Great white shark tagged near Cape Cod

BOSTON, July 29 (UPI) -- Massachusetts wildlife officials say they've tagged their first great white shark of the year, after tagging five of the creatures in local waters last year.

Using a harpoon, wildlife workers sank a tracking device into the dorsal fin of the 12-foot shark, a normally elusive creature that has been spotted more often in recent years in southern Massachusetts waters, The Boston Globe reported Thursday.

"It was like running up to someone and piercing their ear," Greg Skomal, a biologist with the state Division of Marine Fisheries, said. "It definitely spooked the shark. It twitched a bit and then moved on."

Scientists have no idea how many sharks may be swimming off Cape Cod, Skomal said, but they're not new to the area.

"They have probably been coming through these waters for thousands of years," he said. "It may be that there are just more people on the water or that they're attracted to the growing population of seals."

Skomal said the tagging was an effort to learn more about great whites, a species still little understood.

Asked whether swimmers in the area should be anxious, Skomal said they should use common sense and avoid swimming near seals.

"It's just part of nature (for sharks) to be here," he said. "There's nothing to fear."