CANNON BEACH, Ore. — An 120-pound dead shark that was nearly 9 feet long washed ashore on the Oregon Coast on Sunday, according to the Seaside Aquarium.
The female broadnose sevengill shark was 8.7 feet long. It washed up at the south end of Arcadia Beach State Recreation Site, a few miles south of Cannon Beach.
In a social media post, aquarium officials said the shark died prior to winding up on the beach, but that it was "still in remarkable shape."
It was recovered from the beach Monday morning and will be frozen for research and educational purposes through Oregon State University.
"Broadnose sevengill sharks are one of seventeen species of sharks that can be found off the Oregon Coast," the Seaside Aquarium wrote. "While they are known for their aggressive behavior when feeding ... there has not been a documented attack on a human along the Oregon Coast."
The average swimmer may still be wary to get up close and personal with these sharks, however, since they can grow close to 10 feet long and weigh up to 400 pounds.
There have only been five documented attacks on humans by a broadnose sevengill in recent history, and none of those attacks were fatal, although "the jury is still out on that one since human remains have been found in the stomachs of some sevengills," the aquarium said.
Smaller sevengills feed on fish and squid but as they get bigger, they start to prey on marine mammals and are known to hunt in packs.
