Heads Up, Cape Cod! Mary Lee The Great White Shark Is Headed Your Way
Mary Lee the great white shark is swimming just off the Outer Banks, heading north on a course that looks likely to take her to New Jersey waters once again, and perhaps even as far as Cape Cod.
One of the world’s most famous white sharks, Mary Lee gained international notoriety earlier this year when she swam northward along the East Coast, traveling as far as the shores of Long Island. Mary Lee found herself at the center of a social media frenzy before turning south once again, returning to the waters off Georgia where she has since remained.
@MaryLeeShark N bound off @OcracokeLife 4 @capecodtimes? @CostaSunglasses @CaterpillarInc @CBSThisMorning @jeffglor pic.twitter.com/QHpOerDipB
— Chris Fischer (@ChrisOCEARCH) August 25, 2015
Now, Mary Lee appears to be on the move again, heading northward along the coast, as the Savannah Morning News reports. On August 17 and 18, her fin broke the surface far offshore of the Carolinas, near the edge of the continental shelf. On August 25, Mary Lee was next detected closer to shore and just off the coast of the Outer Banks, east of the Cape Lookout National Seashore.
Watch the tracking of Mary Lee, the Great White #Shark http://t.co/7fhstwebYf pic.twitter.com/kJiuUT9Hg8
— John Beveridge (@JohnMBeveridge) August 21, 2015
Mary Lee is hardly the first great white shark to visit the Outer Banks. Earlier this year, another shark tracked by researchers, named Katharine, spent some time there as she traveled south from Cape Cod, even entering Pamlico Sound. Mary Lee has also previously passed by the area as she migrates along the coast, movements which may be tied to the behavior of other members of her species.
Researchers theorize that the area south of Long Island might be home to a nursery for juvenile great white sharks, leading several to assert during Mary Lee’s last trip to the region that she could be pregnant. Little is known about the reproductive habits of great white sharks, and their mating and pupping grounds remain a mystery to science.
Tune in to @FoxNews, the @oreillyfactor will talk about @MaryLeeShark! @CaterpillarInc @CostaSunglasses pic.twitter.com/d1s5c5gUga
— OCEARCH (@OCEARCH) August 20, 2015
Though Mary Lee’s final destination remains unknown, observers will hardly be surprised to see her travel as far as Cape Cod. At this time of year, a number of white sharks have migrated into the region, drawn by a large population of seals and warming waters. Both Mary Lee and Katharine were tagged by researchers in Cape Cod, as the Washington Post notes, and are somewhat reliable visitors to the area during the summer months.
As she continues to swim northward, the shark has a wide audience watching her every move. Unique among the great white sharks tracked by Ocearch, Mary Lee’s Twitter account boasts over 88,000 followers.
