Children run from sea after 10ft shark spotted in Cornwall harbor

Children run from sea after 10ft shark spotted in Cornwall harbor

A 10ft shark has been filmed swimming at a harbor in Cornwall, causing children in the sea to scream and flee when it approached them in shallow water.

The juvenile basking shark could clearly be seen gliding through the clear turquoise water at St Ives Harbour.

According to reports, a group of about 30 children panicked and ran out of the sea when they saw the shark’s dorsal fin some 20ft away.

However, basking sharks, which can grow to 26ft long, are harmless to humans.

The young shark in St Ives swam next to a harbor wall and beach where the children and teenagers were having a dip at 9pm on Tuesday.

‘They didn’t realize it was harmless’

Andy Narbett, from Tiger Lilly Boat Trip St Ives, who took the photos, said: “I had finished my trips for the day and was walking around the harbor front when I spotted the juvenile basking shark next to the harbor wall.

“It was incredible to see it so close; it is very rare as we haven’t seen any basking sharks for some years in the bay.

“The poor kids who were in the water must have only been 20ft from it.

“They didn’t realize it was harmless so they started screaming and got straight out of the shallow water.

“At a guess there were 20 kids playing on the small beach and eight in the water on paddle boards.

“I went on social media and joked afterwards that Jaws had entered the harbor!”

People took to social media to comment on the sighting, with one joking: “We’re gonna need a bigger boat.”

Basking sharks pose no threat to humans and feed only on plankton. They used to be fished for their meat, fins and liver oil until the species became protected in 1998.

They are the UK’s biggest fish and can weigh over 10,000lbs at full size. They are the second biggest fish in the world after the whale shark.

Basking sharks are one of only three shark species to feed on plankton and come into shallow water in the spring and summer months to feed.