Video: Paddleboarder films close encounter with great white shark
A very brave paddleboarder in California managed to capture footage of a large great white shark swimming right beneath him.
Nathan Anderson got around three minutes of footage with his GoPro camera just 50 yards from shore at Manhattan Beach in Santa Monica Bay, California. And, he said, it wasn't the only shark they saw.
Nathan uploaded the video to YouTube and wrote: "Within 30 minutes we shot at least three different Great Whites all within 100 yards of each other. Only 50 yards from shore! Pretty nuts."
In a caption written over the video, Nathan adds: "Sorry if the angles are a bit off. I was busy pooping my pants."
Sarah Sikich, science and policy director at nonprofit advocacy group Heal the Bay, told KTLA: "It definitely looks like a white to me. I think it's exciting."
The Southern California coast is a hot spot for great white sharks.
Dr. Chris Lowe, a marine biologist at California State University at Long Beach, told ABC Local: "There appears to be a stretch along Santa Monica and Malibu that sharks like. What it is about that spot? We don't know."
He said the fact sea lion numbers in the area have increased dramatically since the 90s could be a factor, calling them a "dinner bell" for great whites.
It is thought many sharks also head to the area to give birth. He added: "We have the nursery ground for the white shark, here on our beaches, so that's very special, something we have to protect and take care of."
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