The largest great white shark ever recorded in the Atlantic has reappeared just off the coast of Canada, where it is feasting on seals in preparation for winter. Contender, a 14ft behemoth, was tagged in the North Atlantic by OCEARCH, a non-profit organisation that conducts research on large marine animals, 45 miles off the Florida-Georgia coast, near Jacksonville.
His tracker only emits a location signal when the shark’s dorsal fin briefly breaks the water’s surface. Last week it ‘pinged’ from the far northern reaches of the Gulf of St Lawrence, right off the Labrador Peninsula in Canada, making him “one of the furthest northern pinging sharks that we’ve had”, according to researchers.
The 1,653lbs beast, estimated to be around 30 years old, is in the area gorging on seals throughout summer and autumn, to build up fat reserves for his return journey to Florida in winter. Scientists at OCEARCH hope that tracking Contender will reveal the world’s first known great white shark mating site.
Chris Fischer, 56, founder and expedition leader of OCEARCH, said: “Only a couple have made it that far north. An animal like that, spending the summer and fall up north – what are they doing? Well, a lot of what they’re doing is preparing for the winter.”
Fischer explained that Contender is “putting a lot of pressure on the seals, eating seals constantly, swimming in front of seal colonies, trying to put on some weight before he proceeds back down to Florida for the oncoming winter”. He also noted an unexpected environmental advantage to this behaviour.
“The byproduct of putting that pressure on the seals is really good, they’re guarding our fish stocks,” Fischer said. “We know that if the white sharks are in front of the seals putting pressure on them, they eat one-fourth as much per day.
He added: “If that white shark’s not there, those seals go out and they wipe out all the fish.” Contender’s presence in such cold northern waters demonstrates the remarkable adaptability of great whites, he said.
“White sharks have the capacity to warm themselves and be in cold water, but they have to have a lot of food,” Fischer said. “Like horses in winter – as long as they have food, they’re fine. If they run out of food, they freeze very quickly.”
Contender was tagged off the Florida-Georgia coast in January. After disappearing from the radar for nearly a month, he pinged off Pamlico Sound in North Carolina twice in one day.
Then he didn’t ping during a massive journey up north, until he surfaced off Natashquan, Canada, on September 29. There was a z-ping – when the shark spends only a brief period of time at the surface, but not enough to determine an accurate location – on October 2. Tagged off the Florida-Georgia coast in January, Contender represents hope for a recovering population that was decimated decades ago.
“We wiped out the sharks so badly in the 70s, 80 and 60s – we got down to nine percent of our population,” Fischer said. What makes Contender particularly valuable to researchers is his potential to unlock one of marine biology’s greatest mysteries.”
“These big mature males are hugely important because they can help us understand where and when mating is occurring,” Fischer said.
Unlike females, which have complex two-year migratory cycles, “the male white sharks basically have their whole year revolve around mating,” he added. The tracking data from Contender’s satellite tag, which will function for five years, could lead to an unprecedented scientific breakthrough.
“There’s never been a white shark mating site identified anywhere in the world in any one of the nine populations,” Fischer said. “It would be a first.”
What makes Contender particularly valuable to researchers is his potential to unlock one of marine biology’s greatest mysteries. Fischer’s team is particularly focused on Contender’s movements in the coming months. The shark’s location next spring could provide crucial evidence for identifying mating grounds, with early data suggesting activity off the southeastern United States.
Despite his impressive size, Contender still has room to grow – potentially reaching over 20 feet in total. Fischer is particularly intrigued to see what Contender will look like “30 or 40 years from now,” noting the colossal creature is around 30 to 35 years old and can live to be over 70.
It’ll be really interesting to watch Contender this year,” Fischer said. “I want to know where Contender will be in March of 2026, in April of 2026. I think that could be a massive clue for identifying where they mate.”