There's always a bigger fish.
A photographer has captured an incredible yet haunting image of a giant female great white shark with what appears to be a ring of teeth marks on her body.
As reported by CBS News, the now-viral photograph was captured by Jalil Najafov as he was diving in Isla Guadalupe, Mexico. Since being shared by the Discover Sharks Instagram page last week, it has been viewed more than 550,000 times.
After becoming the most-liked post on both the Discover Sharks page and Jalil Najafov's personal Instagram page, the photographer opted to ask Discovery Shark Week expert and behavioral ecologist Dr. Tristan Guttridge for his opinion on the image and what could have caused the large mark on the 15-foot (4.5 meters) shark's body.
Some people had questioned whether or not the mark was made by a male shark as the two beasts mated, while others suggested orcas and even the now-extinct megalodon.
But Dr. Guttridge had other suggestions.
Quoted in the post, Dr. Guttridge said: "I’d rule out mating probably due to position as the wound looks like it’s healed a fair bit and although mating scars can be nasty they are more superficial than that.
"The shape of it to me likely indicates a bite from another shark."
Najafov also asked Discovery presenter and director of the nonprofit Marine Conservation Science Institute Michael Domeier for his opinion.
Quoting Domeier, he wrote: "I ’m confident this is competitive aggression. I keep hearing people (colleagues) describe this sort of thing as territorial aggression, but these highly migratory sharks don’t have a traditional territory. But they do not tolerate conspecifics except for the rare instances where there seems to be some social bond between certain individuals (documented in South Australia).
"That scar will heal to the point it won’t be a good distinguishing mark."
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, eh?
