Caught on camera: Great white shark spotted off Alabama coast
Summer beachgoers might not hear the music from "Jaws," but a great white shark has been spotted off the coast of Alabama in the Gulf of Mexico.
Researchers from the University of South Alabama (USA) were monitoring fish near Alabama's artificial reef zone in April when they captured video of the shark, according to Wednesday.
You can see the curious shark approaching the diver and getting very close before veering off in another direction.
The 8-foot-long shark named Miss Pawla is a juvenile, estimated to be about 15 years old, based on her size. Great whites can and can grow to 21 feet long.
Divers spotted her near a reef in about 150 feet of water, and scientists believe this is the first time this type of shark has been sighted there.
Great white sightings in the northern Gulf of Mexico are rare, according to Dr. Sean Powers, the director of USA鈥檚 .
鈥淲e have surveyed over 1,000 artificial and natural reef areas over the last 10 years, providing scientific data to assist the State of Alabama in managing its offshore fisheries,鈥� said Powers. 鈥淭his is our first documented sighting of a white shark.鈥�
Scientists tag, name and track sharks, but this is a new one. She was named after one of USA's mascots, Miss Pawla.
This is not the first time a great white has been spotted off the Gulf Coast. One named Leebeth was tracked near Destin in March.
Vacationers caught another one on video while it was hunting off Perdido Key Beach last summer.
Watch the video here: Shark spotted hunting near Perdido Key shoreline
Great white sharks have powerful tails that can push them up to 35 mph in the water, according to .
USA divers were doing a survey with researchers from Mississippi State University and Florida鈥檚 Fish and Wildlife Research Institute. She was seen again 10 days later, but hasn't been spotted in nearly a week.
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