Two new-born great white sharks, Carcharodon carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758) (Lamniformes; Lamnidae) from Turkish waters of the north Aegean Sea

Abstract

          On July 1, 2008, a new-born great white shark was captured by a commercial gill-netter off the coast of Altınoluk (Edremit Bay, north Aegean Sea), followed by the capture of another juvenile three days later at the same locality during a haul of bottom long-line set by the same fisherman. Before the present study, the smallest free-living white shark from the Mediterranean Sea appeared to be a 142 cm TL small female juvenile, captured off Mazara del Vallo in August 11, 1983 (catalog No. MSI-0285J, appendix 1 in Fergusson , 1996). Therefore, specimen No. 1 (125,5 cm TL) of the present study is possibly the smallest neonate white shark from Mediterranean waters to date.