Largest great white shark ever recorded spotted near famous vacation hotspot
OCEARCH scientists estimate Contender to be about 32 years old.
Watch: Atlantic Ocean's largest recorded 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.
CAPE HATTERAS, N.C. – The biggest adult, male great white shark to ever be recorded in the Atlantic Ocean was recently pinged off the coast of the Outer Banks in North Carolina.
Contender is nearly 14 feet long, and is estimated to weigh 1,653 pounds, according to OCEARCH. This makes him OCEARCH's largest recorded great white shark in the Atlantic Ocean.
OCEARCH is a global nonprofit that researches sharks, whales, sea turtles and other ocean life to help scientists collect data in the ocean.
The massive great white was tagged off the Florida/Georgia coast by OCEARCH in January.
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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)
Since then, he's been tracked by OCEARCH, with pings determining his location.
For a ping to register, Contender's dorsal fin must break water and an Argos satellite must be nearby to record the shark's location.
Contender's track shows him swimming up and down the eastern coast of the U.S. over the last six months.
Screengrab from OCEARCH's shark tracker show Contender's path in the Atlantic Ocean.
(OCEARCH / FOX Weather)
In March, Contender was recorded swimming from Florida's eastern coast northward.
A month later, he was pinged again, this time near North and South Carolina's border.
From there, Contender continued moving north.
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Contender the great white shark being tagged in the Atlantic Ocean.
(OCEARCH / FOX Weather)
Last Saturday, Contender was pinged roughly 22 miles off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.
The nonprofit said Contender and other great whites will migrate in the spring and early summer, seeking cooler waters and more prey-dense water.
OCEARCH scientists estimate Contender to be about 32 years old.
Contender and other sharks can be tracked in real-time using the free OCEARCH Global Shark Tracker app.