“WE’RE GOING TO need a bigger boat.” This is something that the kayakers down at South Harbour could have been saying today as a giant basking shark decided to pay a visit to the bay.
While swimmers and kayakers were out enjoying the summer sun, the basking shark decided to take a closer look at what was going on.
Niamh Ni Driscoiel of Cape Clear Ferry and Fastnet Tours Cape said the giant visitor came into the bay at about 1.20pm.
The shark was “curious” she said and was “not perturbed” by the swimmers and kayakers nearby.
“I was just there in the right place at the right time to catch the whole thing on my Samsung phone,” she said.
She told TheJournal.ie that basking sharks often visit the bay, but that there are rarely people actually swimming alongside them. The video can be seen here.
“The water was so calm and clear today so you could see everything. It is rare to see people alongside the sharks, it really puts their scale into perspective,” said Ni Driscoiel.
“The shark was happy enough to play along with the swimmers and there was nothing to worry about as basking sharks are vegetarians, they only feed on plankton,” she said. Phew!
