–Editor’s Note: This article looks back to 2012, when the accompanying images were taken on a Mexican beach, before the Sea of Cortez was known to be home to adult great white sharks.
Thirteen years ago, a massive great white shark quickly became something of a spectacle when it lay on a beach on the mainland side of the Sea of Cortez near Guaymas, Mexico.
Commercial fishermen Guadalupe and Baltazar (last names not provided) used a net to pull the giant shark ashore and used a 22-foot boat to tow it to shore two miles away.
This image tells the story of a small town that was fascinated by a rare apex predator that was said to be up to 20 feet long.
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“We were surprised and immediately realized we had a huge dead great white shark, and then we thought, ‘What are we going to do?'” Guadalupe said.
The catch saddened conservationists and surprised many who had no idea the upper reaches of the Sea of Cortez were once exploited by such large white sharks.
We now know that adult great white sharks migrate seasonally to the Sea of Cortez to give birth to their young.
This article originally appeared on For the Victory: Yes, a Giant Great White Shark Found in the Sea of Cortez
