Overview

• Two teenage paddleboarders encountered an eight-inch dorsal fin off Stony Beach on July 4 and returned safely to shore without injuries.
• They reported the sighting through the Sharktivity app, enabling rapid expert review and identification.
• John Chisholm of the New England Aquarium verified the shark as a great white, marking the first confirmed local appearance in more than two decades.
• Experts note that fewer seals and warmer Buzzards Bay temperatures explain why great whites rarely venture into Woods Hole.
• Massachusetts marine authorities are now intensifying real-time monitoring of Buzzards Bay to track any future shark movements.