Great white sharks have been sticking around Ipswich’s Crane Beach, causing it to be closed for swimming through Monday. A Massachusetts shark expert is a bit baffled by their presence off the North Shore.
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A popular beach on the North Shore of Massachusetts remained closed Wednesday — and will for several more days — after multiple great white shark sightings on Tuesday.
Swimmers were ordered out of the water Tuesday morning when a great white shark sighting was confirmed off the east end of Crane Beach. Ipswich police said sharks were seen in approximately 5-7 feet of water.
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The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy's Sharktivity app showed five separate shark sightings off Crane Beach on Tuesday. At least one photo showed two sharks swimming side by side.
Ipswich police shared video of the sharks on their Facebook page:
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The Trustees of Reservations, which oversees the beach, said in a post on X on Tuesday night that "Out of an abundance of caution," the beach will remain closed to swimming at least through Wednesday.
"We continue to collaborate with local Public Safety Officials to determine a safe reopening time, to be announced ASAP," the trustees added. "The beach remains open for all other recreation."
The group later said the beach would be closed to swimming through Monday, though other forms of recreation at Crane Beach, like hiking or sitting on the sand, were still an option.
"Today's patrol by the harbormaster indicated there were still sharks present in the immediate area of the beach. We will continue to work closely with local law enforcement and the harbormaster to determine the safest and most responsible plan to reopen the beach for swimming," Chris Moore, property director for Crane Beach and Castle Hill, said in a statement.
Shark season in Massachusetts typically runs until September of October before they begin making their way south for warmer waters. There have been over a dozen sightings in the past week alone. But sightings off the North Shore are relatively rare, and these ones had leading Massachusetts shark expert Greg Skomal scratching his head.
"Certainly, you know, we expect to see white sharks around Massachusetts. I just don't expect to see numbers like we're seeing on the North Shore right now, so that's something we're really curious about," he said.
Skomal said the sharks are likely juveniles who aren't going after seals — smaller ones usually eat fish: "They're not likely to come close and make the mistake of biting a swimmer."
Eric Nelson, a captain with Essex River Fishing Charters, said he's been seeing the sharks in six feet of water about 1,500 yards from shore, sometimes even swimming alongside his boat.
"They're amazing creatures, just swimming along so peacefully along the beach."
