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DEEP BLUE SEA — It's been said that you're more likely to die from a firework, a lawnmower, a tornado, a train crash or lightning than you are from a shark attack. But those statistics are of little comfort when a great white shark swims your way in the ocean.
A spearfisherman whose YouTube channel is called "Dinner Stix Spearfishing" recently posted an encounter he had with a great white on the East Coast.
The shark in the video isn't particularly large, but size doesn't necessarily correlate with risk when it comes to sharks. The three largest species (whale sharks, basking sharks and megamouth sharks) are harmless. And many of the smaller species have been known to chomp into humans from time to time.
For the first part of the spearfisherman's video, the shark is merely cruising around. Then it suddenly turns and heads straight for him. Was the shark just curious? Probably. But there are few scenes in nature more menacing than a shark moving directly toward you in the water.
The spearfisherman managed to keep his cool (and his speargun at the ready). This wasn't his first shark encounter and definitely won't be his last. In fact, just a couple of weeks after the video was posted, he posted another clip of a great white swimming uncomfortably close. The shark in this second video was estimated to be 15-17 feet long.
What's the moral of this story? If you dive into the ocean in search of fish, don't be surprised if you draw attention from the local hunters.
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