It seems that a group of sharks is enjoying an extended holiday weekend in West Hampton, enjoying several leisurely swims along the Cupsogue Beach, where swimmers and surfers have been banned from entering the water since the first sightings occurred earlier this week. more ›

It's that time again! Summer's (sort of) officially here with an early shark sighting this season, this time swimming scarily close to shore at a West Hampton beach. And while there were no reports of human injuries, authorities are also investigating the remains of a (presumably adorable) seal that washed up on the beach this morning, which may be linked to the sharks. more ›

With shark populations on the decline, some unlikely supporters are coming to rescue the species: their victims. Did you know that 73 million sharks are killed a year to make shark fin soup? (Usually the sharks are finned, then left to bleed to death in the water.) Yesterday nine shark attack survivors got together at the United Nations to ask the sharks be saved from this, and other cruel, unnatural fates. more ›

Just before noon today we got word that there have been multiple reports of shark sightings in Jacob Riis Park in the Fort Tilden area—they must know there are no lifeguards in that area! (Over the weekend The Man was on to them after they approached Rockaway Beach.) While there have been a handful of shark sightings after the Coast Guard issued a warning about Great Whites in the area earlier this year, there have been no reports of Great Whites... but that doesn't mean you should get your banana boat out of storage. more ›

Yesterday, Rockaway Beach was cleared when some people enjoying the water noticed sharks. Or maybe just one shark. One surfer told City Room, "It swam right under my buddy’s board as he was paddling out, and some surfers paddled away around the jetty," while another later said, "I got here when it was happening, and I think it was three baby great-whites." However, the best account comes from NY1. more ›

Amazing stuff: WABC 7 has photographs of a sand shark that swam ashore on a Seaside Park, NJ beach. Swimmers were called out of the water around 2:30 p.m. when the 5-foot shark was spotted 10 feet from shore. He (or she!) ventured onto shore—it doesn't seem as if he had a candygram. more ›

Beach 3rd Street at the beach in Rockaway, Queens just became the scene of a sharkicide. Reports are coming in that three dead sharks have just washed up on shore there. We'll update when we have more information. Earlier this season the Coast Guard issued a shark advisory, specifically warning of great whites in the area. No word yet on what kind of sharks washed up today—let's hope it's just prop marketing for this new insanely bad (yet oh so good) looking movie Sharktopus. UPDATE: We're now told that there were no sharks! Smells like a cover up to us. more ›

Not too long ago the U.S. Coast Guard issued a shark advisory, warning New York and surrounding states that great whites may be lurking in the waters. Not long after, a fisherman was bit by an 8-foot-long blue shark, and now 1010Wins reports that lifeguards in three New Jersey towns evacuated waters after receiving reports that two 5-foot (unidentifiable) sharks were close to shore. Sounds like quite the situation. No but seriously, who do you think would win in a duel: The Situation or Jaws? Surely reality television will get there, one day. more ›

That Coast Guard shark warning was serious. Just one day after issuing the warning, an 8-foot-long blue shark chomped on fisherman Frank Joseph's arm. But Joseph and his two angler friends were just trying to return the shark to the wild! more ›

This is probably something to keep in mind any time you're in a body of water, but the U.S. Coast Guard has now put out an official warning for the entire Northeast to watch out for sharks this weekend. According to Fox5, authorities have confirmed the presence of great whites (specifically off the coast of Massachusetts—though we all know they're lurking around out there in New York, too). more ›

It's been over a decade since the National Marine Fisheries Service prohibited commercial fishing of the great white shark and established a catch-and-release policy for recreational fisherman. The species—which has terrified beach-goers and anyone on a banana boat since 1975—is considered threatened by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. more ›

It's shark attack season! And to get you in the mood, NPR has a great story on the shark that played Jaws in the famous 1975 movie. While Amity may have been a fictional place, some believe it to be off of New York—and in Jaws police chief Martin Brody has taken the position at the small beach town after leaving the NYPD. (And did you know the book was based on the 1916 shark attacks off the coast of the Jersey Shore?) more ›

It's like Shark Week over here today. A reader just sent us this photo, taken Sunday at Brighton Beach, saying that this man plucked this baby shark right out of the shallow water with his bare hands. When we inquired about him throwing it back in so it could live, and grow, and eventually feed off of gold-chained locals, she told us, "I think he took it home to cook it" (shark fin soup?). He reportedly put the little guy in a plastic bag, departed, returned to the beach, and resumed sunbathing. Sigh, why did we even ask. more ›

Sharks may attack us humans, especially during slow news summers, but does that make it okay for us to slaughter them? Many chefs don't dare serve up shark fin soup due to its controversial nature, but Animal Tourism says there are plenty of places in the city with the dish—considered a delicacy in Chinese cuisine— on their menus. more ›

Just as Jaws did for the Great White, the giant dead basking shark on Long Island last week caused some confusion about just how dangerous the beast is. The NY Times clears it all up today, tracking the confusion to a few years ago when several basking sharks swam into shallow waters off New York and "some reports held that these generally peaceful sharks can lash out and pose a potential danger to surfers and swimmers when they are wounded, as they usually are when they come ashore." But the experts say that the beast's hundreds of teeth make it almost impossible to bite a human, which is why they prefer swimming with their jaws open and swallowing up plankton. However, one expert told them, “When you have an animal that’s 25 feet long that’s thrashing around, that would be detrimental. They have a lot of power and that could be dangerous to the public. We would always encourage to stay back and not try to touch it or get close to it.” So in conclusion, if you see a giant, thrashing, 5,000 pound shark while wading in the ocean this summer: get thee to shore. Also, don't walk into oncoming traffic. more ›

The shark stories are finally starting to show up this summer. Reports are that a not-quite-dead-yet 20-foot basking shark washed up at Long Island's Gilgo State Park this morning. By the time the state parks department was notified it was already dead, and from the looks of it beachgoers and reporters were getting their photo ops in. And yes, if we had the time, we'd Photoshop a shark asking a washed up 1010WINS reporter for a comment. more ›

Two off-duty Nassau Marine Officers helped save four fisherman whose "boat began sinking in shark-infested waters south of Fire Island," according to Newsday. Mike Spagnuolo and Mike Larmony, in Spagnuolo's charter boat, the Gina Ann, heard the distress call; Spagnuolo said, "We heard the panic in their voice and we knew we had to get there. We knew there were no other boats out there." The distressed boat, the Anger Management, sank minutes after the Gina Ann arrived. Anger Management captain Ray Pasieka and his crew put on life jackets and swam about 50 feet to the Gina Ann. Pasieka, who caught a mako shark but left it on the sinking boat, said, "That was the biggest fear, jumping in the water. We knew there was a shark in the water in eating distance." more ›

30-year-old Long Island native Elbert Starks was arrested yesterday for allegedly shoplifting a live shark from Total Aquarium in Lynbrook. Police say the heist took place last month, when Starks—a sex offender on probation—grabbed a $350 nurse shark from a tank, put it into his jacket, and drove it to a new home in his apartment's aquarium. (The shark survived!) Starks is also accused of using a credit card stolen from another pet shop to buy a 2-foot-long green moray eel for $300, which he put in the tank with the shark. An employee tells the Post, "This guy obviously has a thing for fish." He's charged with grand larceny, which could land him in jail for five years; in his defense, Stark's lawyer explains, "He loves sea life basically, that's what it comes down to." (N.B.: This sharknapping took place weeks before our interview with a shoplifter, so it's definitely not a copycat crime.) more ›

Hey surfers and swimmers, this just in from the newswire: POSSIBLE SHARK SIGHTING*| ROCKAWAY BEACH| CLOSING SWIM AREAS AFTER REPORT FROM FISHERMAN FOR A SHARK SIGHTING. You've been warned, Queens. Though most sharks in the area turn out to be tiny, in 2005 Rockaway got a slightly larger creature. For those keeping track, the unofficial start to shark season this year was in July, when a 5-footer was spotted at Jones Beach. If this new shark has any run-ins with a banana boat, we'll update. more ›

. WCBS 2 went to the beach and captured some of the hysteria: "They told us there were sharks!" "There were like 10 whistles blowing!" A NY State Parks spokesman said the fisherman said he saw a "12- to 15-foot shark," while the park police officer in a patrol boat saw a fin next to the boat. Newsday spoke to some more blasé beachgoers, one said sharks are "as much afraid of us as we are of them." more ›

It's shark season! The first reported spotting of the summer happened at Jones Beach yesterday, as beach-goers trying to cool down spotted a 4 or 5-foot long shark in the bathing area (the shark was noticeably smaller than the recent one spotted with surfers in Florida). more ›

The New York Aquarium is mourning the loss of Bertha (pictured), their 43-year-old sand tiger shark who has resided in its waters since 1965. While their average life spans aren't known, Bertha was believed to have been the longest living sand tiger shark in any aquarium. more ›