Largest male white shark Contender’s latest ping offers fresh insight into shark behavior
Since his tag on Wednesday, Contender has moved back closer to the Georgia coast, still in deeper waters, but just on the edge of the Gulf Stream.
Watch: Atlantic Ocean's largest recorded male great white shark gets tagged for tracking
Video from OCEARCH shows Contender, a massive adult great white shark being tagged off the Florida/Georgia coast in January 2025. Contender is the largest recorded great white shark in the Atlantic.
The latest location pings from Contender, the largest adult male white shark tagged in the Atlantic, are helping scientists to understand possible reasons for shark migration patterns.
OCEARCH tagged Contender in January 2025 off the Florida/Georgia coast.
Since then, his location has been marked by satellite pings as he moves and migrates during the year.
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On Wednesday, April 1, Contender was pinged past the Gulf Stream deep off the coast of Georgia.
Contender's latest pings
(OCEARCH / FOX Weather)
OCEARCH scientists said his recent movements from near the coast of Florida to rapidly moving out into deeper waters could be a sign of breeding.
"This sudden movement could be to forage in deeper waters, but we cannot rule out the possibility that it’s related to reproduction at this time of year," said OCEARCH Senior Data Scientist John Tyminski.
OCEARCH said these trends are common among mature male white sharks like Contender and Breton.
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Contender, the 14-foot, 1600 pound great white shark on the day he was tagged by OCEARCH in January 2025.
(OCEARCH / FOX Weather)
Since his tag on Wednesday, Contender has moved back closer to the Georgia coast, still in deeper waters, but just on the edge of the Gulf Stream.
Clocking in at nearly 14 feet long and roughly 1,650 pounds at the time of his tagging, Contender is OCEARCH's largest male white shark ever tagged in the Atlantic.
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His movements have taken him all around the East Coast of the U.S., and up into Canada.
Contender the great white shark being tagged in the Atlantic Ocean.
(OCEARCH / FOX Weather)
OCEARCH is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to researching and protecting sharks, whales, sea turtles and other ocean life, tagging these animals to track and study their migration habits and behaviors from afar.
To keep up with Contender and his movements, as well as monitor hundreds of other sharks and ocean animals, check out OCEARCH's free global shark tracker app.