Shark attack footage from shore stirring, but don’t be misled

Florida travel company shares footage of tiger shark predation effort as warning to Keys visitors. But shark was never near Florida.

Florida Keys Travel, for the second time recently, has shared footage showing a tiger shark chasing a turtle practically onto the sand. The latest Instagram post cautioned:

“Think again before you go knee-deep in the Florida Keys — you never know what might be lurking beneath the surface!”

In the footage, posted below, the shark nearly strands on the beach before retreating safely back into deeper water.

“Welcome to the keys,” one follower remarked.

While Floridians expressed gratitude for the warning, the post is misleading.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DFLFhQKuRrn/

The footage was actually captured last January in Western Australia. I interviewed the photographer, Ruth Gaw, after seeing her Facebook post.

Gaw told me that the turtle escaped and that a large stingray also “got chased in, but I had stopped recording when it happened.”

She was observing from the beach at Monkey Mia, which is famous for its white sand and abundant marine life. Gaw spotted the shark approaching as her husband Derek and son Arran were fishing for mackerel.

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Tiger shark chases turtle to beach in wild scene caught on video

A beachgoer in Western Australia this week captured extraordinary footage showing an 8-foot tiger shark nearly beaching itself while trying to catch a turtle.

A beachgoer in Western Australia this week captured extraordinary footage showing an 8-foot tiger shark nearly beaching itself while trying to catch a turtle.

The footage posted below, courtesy of Ruth Gaw, shows the shark swimming rapidly toward shore and the turtle scooting onto the sand in the nick of time.

“The turtle got away, and the shark didn’t stay much longer,” Gaw told FTW Outdoors. “A large stingray [also] got chased in, but I had stopped recording when it happened.”

The shark nearly stranded before thrashing back into the water.

The pursuit occurred at Monkey Mia, a tourist destination famous for white-sand beaches and abundant marine life.

Gaw spotted the shark approaching as her husband Derek and son Arran were fishing for mackerel.

Tiger shark trying to get off the beach. Photo: Ruth Gaw

Her footage shows the shark swimming beneath fishing line, and line draped over the shark’s back as it reached the shore.

Not long before the shark encounter, the family had been swimming in waist-deep water.

Tiger sharks can measure nearly 15 feet and often prey on turtles. The apex predators are considered dangerous and have been implicated in several attacks on humans.