Four great white sharks feeding on a dead dolphin were caught on drone cameras off the shore of California.
Daily Mail shared the footage, which started with the dolphin floating in the waters of the Pacific Ocean. The current video was taken by Carlos Gauna and shared on YouTube at 1080 resolution highly compressed from the original 4K.
Then, the sharks are seen circling the dolphin cornering the poor mammal as they weigh up the mammal's ability to fight back.
View this post on InstagramHere's a condensed version of clips I captured yesterday. You can see the long video on my previous post and the first 4K version on my mostly neglected YouTube. There were a total of 4 Great Whites ranging from 6 feet to 14 feet in length hanging just behind the shore breaks. A post shared by Carlos G. -California (@themalibuartist) on Jun 15, 2020 at 2:16pm PDT
However, upon realizing the creature can no longer put up a fight, one shark moves forward, taking a big bite out of the dolphin's body.
After this, the other three sharks gradually come close upon realizing that the dolphin can feed the whole family. They circle their dead prey and take turns on ripping and shredding the dolphin's flesh, quickly turning the water red as dolphin's blood, guts, and its remains begin to expel.
However, although the video may seem gruesome, the cameraman continues to film the rare scenes. The ethereal music that plays in the background adds to the haunting feel while watching the video.
While sharks enjoy their lunch, a group of tourists is seen hanging out on a nearby boat, taking the first-class view to the spectacle.
'I don't know who the folks on the boat are, but they got a first-row seat to the show,' Gauna wrote. Also known as The Malibu Artist, Gauna specializes in "professional wedding, portrait, commercial, and fine art photography," according to his website.
The Malibu, California-based photographer posted the clip on YouTube and has already gathered at least 183,121 views since June 14. In the caption for YouTube, Gauna said that the sharks were "just yards away from swimmers."
An oil tanker and a container ship sit off shore of the port of the Long Beach during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Long Beach, California, U.S., April 23, 2020.
"A rare sight, and certainly one of the unique things I've seen just off the shore," he said, describing the four great white sharks as ranging between six and 14 feet in length "hanging just behind the shore breaks."
Four Great White Sharks Feed on a Dolphin
Gauna also shared the video in Storyful where he wrote that it was the first time to see sharks off the coast behaving like this.
"I've been filming sharks off the California coast for a couple of years, and have never seen them eating such [huge cadaver] so close to humans," Gauna said.
He told Storyful that he also noticed larger sharks showing along the coast, which are showing "much less shy behavior around humans."
Meanwhile, Gauna shared he has seen great white sharks along the shores near Santa Monica to Point Dume in Malibu as well as in Ventura and Santa Barbara. He also said he was filming along the coast to remind people about the wildlife in the area.
"Keeping our shores clean, picking up our trash, and being respectful of wildlife's domain should be our focus as beachgoers," Gauna said.
A video shared by BBC on YouTube on August 4, 2018, shows wild dolphins living in the shark-infested waters of Western Australia's Shark Bay. When a shark attacks a family of dolphins, "they need to come together to protect their calf." It now has 664,976 views.
