**Key facts:**
– Location: Pine Point Beach in Scarborough, Maine
– Timeline: Tuesday (Aug. 4) and Wednesday (Aug. 5)
– Tuesday: 2 juvenile great white sharks, 6-8 feet long spotted by fisherman
– Wednesday: 5-7 sharks spotted by drone operator
– Total: more than a dozen sharks over 48 hours
– Officer: Daryen Granata, Scarborough Marine Resource Officer (30+ years experience)
– Expert: John Chisholm, New England Aquarium adjunct scientist
– Fisherman: David Lancaster (separate sighting Aug 11 – but that’s an earlier incident)
– The article notes this is the first time Granata has seen this volume
More than half a dozen white sharks have been spotted close to shore in Scarborough, Maine over a 48-hour period, prompting warnings and increased monitoring near a popular beach.
The police department in Scarborough, Maine first posted about the shark sightings on Tuesday, when two young great white sharks between 6 and 8 feet long were confirmed in the waters off Pine Point Beach.
A shark expert with the New England Aquarium reviewed footage submitted by a local fisherman and said the animals “appeared consistent with juvenile great white sharks.”
“Usually we’ll see one or two [sharks] here and there. This is a large volume, larger than I’ve seen, and I’ve worked this area for 30-plus years,” Scarborough Marine Resource Officer Daryen Granata said.
The sightings shifted dramatically the next day.
On Wednesday, a group of five to seven white sharks were spotted around the same area off Pine Point Beach.
The sharks were spotted by a drone operator monitoring the area while they were swimming and feeding close to shore, according to a press release by the police department.
Granata provided more detail about what officials found in the water.
“Five to seven, fairly good-sized sharks, probably six to eight feet. And then there were some drone videos of some larger ones. You know, 10-12 feet, but we’re just keeping an eye on it,” Granata said.
The increase in activity is believed to be because of prey availability for the sharks, which typically feed on seals and baitfish.
Granata described how officials intensified their response to track the animals.
“We started flying aircrafts and drones, and making sure that we can keep track. And they’ve been there consistently for the last 48 hours,” Granata added.
The area is frequently used by swimmers and people fishing from the water.
“We know it’s a place where people recreationally fish in waist-deep water; they typically swim right there,” Granata said.
A biologist who arrived to help survey the area acknowledged the surprise the numbers triggered.
“That’s more like numbers we see down when we’re tagging off of the Cape; the numbers were a little surprising,” New England Aquarium adjunct scientist John Chisholm said about the number of sharks seen in Maine.
But Chisholm stressed the sightings fit the natural patterns of the region.
“But it’s definitely not unusual for white sharks to be in this area this time of year.”
Chisholm noted warmer water is shifting where certain sharks appear. “Now they’re coming up here reliably year after year because the water temperature is hospitable to them. The waters in New England are warming faster than any other places in the ocean around the world.”
Officials urged caution without closing the beach.
Scarborough police warned people going to local beaches and swimming in the area to be cautious and vigilant.
The department stressed that no injuries or aggressive behavior was reported toward humans.
“Be aware of your surroundings and prepare before you go to the beach because you’re going into a wilderness area,” Chisholm said.
At least one beachgoer expressed confidence.
Mark Coleman, a beachgoer at Pine Point Beach, said “I don’t want to get eaten, but no problem. Sharks are sharks; they’ll stay out there, and I’ll stay here, no worries.”
In the viral moment that sparked the broader conversation about Maine’s shark activity,
a local fisherman captured video where a shark can be seen swimming close to a man fishing from a paddleboard.
Officials said the sharks, estimated at 6 to 8 feet long, were seen near the southern end of Prouts Neck and the mouth of the Scarborough River. The local fisherman’s video was later reviewed by a shark expert with the New England Aquarium and reported to Scarborough Marine Resource Officer Daryen Granata.
The sightings mark one of the most concentrated shark incidents Maine has documented in recent years.