Multiple reports of dead seals with bite marks as great white sharks return to Mass. waters

PROVINCETOWN, Mass. — The number of reports of dead seals found with shark bites is on the rise as great whites make their return to Massachusetts waters ahead of the official start of summer.

Seal carcasses have been found on multiple beaches from Provincetown to Martha’s Vineyard in recent weeks, according to the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy’s Sharktivity app, which tracks sightings fed by researchers, safety officials, and users that upload photos for confirmation.

The most recent “confirmed shark sighting” was posted in Sharktivity on June 3, with a caption that read, “Grey seal with shark bite.” The sighting was documented in the area of the Vineyard’s Long Beach.

Other confirmed sightings since May 24 include:

• “Seal with shark bite” off Provincetown’s Race Point Beach on May 24.
• Fish Bandit Charters shared images of a great white shark in the water south of Dead Neck off Cotuit on May 25.
• “Dead seal with white shark bites found washed up overnight on Mayo Beach” in Wellfleet on May 26.
• A report in the area of Brooks Road Beach in Harwichport on May 27 had a caption that read, “Dead seal. Shark bite marks.”
• A “dead seal with a shark bite” was reported at Cold Storage Beach in Dennis on May 31.

John Chisholm, adjunct scientist at New England Aquarium, told Boston 25 they are expecting more sharks this year as the seal population continues to grow.

“No matter where you’re going into the water, whether that’s Cape Cod or Gloucester or Plymouth, you need to be shark smart,” Chisholm cautioned beachgoers.

While the last shark attack in Massachusetts was in 2020, the growing numbers of seals and sharks should make beachgoers more alert, Chisholm added.

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