A Florida charter boat got a surprise from three sharks — and one was ‘just hanging out’
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A chartered boat trip off Anna Maria Island received a few friendly visitors for the boat’s captain and customers on Wednesday.
Three whale sharks swam up to Capt. David White’s stationary boat about 30 miles off the island, according to WTVT-Fox 13 Tampa Bay.
Video from the experience, which is a boat with Anna Maria Charters, was posted to Facebook.
“Bumped into (three) feeding whale sharks out there today,” the video caption reads.
In the 41-second video, a whale shark swims on the side of the boat and one person says, “It’s like he likes us,” and “he’s just hanging out looking at us.”
Whale sharks are “generally harmless to humans,” according to the University of Florida researchers with the Florida Museum, despite being the largest fish in the world at lengths of over 40 feet and weighing over a ton.
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservative Commission, whale sharks “feed primarily on microscopic plankton.”
