A group of fishermen off the coast of Karpathos, a remote island in the southeastern Aegean Sea, were stunned this week when they came face to face with what appears to be a great white shark—one of the ocean’s most formidable predators.
The encounter took place on Wednesday, when the men were out at sea aboard a small fishing boat. In a video uploaded to TikTok, the large shark can be seen circling their vessel as it devours a hooked tuna just a few meters away. “What is that? Wow, that’s a five-meter shark!” one of the fishermen exclaims in Greek.
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Marine experts have not yet confirmed the species, but the footage strongly resembles the distinctive profile of the great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias). Though sightings are extremely rare, a small population of great whites is known to inhabit the Mediterranean. There have never been recorded attacks on humans in the region.
Mediterranean white sharks are elusive and poorly understood, feeding mainly on tuna, swordfish, rays, and even smaller shark species such as the blue shark (Prionace glauca). Adult great whites can reach lengths of up to six meters and weigh as much as two tons, making them the largest predatory fish in the world.
While these sharks have long captured the human imagination, they are also among the sea’s most endangered creatures. Historical accounts trace their presence in the Mediterranean back thousands of years—ancient Greek mariners even depicted shark attacks on pottery dating to the 8th century BC.
Today, marine biologists say their dwindling numbers are cause for concern, as apex predators play a vital role in maintaining healthy ocean ecosystems. Encounters like the one off Karpathos offer a rare—and humbling—glimpse of a species that has survived in these waters since antiquity.
