GNAWS
THE jaw-dropping moment a great white shark tears into the carcass of a whale has been caught on camera.
The 16ft creature can be seen chomping down on the giant mammal, taking huge chunks out of the rotting carcass in a veritable feast that lasted seventeen hours.
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Conservationist Keith Poe had travelled out to the whale's bloated carcass, about 14 miles off Dana Point in California, to find out if it would attract a predator - and couldn't believe his eyes.
He told The Sun Online: "The white shark showed up Friday night at 7 pm and she stayed there eating about every 15 to 30 minutes she would come back to eat more until Saturday at noon.
"(It's) always fascinating to see these magnificent giant predators at their finest in the circle of life and nature."
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He said he had travelled out with a student Ryan Logan, with the pair able to place a tag as part of their work.
It is believed that the shark was pregnant - with it lolling about in the water as it gorged itself on the dead animal.
Keith shared the video online, writing: "She ate so much she was swimming around upside-down aimlessly like she was intoxicated."
The video has since been shared more than 500 times.
Seagulls can also be seen sitting on top of the giant mammal.
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The whale is understood to be Scarlet, a 55-ft humpback whale.
The mammal had made headlines after being entangled for six weeks in a line, US media reported.
Poe has been tagging large sharks since the mid-1990s, researching the area around southern California.
He has worked with a number of scientific organisations including the Pfleger Institute of Environmental Research and the Marine Conservation Science Institute.
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While the incident was recorded in the US, British waters are also home to more than 40 different species of shark.
Although more than 40 different species of shark pass through the waters of the UK, only 21 of these can be found all year round.
The porbeagle is one of the most common types of shark to be spotted by British fisherman.