Divers that have visited Malapascua, or are planning a visit here, are likely familiar with the usual behaviours of our beloved thresher sharks. Absolute volumes of videos exist (just do a quick YouTube search if you’re in doubt) of threshers gliding past in the blue, and even more examples of the sharks slowly circling on the cleaning stations, allowing the various cleaners to work their parasite-removal magic.
Having done countless dives at Monad Shoal and witnessed all manner of shark encounters, myself and master Evolution spotter Gino were both more than a little surprised to witness a thresher displaying very aggressive behaviour, pectoral fins pointing downwards and repeated arching of the back, resulting in a ‘bucking’ motion.
Luckily, long time Evolution regular Van McRea was able to capture this unusual behaviour on his Go Pro! This particular morning at Monad Shoal was something special – sharks absolutely everywhere, giving everyone some great encounters. We also witnessed multiple pairs of sharks (male/female) swimming nose to tail – perhaps the sharky equivalent of chatting someone up at the bar 🙂
Enjoy the following clip, and please, if anyone has any footage of similar, or any unusual behaviours, please share on FB.
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