Whale Watching Tour Encounters Great White Shark Feeding Off Southern California Coast
A recent whale-watching tour off the Santa Barbara coast became an unforgettable spectacle when passengers witnessed a great white shark feasting on a headless elephant seal 14 miles off the coast. The encounter, which occurred on Aug. 30, was remarkable enough – and the photos sufficiently Jaws-like – that it made news in California and beyond
Robert Perry, a photographer for the Santa Barbara-based whale-watching company, Condor Express, captured striking images of the scene, showcasing the fierce predator as it devoured its prey. “It was totally a mind-blowing, once-in-a-lifetime thing,” Perry told the San Francisco Chronicle, reflecting on the stunning brutality of nature unfolding right before their eyes.
Captain Dave Beezer, leading the tour, was initially drawn to a floating carcass in the water, identifying it as a dead elephant seal. His instincts proved correct when a massive 16-foot great white shark emerged, launching into a dramatic feeding frenzy. “It was the classic Discovery Channel moment,” Beezer told the Chronicle. “The mouth biting into the carcass, thrashing side-to-side, tearing off big chunks of meat—its tail whipping back and forth.”
This sighting comes amidst a growing trend of great white shark activity in the Santa Barbara Channel, an area known for its rich marine biodiversity. According to Chris Lowe, a professor and director of the Shark Lab at California State University, Long Beach, these powerful predators have been increasingly staying in the region to hunt California sea lions and northern elephant seals—both of which have become abundant in the waters surrounding the Channel Islands.
Adult white sharks that used to pass through are now sticking around, Lowe explained. His research indicates that events like this have become more frequent, highlighting the shifting dynamics of marine life in Southern California. He also noted that elephant seals are the “In-N-Out favorite” of white sharks.
