Once upon a time in surfing, shark sightings were fleeting.
A quick glimpse of a shadow, water warping the view of the reef, or hell, just a surfer’s own spooked imagination, and that was it.
Either way, whether real or imagined, it was over quickly and witnessed by just one person. Sharks, one could say, were in the eye of the beholder. “That one time I saw a shark,” became a gem of a surfing story for years to come.
But times have changed.
Shark footage is a regular thing now. So clear, so obvious, leaving no room for that old, “no way, not right here.”
Except for the clip above.
Gold Coast photographer Huw Williams posted the video a few days ago and captioned it:
“Shark or Dolphin? We’ll never know for sure what was cruising thru the lineup on Sunday morning Photo credit: @coastal_content“
The clip shows a crowded lineup in Australia on a sunny day with crystal clear water.
Suddenly, a big shadowy figure swims through the lineup and eventually disappears into the back of a wave.
The debate over what it was got a little heated in the comments. Viewers had different suggestions:
“1000% the Megalodon “
“It’s a merman.”
“It’s Billy Idol.”
“Obviously a Russian Submarine!!”
“It’s a Chinese mini-sub, no doubt about it. 100% legit”
“It’s actually a shark, believe it or not, they live and swim in the ocean”
“If it was a shark you’d see its tail moving side to side, it’s a Dugong”
“It was a big ass shark, lucky he didn’t nibble on anyone’s toes”
Finally, one viewer settled it:
“He’s a rare bottle-nosed dolphin from Miami. Trust me, I’m a pet detective.”
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