Drone footage of a shark migration off a Florida beach has been shared on YouTube.
The video, posted on February 10, shows hundreds of sharks swimming off the coast near the Fort Pierce Inlet to Vero Beach. Jason Griffeth, who filmed the video, said he originally planned on filming boats, then saw the surfers and decided to have a closer look. That’s when he saw the sharks.
Most of the sharks are thought to have been blacktips, however some shots of the video indicates there might be larger species swimming deeper in the water.
Some of the footage shows sharks cruising mere feet away from surfers who are content floating on their boards. The sharks paid no mind to the surfers and simply continued to cruise along the sandy bottom.
The sharks may be migrating sooner due to the warmer water temperatures.
While the footage of the sharks is very cool, the appearance of several manatees is quite surprising. The five manatee aggregation could include one female and several male suitors to form a mating herd. Although at least one of the manatee appears to be a calf.
In 2016, only two shark attack bites were reported off Vero Beach. A section of the water that features a reef zone has been dubbed “shark alley”, as there is a large collection of shark who feed in the area.
Swimmer Mary Macus found out why the area was given its name when she swam near the reef. She received a minor bite that required a few stitches.
In 2017, a young man received a small puncture wound near Shorelands Drive East.
