Largest male great white shark EVER on record spotted off the east coast

THE largest great white shark ever recorded in the Atlantic has been spotted off the East Coast of the United States.

Contender, an adult male shark, has made his way up and down the East Coast this year, with him last stalking the coast of Quebec, Canada.

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The largest shark ever recorded was tracked on the coast of New JerseyCredit: Instagram/Ocearch

The shark, Contender, is an adult maleCredit: Instagram/Ocearch

Contender weighs over 1600 poundsCredit: Instagram/@OCEARCH

The great white weighs a shocking 1653 pounds and measures 13 feet long.

Since January, he’s been tracked by the global nonprofit Ocearch, which collects data to help scientists understand the ocean.

At the beginning of the year, Contender was caught off the coast of the Florida/Georgia coastline.

Now, the massive shark is hovering around New Jersey as it begins its journey down the coast.

From April to mid-June, the shark was spotted around the Outer Banks in North Carolina. 

For Contender’s movements to be tracked, his tracker must send a signal, or “ping.”

A ping registers when his dorsal fin breaks water, and an Argos satellite records it.

In July, the shark continued its journey north and was later pinged off the coast of Massachusetts.

As fall approached, Contender was pinged in Canada, and in late October, he was pinged as he headed back down to the US.

Researchers say that makes Contender “one of the furthest northern pinging sharks that we’ve had.”

Chris Fischer, founder and expedition leader of OCEARCH, said, “Only a couple have made it that far north.

“An animal like that, spending the summer and fall up north – what are they doing?

“Well, a lot of what they’re doing is preparing for the winter.”

Two weeks later, Contender was pinged off the coast of Atlantic City, New Jersey.

The shark was pinged going up and down the East CoastCredit: Instagram/Ocearch

“Each ping adds another clue to the puzzle of white shark migration in the Western North Atlantic—and our team is tracking every move,” OCEARCH said. 

Contender is expected to make his way back down to Florida for warmer water and more food sources.

Scientists are hoping tracking Contender could help them figure out where great white sharks mate.

“These big mature males are hugely important because they can help us understand where and when mating is occurring,” Fischer said.

Unlike females with complex two-year migratory cycles, “the male white sharks basically have their whole year revolve around mating.”

“There’s never been a white shark mating site identified anywhere in the world in any one of the nine populations,” he added.

“It would be a first.”