First White Shark of 2016 Research Season Detected Off Monomoy

PHOTO COURTESY: Atlantic White Shark Conservancy. A white shark named ‘Scratchy’ was detected Thursday off Monomoy

CHATHAM – Just days after the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy began their 2016 research season, a white shark has been detected off Monomoy.

According to the organization’s Twitter page, it was a shark tagged last August named Scratchy.

It was detected Thursday morning on the shark cove receiver just off Monomoy Island.

The conservancy is in the third year of a five year study of great white sharks off Cape Cod.

Last year, 141 great whites were identified in Cape waters which was an increase from 68 in 2014, the first year of the study.

Of the sharks identified last year, 101 were sharks that had not been previously spotted.

They also tagged 24 great whites last year which was up from 18 the year before.

Researchers will be out on the water through the end of October.