A man filming as he fished off the coast of New Zealand in a pedal kayak was rammed twice by a juvenile great white shark. It was likely a case of mistaken identity, as are most shark attacks on humans.
Greg Potter, who runs a YouTube channel called GP Fishing Adventures, was out fishing off New Zealand’s Eastern Cape. when he saw the young great white attempting to make a meal out of a seal when the incident occurred. At first, Potter was a relatively safe distance away, but the scuffle moved closer to his kayak as he filmed. According to reports, when Potter first spotted the shark attacking the seal, he assumed it was a school of tuna. It was only when he came within a few hundred feet that he realized what was really going on.
“They were moving fast, man,” Potter told the New Zealand Herald. “Like just flying through the water.”
When the shark and seal began to circle around his kayak, Potter decided he should remove himself from the situation and began pedaling away. The seal could have been using the kayak for shelter. As Potter moved away, the shark rammed his kayak, almost spilling him out of it. It happened not just once, but twice. Thankfully, he was able to remain in his vessel and out of the shark’s way.
“If it had managed to get me out of the kayak,” he said to the Herald, “that that could have been a pretty disastrous ending.”
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