great white leaps out of water

[slugo]

How's this; a mate of mine is a pro fisho and he works on stocton beach almost every day in all the years working on the beach he has seen everything in the water whales dolphins and you name it. just two days ago he just happen to be looking at a school of salmon and all of a sudden a great white leaped out it was about 6-7 foot long and in close inside the breakers in about 10ft of water. yeeeh I know some will say just another fishing story but I know this bloke and I do believe this had happen.. as I thought great whites in africa were the only ones to leap out the water. :o

just glad it's winter as I dive and surf in the area

LEN

[finga64]

Just don't swim/look like a salmon ;)
Nature never stops amasing me :)
Pity he didn't have a camera. The pictures would be worth heaps.
Your mate is a lucky fella to see that.

[NeilD]

I watched a doco recently about whites and their habit of breaching and at times jumping clear of the water. They mainly use it to catch seals on the surface. It is a common habit in South Africa and off california where tourist boats tow seal cutouts to get them to jump. Not common in Aust because our water is not as deep next to the seal colonies.
Happy Surfing :o

Neil

[Mick]

They have been caught on footage in Australia breaching. I think I saw the same doco horse. If it was, it was the first time a great white was documented doing it in Oz and it was a better leap then any caught on film in Northern Cal and South Africa.

[mini696]

Its not that the Australian ones dont jump, its got to do with the size of their food. Up north the seals are small and swim on the surface, the sharks attack them (and play with them) from underneath.

Down in SA where their main food source is a LOT larger and swims deeper the sharks dont need to launch out of the water to catch their prey.

A documentary crew towed a seal replica behind their boat in America (maybe Africa) and got the sharks to leap. Since this phenonomen (sic) hadn't been observed by the Australian Great whites, they tried the exact same procedure down in South Australia. What did they discover?? The great whites in Australia would attack the seal in the SAME WAY as up north. Conclusion; The leaping is down to the TYPE OF FOOD they are chasing.

Mick

[seafox]

I have hooked bronze whaler sharks that have launched themselves out of the water and barrel rolled towards the fishing line to snap it this has been a common occurrence at Jenny Lind Gladstone

Cheers
Jeff

[flickflack]

When I was a pro fisherman in South Africa we use to see them do that quite a bit, even saw one take a seal of the tip of an island and then wiggle his pecks to get back into the water.Amazing stuff.Thats why I dont surf mate!