Great White Shark Washes Ashore, Little Compton Beaches Close

Goosewing and South Shore beaches closed to swimmers on Saturday the carcass of a 12.5-foot great white shark washed ashore. Both beaches were reopened by Sunday.

Bystanders weren't deterred by the closure, however, as dozens flocked the shore to catch a glimpse of the most revered predatory fish.

"Just because one white shark washed up on shore doesn't necessarily mean people need to be concerned of shark attacks," said Greg Skomal, senior shark scientist at Massachusetts Marine Fisheries.

Accordint to Skomal, biologists have known great white sharks lived in the area for decades feeding on the areas resident seal population. Usually elusive creatures, they are rarely seen - while alive or after they die.

Morgan Grivers, of Lincoln, heard about the shark early Saturday morning. Although she said she probably wouldn't be swimming Labor Day weekend, she headed to the beach to snap some photos.

"My family stays in a camper down the street and when we hard about aroudn 10:30 a.m. we had to come down and check it out," said Grivers.

According to officials, a fisherman called in the shark around 6 a.m., prompting beach the closure of the two Little Compton Beaches and calling in the expertise of shark experts from Narragansett and Woods Hole, Massachusetts.

"The white shark is a prohibited species and are illegal to possess," said Nancy Kohler, chief of the apex predator program at National Marine Fisheries. "You can catch them with rod and reel, but you have to release."

The shark that washed up on Saturday, estimated to weight about 1,600 pounds, represented a prime opportunity for biologists to learn more about what great white shark's eat, their life expectancy, reproductive biology, growth rate, how infested they are with parasites, and various other aspects of their physiology.

By 3 p.m. on Saturday, the scientists had hacked apart the fish, leaving hardly any resemblance of the Jaw's predator that terrified swimmers. According to Skomal, this makes it easier for nature to do its job. As the tides rose on Saturday evening, the white shark was reclaimed by the sea.