Mediterranean Great White shark: Diver's 'hands were shaking' in 'first ever recording'

A diver who encountered a massive Great White shark in the Mediterranean has captured what experts believe may be the first underwater footage of an adult specimen in the region.

Derk Remmers was among three divers who encountered the predator while working on a mission to remove abandoned fishing nets from a shipwreck in the Strait of Sicily, between Italy and Tunisia.

The team, from the NGO Healthy Seas, were retrieving so-called ghost nets from the wreck when the shark emerged nearby. Mr Remmers said: “We saw this huge shark. It was pretty clear it was a massive one. It looked and appeared to be a white shark.”

The encounter has been described as exceptionally rare, with Great Whites now thought to be critically endangered in the Mediterranean. While there have been sporadic surface sightings of the species in the area, conservationists believe this could mark the first documented underwater footage of an adult Great White filmed by divers in its natural Mediterranean habitat.

Mr Remmers said: “The shark was there pretty close to the wreck, pretty close to us in fact. It swam away, turned around and came back.”

He confessed his hands were shaking as he attempted to film the remarkable encounter.

He told the BBC: “I think my biggest fear was that I wouldn’t be able to get the camera running, that I couldn’t record this rare event.” The diver expressed hopes that the footage would not trigger panic or demands for the shark to be hunted, emphasising the creature was observed many miles offshore and nowhere near beaches.

He added: “It is important to me that no one gets scared because it was offshore, it was in the central Mediterranean, it was not close to a beach where people could feel endangered.

“This might very well be the first underwater footage of an adult white shark in its own habitat in the Mediterranean… it sank in a little bit that this was pretty special.”

Great White sharks were once far more prevalent in certain areas of the Mediterranean, but their numbers have plummeted dramatically due to overfishing and accidental entanglement in nets and fishing lines.

The Shark Trust, a British-based conservation organisation, states Great Whites in the Mediterranean are critically endangered, with the population remaining poorly understood and sightings exceptionally rare.

Genetic evidence also indicates Mediterranean Great Whites represent a distinct population from those inhabiting the Atlantic.

Paul Cox, chief executive of The Shark Trust, told The Telegraph: “We’ve long known of the presence of Great White sharks in the Mediterranean. The video shared on World Oceans Day of them in the Straits of Sicily is exciting.

“It suggests that, perhaps, despite the challenges faced by the regional population, these extraordinary animals are managing to maintain a foothold in the region.” The waters separating Sicily from North Africa are regarded as among the final remaining havens for endangered species, including Great Whites.

Studies conducted by the Blue Marine Foundation have revealed that threatened sharks, including Great Whites, continue to be caught and traded in fish markets across North African nations such as Tunisia and Algeria. The charity calculates that no fewer than 40 Great Whites were killed and sold for consumption last year alone.

It has cautioned that the Mediterranean faces intense pressure from overfishing, rising water temperatures and invasive species, with over three quarters of fish stocks now exploited beyond sustainable ecological thresholds.

Veronika Mikos, director of Healthy Seas, said: “What makes this encounter so powerful is not only the shark itself, but the context in which it happened.

“We were there to remove ghost nets trapping marine life on a shipwreck ecosystem that is a hotspot for biodiversity. Moments like this remind us how much life can still exist in offshore Mediterranean waters.”