Wounded Great White Shark Filmed Swimming Close to South Australia's Neptune Islands

An injured great white shark covered in scars was captured in an astonishing video. The wounded great white shark was seen swimming near South Australia's Neptune Islands which is a region that harbors an estimated 1000 great white sharks.

Incredible Footage of the Most Scarred Great White Shark

The wounded shark, which has scars all over its body, is seen swimming among other little fish in the video. Despite his injuries, the 3.3m male shark was very "friendly," according to underwater cameraman Dean Spraakman, who filmed the spectacular video during an excursion in January.

He said that the researchers couldn't be positive about what might have caused the wounds since no one had ever seen a shark in such bad shape.

Mr Spraakman said they originally suspected the wounds were caused by boat propellers or that the shark had been trapped in nearby tuna cages, but both possibilities were immediately discarded.

"You can only speculate what happened there and to be honest no one ... ever really knows what causes that sort of damage to a shark, but the poor guy had a bit of a hard time I think. I noticed he had scars on him but I didn't realize to what length until I reviewed the footage later. He was very calm and coming close and quite curious which was great.

He was really friendly, just very calm, and wasn't aggravated from everything he's been through. He came very close, within an arm's reach from me - sometimes when you get a good shark like that, they just want to come and look you in the eye, just have a really good look at who you are," Mr Spraakman said.

Also Read: Caught on Cam: Great White Shark Tearing Remains of Humpback Whale Into Shreds

What Might Have Caused the Shark's Injuries?

Professor Yannis Papastamatiou of National Geographic speculated that some of the markings may have been gotten during a struggle with another shark.

The females of great white sharks are often afraid of mating behavior, but their males can be bitten during dominance interactions between them, he explained. Some of the scarrings around the face might be caused by their prey, such as seals, says the author.

The Neptune Islands are well-known for being a popular tourist region for great white sharks. Great white sharks may grow to be more than 6 meters long, like Deep Blue, the world's largest great white shark, weighing 2.5 tons.

In Guadalupe, Mexico, the enormous female was last seen swimming dangerously near to a couple of courageous divers.

Great White Sharks 

The great white sharks are known to be popular in regions like the shores of Australia, California, and South Africa on some occasions, great white sharks have also been seen in the Mediterranean on occasion.

At least 1,000 great white sharks are known to live in the Neptune Islands.

According to WWF, the great white shark is the world's biggest known predatory fish. Despite possessing 300 teeth, it does not chew its food. They shred their victim apart and consume it completely. It eats a wide variety of food, ranging from tiny fish like halibut to huge seals and dolphins. 

Great white sharks are considered a vulnerable species because of the great reduction in their numbers as a result of years of being hunted by man for fins and teeth, as well as as a trophy for sport fishing.

Related Article: Scientist Encountered 23-Foot Long 'Friendly' Great White Shark Off Guadalupe's Coast

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