Went for my 7.00am cruise the other morning at Port Melbourne and had to give way to a 6 ft shark 40 metres off shore!?! Chatted to the water police that night and they told me 2 6ft Mako's have taken up a bit of a residency, just wondering if anyone else has had an encounter with them?
The other day I had a lady yelling out to me from the shore that she had seen a shark.. I smiled and thought..Yeah.. Right.
The next day I was catching little waves that were coming under St Kilda pier and someone yelled.. Look out.. Shark!.. I smiled again and thought Yeah.. Right.
I've paddled /windsurfed this area for the past 30 yrs and never seen one or even heard of one being seen here.
I look across and see it as clear as day.. It cruised right past me and it was just below the surface of the water.
I was thinking about poking it with my paddle to see what happens but decided to pass on that idea.. The water was already rough enough.
I saw it swim off towards the swimmers at the main beach and I could not help but smile and think about the upcoming screams.
They closed the beach that day so someone must have told them.
Shortfin mako sharks live in tropical and temperate offshore waters. They are a pelagic species that occur from the surface down to depths of 150 meters (490 feet). This shark is seldom found in waters colder than 16 degrees Celsius.
The shortfin mako can grow to lengths of 3.9 meters (13 feet). There is still some uncertainty about its life-span, but it is suspected to reach ages of between 11-23 years.
As one of the fastest sharks in the ocean, this powerful shark can attain burst swimming speeds of up to 35 km/h (22 mph) and can leap clear of the water to heights of up to 6 meters (20 feet). These qualities have made this species a sought after sport fish in some parts of its range.
I have seen and caught Threshers and even a Hammer Head back in the 80's in the bay, but me thinks its more likely to be a bronzy.
We had a Blue shark swimming around in our creek one day. It went out with the tide later in the day. I think we should expect the unexpected when it comes to the ocean. Thats part of what keeps us facinated. Jason from Jervis Bay.
Was out there at the crack of dawn again this morning and even paddled over to catch a couple of waves where DJ saw it but no luck. I think it's the 'Port Phillipness monster'.
Mako's have also been known to beach themselves cashing prey and will jump (breach) to attack....seems the only safe place is at home.....stay off the beaches people its for your own saftey.....hahahahahaha
