Great white sharks can be ferocious predators, but one of these giant fish overestimated its hunting abilities when it crunched down on a sea turtle and then choked to death, according to a tuna fisherman near Japan who described the incident. This episode is likely a rare one, because while it's uncommon for great white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) to choke on prey, it's even rarer for them to choke on their meal if it's a sea turtle, said Christopher Lowe, director of the Shark Lab at California State University, Long Beach, who wasn't involved with the case. That's not because sea turtles go down so easy, however; it's because the reptiles are exceptionally good at avoiding great whites, Lowe said. [In Photos: Great White Sharks Attack] "Sea turtles, when they know white sharks are around and white sharks come near them, they have this behavior where they'll turn their backs and they'll point their shells toward them — they'll go sideways," Lowe told Live Science. "It makes it really hard for the shark to get a purchase on the turtle." This sideways-turning trick is usually enough to deter great whites from chomping down on sea turtles. The only way a shark could successfully catch a sea turtle would be to sneak up on one, Lowe said. If the turtle isn't paying attention, or if the turtle is sick or wounded, then it's doomsday for the turtle. But in this case, it was curtains for the shark, too. Fishermen Greg Vella wrote about the incident in an April 19 Facebook post (along with photos of the beast), saying, "I heard chatter on the radio that there was a white shark swimming around with a big sea turtle in [its] mouth. People started to joke about it, so I did not pay it any more attention." The next day, however, the shark "was found dead, near the bait receivers, tangled in some netting," Vella wrote. "The captains I interviewed, who saw the mighty shark the day before, said it looked close to death, as it could not dislodge the giant turtle." Once prey is stuck in their throats, sharks have little recourse, "because they can't move backward to extract things and they don't have hands to pull it out," Lowe said. And it's not just turtles that can get stuck. Sharks that chow down on porcupine fish — which are spiky and can inflate themselves with water — may find their mouths entirely blocked, which can also block water flowing over their gills. "White sharks are among the few shark species that must swim to breathe, keeping their mouths open, allowing fresh, oxygen-rich seawater to flow in and over their gills," said Andrew Nosal, an adjunct assistant professor of environmental and ocean sciences at the University of San Diego, who was not involved with the great white's case. "Anything that obstructs this one-way flow could cause the shark to suffocate and die." It's surprising to hear about a great white eating a sea turtle, Nosal said, because tiger sharks — "which have distinctively curved and serrated teeth that are very effective at cutting through flesh, bone and other hard substances, such as turtle shells" — are more typical connoisseurs of these creatures. [In Photos: Tagging Baby Sea Turtles] "Sea turtles are much less common in white sharks' diets," Nosal told Live Science. Great whites, however, are known to choke on other prey, including elephant seals, David Ebert, a shark scientist and the director of the Pacific Shark Research Center at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in California, told Live Science. There's even a case of a Greenland shark choking on a moose. (Luckily, two Canadians saved the shark. The moose was already dead.) In this case, however, no one involved got a happy ending — not the shark, not the turtle and not even the bystanders who witnessed the spectacle. "The commercial guys were bummed, as white sharks do not bother their commercial fishing, and most certainly do bother the things that eat our catch," Vella wrote. "The shark weighed 4,500 pounds [2,040 kilograms]." Editor's Note: Live Science learned today (April 26) the photos from this Facebook post may have been first published online in August 2015. According to a 2015 post on a Japanese shark blog, the shark likely regurgitated its last meal just before it died. If that's the case, then this particular shark didn't choke to death on a sea turtle. Originally published on Live Science.<doc-sep>A fisherman has captured photos of the gruesome demise of a great white shark that choked to death on a sea turtle in Japan. The images show the bloodied shark hauled onto land with the sea turtle still protruding from its mouth. Greg Vella shared the images to the fishing group Commercial Salmon, Albacore & Crab Fishers on Facebook, explaining he had been fishing when he heard on the radio that a great white was swimming nearby with a sea turtle in its mouth. The following day the corpse of the shark, which weighed 4,500lb, was found tangled in netting, according to the fisherman. “I was out commercial ‘ken ken’ style fishing for tuna (Japan, Pacific Ocean side) when I heard chatter on the radio that there was a white shark swimming around with a big sea turtle in its mouth,” Mr Vella wrote. “People started to joke about it, so I did not pay it any more attention. Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Show all 15 1 /15 Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Campaigners in Australia have today released photographs showing sharks in snared in hooks placed as part of the Queensland government’s Shark Control Program HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Operating in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, the program is intended to reduce the threat of attacks in Queensland’s waters by capturing sharks with nets and drumlines, permanent fishing hooks buoyed off coast HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program A diagram showing the drumlines used by the Queensland government to catch sharks Queensland Government Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) and Humane Society International (HIS) are calling for the immediate removal of the drumlines HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Though Queensland has seen a decline in fatal attacks since the program launched in 1962, campaigners argue that control measures are not proportional to the threat posed by sharks and lament the program’s devastating effect on certain shark populations HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program For example, nearly 9000 tiger sharks have been caught since the program was launched HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program “Their numbers have dropped by up to three quarters” says Dr Leonardo Guida, senior shark campaigner at Australian Marine Conservation Society HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Citing the findings of the recent official Australian Shark Report Card, Dr Guida continues “numbers will keep dropping unless we make major improvements to the way they are managed” HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program “The government should not be sanctioning the culling of a species in such perilous decline” HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program The release of this footage comes weeks before the implementation of a law that would make its capture illegal HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program The Queensland Government’s Fisheries Amendment Bill 2018 outlaws being within 20 metres of shark control equipment on the grounds of public safety, but campaigners view it as a way to hide the impact of the Shark Control Program HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Nicola Beynon, head of campaigns at HIS says “not only does the Queensland Government insist on slaughtering sharks, but it has recently passed legislation making it illegal to document the horror. The public has a right to see true cost of its Shark Control Program” HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program A diagram showing the nets used by the Queensland government to catch sharks Queensland Government Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Tiger sharks are a particular concern for campaigners HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan Sharks in Great Barrier Reef threatened by government program Tiger sharks are a particular concern for campaigners HSI/AMCS/N McLachlan “Then next day, it was found dead, near the bait receivers, tangled in some netting.” The great white shark was found in Japan (Facebook/Greg Vella) The shark weighed 4,500 pounds (Facebook/Greg Vella) The shark was spotting swimming by fisherman the day before (Facebook/Greg Vella) According to Mr Vella, captains he’d asked about the shark said it had looked “close to death” the day before it died, as the creature had been unable to “dislodge the giant turtle”. “The commercial guys were bummed, as white sharks do not bother their commercial fishing, and most certainly do bother the things that eat our catch,” he added. The photos of the giant shark have since been shared more than 9,000 times. ✕ Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Great white sharks are the largest predatory fish on Earth, according to National Geographic. Their diet typically consists of sea lions, seals, and small-toothed whales.<doc-sep>Incredible pictures of one of the world’s largest great white sharks, nicknamed Deep Blue, have been shared following an unlikely encounter with brave divers. Incredible pictures of one of the world’s largest great white sharks, nicknamed Deep Blue, have been shared following an unlikely encounter with brave divers.... A fisherman witnessed a gory scene as a monster great white shark was hauled from the water after the animal choked to death on a sea turtle. Greg Vella, who lives in Osaka, Japan, was out on a commercial boat fishing for tuna in the Pacific Ocean when someone reported seeing the huge shark. “I heard chatter on the radio that there was a white shark swimming around with a big sea turtle in his mouth,” Mr Vella wrote in the Facebook group Commercial Salmon, Albacore & Crab Fishers. “People started to joke about it, so I did not pay it any more attention.” The following day the shark was found dead and tangled in some netting. The fishermen who spotted the shark the day before said the animal looked like it was struggling to get the turtle out of its mouth. Mr Vella posted pictures of the monster shark, which he claimed weighed around two tonnes, after they had pulled it from the water. The gruesome photos show a giant turtle hanging out of the shark’s bloodied mouth. Mr Vella said the crew were disappointed the animal had died. “The commercial guys were bummed, as white sharks do not bother their commercial fishing, and most certainly do bother the things that eat our catch,” he wrote. Pictures of the enormous animal have been shared more than 9000 times, with social media users in shock at the shark’s size. “Holy crap. National Geographic at its best,” one person wrote. Another said: “Bit off more than he could chew.” While this shark is certainly on the larger size, it is still smaller than the great white shark known as Deep Blue. The massive shark was last spotted off the coast of Hawaii earlier this year and is estimated to be about 6.5 metres in length and weigh around 2.5 tonnes. She was fitted with a tracker in 2013 so divers can identify her.<doc-sep>WARNING - DISTURBING CONTENT: Incredible pictures show a monster shark, believed to have choked to death on a giant sea turtle. Source: Greg Vella/Facebook WARNING - DISTURBING CONTENT: Incredible pictures show a monster shark which appears to have choked to death on a giant sea turtle when it bit off more than it could chew. Fisherman Greg Vella posted the pictures of the dead great white shark to Facebook on Friday, whose eyes were apparently bigger than its stomach. The grim pictures show the lifeless body of the shark, with the turtle trapped in its blood-covered teeth. The shark, which the fisherman said weighed 2,000 kilograms, was found caught up in netting in the Pacific Ocean, off Japan. The discovery came a day after Mr Vella “heard chatter” on his radio about a great white shark swimming around with a giant sea turtle in is mouth. “People started to joke about it, so I did not pay it any more attention,” he wrote. “Then next day, it was found dead, near the bait receivers, tangled in some netting. The shark was found caught up in netting in the Pacific Ocean, off Japan, with a sea turtle trapped in its teeth. This 2,000kg shark apparently bit off more than it could chew. “The captains I interviewed who saw the mighty shark the day before, said it looked close to death, as it could not dislodge the giant turtle,” he added. “The commercial guys were bummed, as white sharks do not bother their commercial fishing, and most certainly do bother the things that eat our catch.” After sharing the grisly pictures Mr Vella said his phone “was blowing up with notifications”. His post generated more than 5,000 likes, 6,000 shares, and more than 100 friend requests in two days. Watch latest videos from Yahoo News UK<doc-sep>
Photos Show Great White Shark That Died While Choking on Turtle, Says Fisherman Warning: This article contains graphic images that some readers may find disturbing. A large great white shark was seen choking to death on a turtle near the shores of Japan, it was reported. Greg Vella posted the images to a Facebook group for commercial fishermen. 4,500-pound Great white shark chokes to death on a sea turtle in Japan https://t.co/VtcuuD3VGR — Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) April 23, 2019 “I was out (sic) commercial ‘ken ken’ style fishing for tuna (Japan, Pacific Ocean side) when I heard chatter on the radio that there was a white shark swimming around with a big sea turtle in is (sic) mouth,” Vella wrote. While viewing the large fish, “People started to joke about it, so I did not pay it any more attention,” Vella continued. “Then next day, it was found dead, near the bait receivers, tangled in some netting.” “The captains I interviewed who saw the mighty shark the day before said it looked close to death, as it could not dislodge the giant turtle,” he said. Great white shark chokes to death on sea turtle https://t.co/yMPMczQZsL — The Independent (@Independent) April 23, 2019 The fishermen, Vella added, were “bummed” because great white sharks don’t “bother their commercial fishing, and most certainly do bother the things that eat our catch.” In all, the shark weighed about 4,500 pounds, he said. Other details about the shark are not clear. Photos of the giant shark have been shared thousands of times in several days. Great White Facts Great whites can average more about 15 feet in length, but some have reached 20 feet in length, according to Animal Fact Guide. They also can reach 5,000 pounds, meaning that the one that choked on a turtle is a larger specimen. “Great white sharks are blue-gray on the dorsal, or top, part of their bodies. This helps them blend in with the bottom of the ocean when viewed from above. The belly, or ventral, part of the body, is white. This makes it difficult to see the sharks from below, with sunlight shining in around them. They have strong, torpedo-shaped bodies and powerful tails that help them swim. Great whites can reach speeds up to 24 km/hr (15 mph),” the website says. Meanwhile, only orcas and larger sharks can pose a risk to great whites. “They are sometimes caught by accident in fishing nets or intentionally sought out by sport fisherman. Their jaws and fins are sold for considerable amounts of money,” the website says. “Great whites spend their time in temperate waters all over the world, although they have been known to make brief trips into colder water in the north. They live in the upper part of the ocean, towards the surface, and close to the shore, where sunlight shines through and prey is available,” the site says. The IUCN’s Red List said the great white is “vulnerable” and may be marked as “endangered.” According to Oceana.org, “Male great white sharks generally arrive at the same time to the Farallon Islands off the California Coast and the offshore Island of Guadalupe, Mexico, from late July through August, and females arrive to these locations several weeks thereafter. These sharks are observed at their coastal aggregation sites through February.”