A monstrous great white shark, measuring over 12 foot, has been spotted off the United States coast.
The enormous creature, known as Ironbound, is said to be one of the biggest of its kind in the world.
The specimen measures up at 12 foot 4 inches and weighs in at a reported 452kg (71 stone).
The shark is said to have travelled around 13,000 miles since being tagged in October 2019.
David Cheskin
The shark, named after West Ironbound Island in Lunenburg was tagged in October 2019 in waters around Nova Scotia, Canada.
Since being tagged, the shark is said to have travelled around 13,000 miles.
The tracker was fitted by marine research group OCEARCH, and it pings whenever the dorsal fin goes above water surface.
The great white shark has been edging closer to the US coast in recent days, with the tracker pinging off the coast of New Jersey at about 10.30pm on April 28.
OCEARCH chief scientist Bob Hueter says the shark is moving to "very rich feeding grounds".
Ironbound measures over 12 foot.
Dr Nicholas Ray/Nottingham Trent University
"They’re moving north to the very rich feeding grounds off of Canada and the northeastern US," he said.
"Mating season is over, we think, and Ironbound is on his way north to get into some good feeding ground and bulk up again for the next year.
Ironbound is said to be one of the biggest sharks in the world.
Dr Nicholas Ray/Nottingham Trent University
“Sharks have been around for about 400 million years. They in many cases occupy what’s called the apex predator position, in marine food webs.
“Just like on land, that is an important role in terms of keeping the lower parts of the food web healthy and balanced," he told CNN.
Great white shark populations have begun to improve on the east coast of the US, but shark populations overall have fallen sharply in recent years.
Overfishing has resulted in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCF) marking the animals as vulnerable.
The biggest ever shark reported is the Deep Blue, which weighed in at 2.5 tonnes.
