Dylan Wagemans
AFTER the recent sighting of a seven-metre basking shark just off the beaches of Marbella, many people wondered what other large marine animals live in the waters off the Costa del Sol.
The stretch of sea along Spain’s southern coast is known as the Alboran Sea – and it’s home to a surprisingly diverse range of marine life, including dolphins, Atlantic bluefin tuna and even whales.
But in every rich marine ecosystem, there’s always a top predator, and in the Alboran Sea, that means sharks.
Perhaps the most frightening of which, thanks to popular culture, is the great white shark.
Great whites can grow up to six metres in length, and weigh around two tons.
Although great whites are a rarity in the Mediterranean, they’re not unusual to roam the waters of the Alboran sea.
This apex predator is protected under numerous conservation rules, as they are vulnerable and of utmost importance to the marine food chain.
Other sharks also found in the Alboran sea are: Porbeagle sharks, angel sharks and thresher sharks, with an astonishingly-long tail fin that can match its body length.
Sightings of sharks are relatively common in Spain, but attacks on humans are very rare.
When a person gets attacked by a shark in Spain, they usually suffer lacerations on their arms and legs.
The last attack in Spain happened in 2023, according to sharksider.com, with blue sharks being responsible for many attacks.
