Archive · 22 Sep 2026
Great White Shark Kills Seal Near Nantucket Shore
A couple near Nantucket saw a great white shark hunting a seal.
They were returning from a fishing competition when they noticed a seal rushing out of the water.
The ocean then turned red, and shark fins appeared above the surface.
The shark was eating another seal very close to the beach.
A second seal escaped and stayed on shore.
Carrie Drayton said the shark looked about 12 to 14 feet long.
Scientist Gregory Skomal confirmed that it was a great white shark feeding on a seal.
He said these sharks pass through Nantucket during migration and find seals there as food.
A couple saw a great white shark kill a seal near Great Point Beach in Nantucket.
The encounter occurred at about 10:30 a.m. on Sunday as the couple returned from a fishing competition.
A second seal escaped the water and watched from the beach while the shark fed nearby.
Carrie Drayton estimated the shark was between 12 and 14 feet long and only a few feet from shore.
Scientist Gregory Skomal said white sharks migrate through Nantucket waters and feed on seals in the area.
- Who
- Carrie Drayton and Tyler O’Brien witnessed the attack; Gregory Skomal confirmed what they saw.
- What
- A great white shark killed and fed on a seal near shore while another seal escaped.
- When
- About 10:30 a.m. on Sunday.
- Where
- Great Point Beach on Nantucket, Massachusetts.
- Why
- The shark was feeding on a seal; white sharks migrate through the area, where seals are a food source.
- Location
- Great Point Beach, Nantucket, Massachusetts
- Time
- About 10:30 a.m. on Sunday
- Shark
- Great white shark estimated at 12 to 14 feet long
- Victim
- A seal was killed and eaten
- Second seal
- Escaped from the water and watched from the beach
- Expert confirmation
- Gregory Skomal of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries identified the shark as a great white
- Migration
- White sharks travel through Nantucket waters while migrating north and south in autumn