Stacy McCarron expected to catch a few flounder on Sunday, so she was stunned when she pulled a hammerhead shark out of the water instead.
"Everyone was freaking out” when the two-feet long, flat-faced ocean resident was pulled into the boat, McCarron’s husband, Matt, told the Press of Atlantic City.
After posing for a few snapshots, the couple along with boat captain Steve Weierbach and first mate Michael Munn released their new friend back into the water.
So the baby shark has made a home in our South Jersey waters.
"A buddy of mine was wondering where the shark’s mother is,” Matt McCarron said.
It’s a logical question considering the fact that sharks give birth to live young. One litter can reach up to 60 pups, according to National Geographic.
"A lot of sharks species and rays come here to spawn," Robin Scott said. "You never know what’s going to pop out of this bay.”
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Scott’s family has owned Ray Scott’s Dock in Margate for half a century, and she’s heard of two or three hammerheads that were already caught in the bays of South Jersey this year.
"We usually don’t tell people, but we sometimes see sharks between five and seven feet long in the bay,” Scott said. “Most are looking to lay eggs. I don’t worry about it. We’ve never heard of a shark attack in the back bay.”
Get More: Press of Atlantic City
