Huge severed shark head goes viral as people speculate about what ate it

A giant shark's head pulled from the water by a fisherman has captured the imagination of Facebook users – because it appears to have been chomped clean off by something even bigger.

Jason Moyce, also known as Trapman Bermagui, posted an image of the severed head of a mako shark which he and his employee caught off the coast of New South Wales in Australia.

He wrote: "So this was all we got back of this monster mako. Unfortunately we didn't see what ate it but must of been impressive!!"

Mako sharks, which can grow to be around 12 feet long, are known for their speed as well as their propensity for jumping out of the water.

According to Mr Moyce, the head weighed around 100kg on its own.

The image of shark head quickly went viral, with Facebook users speculating over what could have done the damage.

Some suggested orcas may have been responsible, but others felt tiger sharks or great whites were more likely.

One Facebook user, Greg Doble, wrote: "Great White more than one as well, you can see the smaller or conveyor teeth outside major bite marks, not Orcas they tend to eat just the liver of large sharks and let the rest drop to the ocean floor."

Great white sharks, which have something of a solitary reputation, are known sometimes to hunt in pairs or even groups and share their prey.

Mr Moyce also said he found a marlin bill embedded in the head, which he said had likely been there for years with the shark having healed and grown around it.