Massive great white shark a sign population ‘booming’ off Hilton Head, fisherman says
The water off Hilton Head was eerily quiet on Monday before charter captain Chip Michalove saw “a giant” under his boat. He had hooked a 14 1/2-foot female great white shark weighing an estimated 2,400 pounds.
“I don’t think you can jump out of an airplane and get the same adrenaline as catching a shark,” he said Wednesday afternoon. “This one fought the whole time on the surface.”
The day had started with low expectations.
“The water temperature was 70 degrees and, to be honest, I didn’t have a lot of hope,” Michalove said. Great whites usually aren’t off the southern coast this time of year. They are known to be in Lowcountry waters from December through mid-March.
“They’re kind of like the old people,” he said. “They summer in the Hamptons and winter down here.”
He said many of the sharks he’s tagged in the past — all have been caught, tagged and released — are now off the North Carolina coast heading away from the Lowcountry.
“This is definitely the latest I’ve ever caught one,” said Michalove, known as the “shark whisperer” for his consistent catches.
He said he sees Monday’s late catch after such a mild winter as a positive sign for the species.
“The fact that they are still here, at least one, is a good sign,” he said. “Our population is booming.”
The catch
Michalove, of Outcast Sport Fishing, said he was just about ready to give up fishing for the day before hooking the great white.
“We never saw any dolphins. We didn’t see any turtles,” he said.
It was getting close to midday and, Michalove said, typically, if he’s going to catch anything, it will be in the morning. Still, it was a beautiful day and a nice temperature, so he decided he’d try for another 45 minutes.
“Right after I said that, a giant shows up,” he said.
A video of the encounter by Taylor Horton shows the shark splashing as Michalove draws it close to the side of his boat.
Michalove got the shark to the side of the boat, but it popped off the hook before he could tag it, he said.
And, despite the thrill of Monday’s catch, tagging is still the ultimate goal so scientists can track the deep-sea beasts.
Said Michalove: “Every year, we learn a lot more about them.”
This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 7:54 AM with the headline "Massive great white shark a sign population ‘booming’ off Hilton Head, fisherman says."
