iStockphoto / Daniel Smith
Tarpon fishing season in Southwest Florida is peaking right now and Boca Grande has long claimed to be the ‘tarpon fishing capital of the world’ even if the true ‘capital’ runs from Tampa Bay to Charlotte Harbor this time of year with the best fishing skewing a little north these days. And like clockwork, as the tarpon fishing heats up the sharks show up in droves chasing the ‘silver king’ for a delicious meal.
Anglers chase tarpon in a variety of ways, from heavy tackle and live crabs to get the fish to the boat as quickly as possible for a safe release to fly fishing which is particularly popular in the Boca Grande, Florida area. Regardless of the gear setup, these massive fish still put up a fight and get tired on the way to the boat.
Enormous Bull Shark Eats Tarpon Next To Boat In Boca Grande, Florida
This short video has gone viral on TikTok. ‘Bull shark eats tarpon‘ is sort of ubiquitous during tarpon fishing season because (1) the bull sharks are everywhere, (2) their favorite meal is tarpon, and (3) while they’re not quite eating the whole fish they are devouring big chunks… This particular tarpon appears to be about 100+ pounds and it took the angler 20 minutes of battling it on rod-and-reel to get it to the boat before the bull shark sniped it for an easy meal.
A brutal result. That was an incredible fish.
How To Save Tarpon From Shark Attacks
There are rules and norms when tarpon fishing. Firstly, tarpon measuring over 40″ must only be handled with wet hands, supported in the underbelly, anglers must have a tarpon tag (here in Florida), and they can be held up for photos but serious anglers suggest you should not remove them from the water.
While battling tarpon, if an angler or anyone on the boat spots a shark chasing the fish it is recommended to open the bail on the reel and allow the fish to swim freely (free spool). This enables the fish, which is already exhausted from fighting the angler, to have a fighting chance and swim away from the shark.
Even still, these huge bull sharks and hammerheads often appear without warning. The angler doesn’t always have time to open the bail and the fish gets eaten like above and in this clip from last year:
That is just an absolute UNIT of a bull shark eating that tarpon. I’m not one to be afraid of swimming in the Gulf because of sharks but you would not catch me swimming near the Boca Grande Lighthouse on the south end of the island this time of year, not with all of the tarpon in the water flashing their silvery scales for sharks to see.
Be safe out there!
Content shared from brobible.com.