10-foot great white shark discovered south of Marco Island in the Gulf of Mexico

Great white sharks appear to be having an enjoyable time in the waters off Southwest Florida this winter.

On Saturday, Penny, a 10-foot juvenile white shark female, was located in the Gulf of Mexico, just south of Marco Island. She last sent a message from Marco Island on January 6, Sarasota on January 11, and Cape Coral on January 15.

When a shark produces a ping, the tag on its dorsal fin has broken the surface of the water long enough to send trackers to the shark’s location, according to a recent article by Kim Luciani of the Naples Daily News.

Last April, Penny was detected off the coast of North Carolina. In late October, she left that location and swam north to Nova Scotia, where she started her journey south in search of warmer waters and food sources. Her first known visit to the Sunshine State is now.

Here’s everything you should know about Penny:

When Penny was tagged on April 23, 2023, off the coast of Ocracoke, North Carolina, she weighed 522 pounds and measured 10 feet 3 inches.

Since then, the shark has covered 4,989 miles, going from North Carolina to Nova Scotia and back south to the Gulf of Mexico for the winter.

Penny was the 92nd white shark in the Western North Atlantic to receive a tag from OCEARCH, and she was named after the crew members at Salty Penny Canvas in Morehead City, North Carolina.

This article originally appeared in the Naples Daily News.