Editor’s note: Two of the photos below may be upsetting to some.
A dead seal that washed ashore near The Barnacle restaurant over the weekend appears to have been attacked by a great white shark, according to shark expert John Chisholm, an adjunct scientist with the New England Aquarium.
Marblehead resident and avid swimmer Jane Bianchi snapped photos of the seal after a friend alerted her. She sent the close-up images to Chisholm, who also works with the White Shark Conservancy Sharktivity app. Chisholm said at least one of the wounds displayed the distinctive characteristics of a great white shark bite.
“In the first photo from before the carcass washed up, there’s a really defined arc with the telltale signs that it was bitten by a great white shark,” Chisholm said.
He noted that white sharks typically leave a more lateral bite pattern than other species.
“This carcass was also definitely scavenged and decomposing,” Chisholm said. He added that gulls and other scavengers often pick apart marine mammals after they die.
Exactly where the attack occurred remains impossible to determine.
“That is the big question,” Chisholm said. “I do a lot of shark CSI (crime scene investigation). We just don’t have the power to decide where this happened. I know there are seals in the vicinity. It could’ve been bitten offshore, returning to the rocks out there.”
Based on its condition, he estimated the seal had likely been dead for about a week.
The discovery follows other recent reports of shark predation on seals along the Massachusetts coast. Great white sharks commonly prey on gray seals, and researchers say the growing seal population has contributed to an increase in white shark activity in New England waters over the past two decades.
While the sight of shark-bitten seals is unsettling, Bianchi said she recognizes that both predators and prey play vital roles in the marine ecosystem.
“They are a part of our environment,” she said of the sharks. “They’re important to the health of our ocean. I am a conservationist. I believe in saving them.”
Still, that understanding does little to ease a lifelong fear of the animals.
“I literally am terrified of them,” Bianchi said, laughing. She traces that fear back to childhood, when her father took her to see “Jaws” at about age 5 after promising her mother he wouldn’t.
Today, Bianchi remains a devoted cswimmer. She is a member of Marblehead’s cold-plunge group, the Wolf Pack, but says she takes precautions.
“I swim in clear water. I won’t go in if it’s murky,” she said. “If I see seals, I don’t swim with seals.”
Last summer, Bianchi wore Sharkbanz, a shark-deterrent bracelet, while swimming.
Recent seal sightings
Bianchi spotted a seal off Crocker Park the same day the carcass was discovered, a reminder that seals do frequent Marblehead Harbor. Current contributor and nature photographer Rick Cuzner photographed many seals sunning themselves on the Great Pig Rocks off Marblehead last month.
Although sightings of shark fins often generate concern, Chisholm said many reports prove to be false alarms.
“We’ve had a couple of reports,” of sharks off the North Shore, he said. “The majority of reports turned out to be ocean sunfish. We always tell people, if you see a fin, always err on the side of caution. Notify the people on the beach. Notify the harbormaster. Get photos and let us investigate.”
He added: “White sharks don’t spend that much time on the surface. They are stealthy, but they are here. If you see seals, that’s one sign you should be very cautious. The sharks are here now whether you see them or not. Whether you’re going in the water in Marblehead, Plum Island or Nahant, there are white sharks around. Check the Sharktivity app.”
He also cautioned swimmers not to assume shallow water is safe.
“They can get closer than you think,” Chisholm said. “Mid-thigh-deep water.”
