19 October 2023 , 11:09
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Mystery surrounds what partially devoured a great white shark as its grim remains were found washed up on a beach this week. leaving people clueless.
The 10-foot apex ocean predator was discovered in Victoria, Australia, with most of its underside missing, raising fears as to what caused the bloody demise. Ben Johnstone, who runs the nearby Portland Bait and Tackle, discovered the 10-foot sea predator washed ashore on Tuesday, and believes a pod of orcas may have been responsible for the death.
Mr Johnstone, 28, said: "The body was still pretty fresh, it had probably been washed up that morning. I'm pretty certain it was killer whales - they kill sharks just for the livers, it's the only part of them that they eat.
The shark's underside was ripped apart by a mystery predator (Credit: Ben Johnstone via Pen News)
It is believed the shark was possibly killed by an orca (Credit: Ben Johnstone via Pen News)"As for what happened to the rest of the body, once the orcas are done, the rest of the intestines, stomach etcetera would've fallen out, as there's nothing there to hold them in. I don't know what they are, hence why there are mysteries. I was intrigued more than anything. I found it pretty cool that something like that happened in our local waters."
Local reports say a pod of orcas was seen recently in the area nearby. Experts believe they were possibly to blame, but cannot say for sure. The carcass has now been collected, and samples sent to government agencies and academics. Lauren Meyer, a trophic ecologist at Flinders University, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation it was "not 100% clear".
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She said: "We see this with things like humpback whales, where killer whales come in and actually eat the tongue and leave the rest of the whale. We certainly see they prefer the liver of white sharks, mako sharks, bronze whalers and sevengills, and even tiger sharks.
"I'm not surprised to see this in a place like Portland. We know there are white sharks that go through that area and use it as an important corridor. We also know it's a place for killer whales where they hunt a number of different prey items."