ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A 10-foot-long great white shark was spotted just yards from Shell Key on Friday morning by those on a shelling excursion, Hubbard’s Marina said in a news release.
The Hubbard’s charter boat crew caught drone footage of the predator as it cruised just offshore. (Watch a video of the shark sighting below.)
The encounter happened during a three-hour shelling trip to the uninhabited barrier island.
Around 11:15 a.m., while 49 guests were searching the island’s shoreline for treasures, the shark was spotted in the shallow water, between 25 and 75 yards from the beach, Hubbard’s said.
The shark, estimated to be about 10 feet long, stayed in the area for about 15 minutes and seemed to be following large schools of tarpon.
“Seeing a shark of this size and grace so close to the island is a ‘stop-everything’ moment for our guests,” Capt. Dylan Hubbard, owner of Hubbard’s Marina, said. “We see incredible wildlife every day — from pods of dolphins to sea turtles — but to see an apex predator following the tarpon run is a powerful reminder of how healthy and diverse our local ecosystem is right now.”
Watch a video of the shark sighting below: