A gobsmacking video showing a great white shark lunging at a woman who was leaning down to pet the apex predator has gone viral.
The shocking interaction was circulated by Knot Lucky Fishing, a Georgia-based charity which works to support veterans suffering from PTSD as well as active-duty servicemen.
In the footage, one of the veterans, Jen, laid her hand on the wild shark “like it’s the family dog” before the predator ferociously turned and lunges towards her, misses and hits the boat instead.
“Everybody on the boat felt that one in their chest,” the charity’s founder, Jimmy Armel, added.
He added: “Now let me tell you the truth, because I always will. Jen was never in real danger. The crew had that shark under control the whole time, and it never got close enough to do any harm.
“But that reaction right there is a reminder of exactly what these animals are.
“Beautiful. Powerful. Wild. They deserve every ounce of respect we can give them.”
The veterans were taking part in the charity’s white shark tagging programme, where they catch, tag and release the beasts for research purposes.
Each shark tag is named after one of the veterans who have died.
Mr Amel told Fox: “We name each one after a fallen Ranger or service member, collecting real migration data while keeping our brothers’ names alive.
“We’ve tagged 10 so far, and with the whites heading back to Tybee now, more are coming this winter.”
But, on this occasion, the charity was unable to tag the shark since there was no safe opportunity to capture the shark and carry out the task.
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The shark’s safety and the crew’s safety come first, every single time, so we let that shark go to swim another day,” the organisation explained.
Due to being a highly migratory animal, experts struggle with pinpointing the exact number of great white sharks in any specific location.
Trackers assist with understanding migration patterns of the seasonal visitors, which are more often spotted during winter and spring as they travel along the East Coast.
Earlier this year, experts recorded the largest great white shark resurfacing in the Atlantic Ocean, sparking fears the beast may be heading for popular tourist beaches earlier in the summer.
The 1,700lb (771kg) goliath disappeared from tracking for months after diving down into the depths in April.
The 14-foot great white – dubbed Contender – was first tagged by a team of scientists from Ocearch in January after being caught around 45 miles off the coast of Florida.
Researchers were able to track the giant’s movements up America’s coastline using a device fitted to its fin.
The shark seemingly vanished in April, with it being detected off North Carolina’s Pamlico Sound – but returned in July.
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