A 10-foot great white shark cruised past Long Island on June 3, offering a reminder that one of the ocean’s most powerful predators is swimming just beyond the breakers.
The toothy predator, a juvenile female named Bella, was detected about 13 miles south of Westhampton Beach, according to data released by OCEARCH, the nonprofit marine research organization that tracks sharks and other ocean species.
A tracking device registered a satellite ping as Bella continued her seasonal migration north along the Atlantic coast. Researchers reported that she traveled more than 178 miles during the previous week alone.
At the time she was tagged, Bella measured 10 feet, 2 inches long and weighed an estimated 729 pounds. She has a way to go before rivaling the record 3,427-pound, 17-footer caught by Frank Mundus off Montauk in 1986.
Scientists say her journey is part of a larger annual migration that brings many western North Atlantic white sharks to important summer and fall feeding grounds in the Northeast.
Bella was tagged and released on July 18, 2025, in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, through a collaborative effort involving the Tancook Islands Marine Field Station, the OCEARCH Science and Fishing Teams, and Dr. Nigel Hussey of the University of Windsor.
In the summer of 2023, Long Island experienced an unprecedented series of shark encounters that captured national attention and prompted Suffolk County and New York State to dramatically expand beach surveillance efforts. Multiple swimmers and surfers were bitten or reported shark encounters within a matter of days at beaches stretching from Fire Island to Quogue.
The string of attacks marked a turning point in how local officials monitor shark activity and helped usher in a new era of aerial surveillance and real-time shark tracking along the Long Island coast.
The public can follow Bella’s movements through the Global Shark Tracker, which provides real-time updates on the locations of tagged sharks, at www.ocearch.org.