature was only 1.5 meters long, with rounded, plump fins, leading the duo to immediately recognize they were observing an extremely young shark. In contrast, adult white sharks can grow up to 6.4 meters in length. When the drone zoomed in, it captured a milky white substance falling from the shark’s tail as it swam.
While no one can definitively identify the white liquid, Sternes speculated it could be a type of “milk” used to nurture the shark in the womb. Another possibility is that the shark has an as-yet-unknown skin disease.
A newly born white shark swimming off the coast of California.
“Both scenarios are significant,” Sternes, the author of a study published on January 29 in the journal Environmental Biology of Fishes, stated. “This is extremely rare. The birthing location of white sharks remains a significant mystery for the scientific community. We believe we may have a clue now. If this is a nursery site, conservation aspects need to be considered.”
However, Skomal emphasized that no major conclusions should be drawn based solely on the footage. The images appear to indicate the shark is newly born. The offshore area of California is also thought to be a shark nursery, as one-year-old sharks have been recorded there. The coloration, shape, size, and milky white substance all suggest the shark is incredibly young.
Great white sharks are classified as vulnerable to endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The population of great white sharks worldwide is declining. Understanding more about where they begin their lives will be essential information for scientists seeking to protect the future of this species.
