June 1, 2026 — A species of large-bodied shark that nearly disappeared from Atlantic waters has been seen feeding on seals off the coast of New England, according to marine biologists.
Typically it’s great whites that are expected near the Massachusetts coast in the summertime. However, several sightings of what were believed to be great whites attacking seals actually turned out to be the elusive dusky shark, John Chisholm, adjunct scientist at the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, told ABC News.
Dusky sharks were nearly hunted to extinction in the late 20th century when commercial fisheries in the Gulf and Atlantic ramped up, according to Demian Chapman, senior scientist and director for the Center for Shark Research at the Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium in Sarasota, Florida.
Meat and fins of many shark species are highly valued, and they are targeted and taken as bycatch in commercial and recreational fisheries, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History. The demand for fins came primarily from China, Chapman told ABC News.