The largest male great white shark ever documented in the Atlantic has resurfaced in Canadian waters after months of tracking activity along the US East Coast.
Known as Contender, the enormous great white measures 13 feet, nine inches long and tips the scales at nearly 1,700 pounds.
OCEARCH, the nonprofit organization dedicated to shark research and ocean conservation, detected a ping from Contender’s satellite tracker on Wednesday at 12.03pm ET in the waters between Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador, close to the entrance of the Strait of Belle Isle.
The shark had first surfaced near the eastern end of Anticosti Island on August 15, then continued northeast through the Gulf of St Lawrence before pinging again four days later near Quebec’s isolated Lower North Shore.
Those signals followed a months-long silence after Contender’s tracker last transmitted in late April while he was swimming off North Carolina.
He briefly reappeared on July 10, although that short-lived ping was not enough to pinpoint his exact location.
The newest tracking data now shows the massive predator pushed far north into the colder waters of eastern Canada after traveling thousands of miles along the American coastline.
OCEARCH noted that lapses in tracking should not be mistaken for the shark vanishing, since Contender’s satellite tag can send a signal only when his dorsal fin rises above the surface of the ocean.
OCEARCH tagged ‘Contender’ in January 2025, a white shark close to 14 feet in length and weighs over 1,600 pounds
Wednesday’s sighting was called a ‘Z-ping,’ meaning Contender spent only a few moments at the surface before diving back into the Atlantic.
That signal burst did not give Argos, the orbiting satellite system tracking tagged sharks, enough time to lock on to Contender and determine an exact location near the US.
Argos satellites can only pick up the pings from sharks when their entire fin comes out of the water and the signal is transmitted to space. With a longer signal, the satellites are able to show shark fans where each tagged creature is in real time.
So, for the time being, scientists only know that Contender is still alive and active somewhere near US beaches and possibly near a surprising new hunting ground for great whites in the North Atlantic.
A 2023 study found that the waters near Massachusetts may be fully revitalized and filled with great white sharks after years of inactivity.
The research, published in Marine Ecology Progress Series, estimated that 800 individual great white sharks visited the waters off Cape Cod between 2015 and 2018 alone.
Exactly one year ago, Contender was spotted in this area near the Massachusetts coast, where one of their main sources of food gathers – seals.
After that, the great white was seen traveling into Canadian waters last September, where it approached the Gulf of St Lawrence in Quebec – over 1,200 miles from its last known position near North Carolina this spring.
A ping from Contender’s tracker was recorded on Wednesday at 12.03pm ET, in the waters between Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador, near the entrance to the Strait of Belle Isle.
Contender’s arrival in Canadian waters was consistent with the species’ normal migration.
Great whites typically travel north during summer to follow suitable water temperatures and prey, with Atlantic Canada serving as an important feeding ground through the fall.
A cluster of great white sharks has recently been spotted off a popular Maine beach, with witnesses reporting as many as nine predators swimming and feeding near shore.
The first confirmed sightings occurred August 4 near Pine Point Beach in Scarborough, just south of Portland.
Police said two juvenile great whites, estimated at six to eight feet long, were seen near Prouts Neck, the Scarborough River’s mouth and waters off the beach.
Officials later reported up to seven additional sharks near Pine Point Jetty. Photographer Karl Ramsdell, who captured the activity, said: ‘They were everywhere.’
Great whites naturally inhabit the Gulf of Maine, with sightings typically occurring from May through December and peaking between July and September.
However, seeing five to seven sharks concentrated in one small area over two days is considered uncommon.
Experts believe favorable summer temperatures and plentiful prey, including baitfish and harbor seals, attracted them.
No aggressive behavior toward swimmers, surfers or boaters was reported.
Officials urged visitors to remain close to shore, avoid swimming alone or near seals and baitfish, follow lifeguards’ instructions and immediately leave the water if a shark appears.
Maine has recorded two confirmed unprovoked shark attacks since 1837, including a fatal great white attack near Bailey Island in 2020.
