Young great white Bella swims 246 miles to Cape Cod, the week's most-traveled shark

A young great white named Bella has made a headline-grabbing summer arrival off Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Fox Weather said Bella was detected near Nauset Beach after covering 246 miles over the past week, the longest seven-day total of any great white on OCEARCH's tracker this week.

What happened?

OCEARCH's public Global Shark Tracker placed Bella about 2.5 miles off Nauset Beach on Saturday, where her continued movement north is being closely monitored.

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According to Fox Weather, Bella measured 10 feet 2 inches and weighed about 729 pounds when she was tagged and released in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, on July 18, 2025. She also reportedly logged 246 miles over the last week, more than any other great white listed on the tracker during that period.

Cape Cod has become a recurring destination for white sharks because gray seals gather on beaches and sandbars in the warmer months, providing plentiful food in shallow coastal waters.

The region's shallow, sandy coastline also tends to concentrate seals in the same areas, helping explain why great whites remain there through summer and early fall before heading south for winter.

Why does it matter?

Tracking young great whites like Bella helps scientists map how they travel and when they appear in Atlantic Canada, contributing to broader conservation work focused on the western North Atlantic population.

What are people saying?

The National Park Service has also identified Cape Cod's growing gray seal population as a major reason white sharks return to the area each summer, with seals often gathering close to shore where sharks can hunt them more easily.

Fox Weather reported that Bella's move toward Cape Cod follows a familiar seasonal pattern, with the region regularly serving as a feeding area for white sharks.

"Her presence in these waters adds valuable data to the growing body of research about how white sharks use Canadian coastal habitats during the summer and fall months," OCEARCH said. 

If you're interested in tracking Bella, or any other of the aquatic life OCEARCH is keeping track of, visit this link. 

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