Sometimes sharks are closer than you think. Photo: Carlos Gauna // YouTube
Though a near-urban swimming spot feels far removed from the dangers of the open ocean, sharks are never far. Recently captured drone footage makes that fact terrifyingly clear, with images of a massive great white shark hanging out near the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles, California.
The video comes courtesy of Carlos Gauna, known as The Malibu Artist on YouTube. Gauna has captured many, many riveting clips of sharks along the California coast, but this one stands out for just how close it is to a city, and how big the shark actually is. “The Santa Monica Bay is known as a nursery for juveniles, but this was no juvenile,” he explains. “This was the real deal, just a mile from the Santa Monica Pier.”
He estimates the animal to be in the 15-foot range, and clocked the fish as an adult based on its size, shape and the presence of battle scars on its body.
“So why is this shark here?” he asks. “It’s the natural question to ask, but after years of observing them, I’ve realized sharks don’t always follow rules. The ocean is their home and, just like we do in ours, they roam.”
Even still, encounters with white sharks are rare in the area, making the sighting more of an interesting oddity than a cause for concern. No matter how close we are to the comforts of civilization, there’s still a piece of the wild right on our doorstep.
