In the aftermath of a rare shark sighting that temporarily closed South Beach in Edgartown on Tuesday, researchers are looking for answers as to what is drawing sharks to the Cape and Islands in large numbers in recent years.
Crocker Snow Jr. remembers vividly the first time he set foot on Muskeget island. The 250-acre stretch of sand and scrub brush forms the westernmost tip of Nantucket.
The sandy shoals of Muskeget Island are familiar to boaters and fishermen who ply the waters between Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, but the island’s rich ecological history may be less well known.
On Monday the stars aligned for a juvenile gray seal with a considerable amount of commercial fishing net wrapped around its neck and three natural resources officers called to its rescue.
On the surface it seems like a simple and straightforward equation: more seals equals more great white sharks. The connection, however, is likely far more complicated.
The July 30 shark attack at Ballston Beach in Truro has focused national attention on the seasonal occurrence of white sharks in waters close to Cape Cod and Island beaches. White sharks are no strangers to residents here; I certainly won’t forget kayaking with friends to see a female white shark trapped in a coastal pond on Naushon island in September 2004. There seems little doubt that we have witnessed more white sharks in areas frequented by swimmers along the eastern shore of the Cape over the past few years.
