Aussie woman captures 'spectacular' encounter with great white shark
Fisherwoman Isabella Sesto, 29, has been fishing for over seven years but has never had an experience like this.
Catching a bluefin tuna has long been on Isabella Sesto's bucket list but finally making the 102 kilogram catch surpassed her wildest dreams — and she never expected it to be in such dramatic circumstances.
After a tiring one and a half hour fight with the tuna last Thursday, the fishing enthusiast, 29, was finally reeling in the heavy catch in Cape Jaffa — along the South Australian coastline — when an unexpected visitor approached the fishing boat.
"We were ready to bring the tuna into the boat and this big shadow came over the tuna and I was like, 'What is that?'" she told Yahoo News Australia.
It wasn't long until all on the boat realised a great white shark was in the water beside them and one of the fishermen quickly began to film the encounter.
"I started lining real fast and went to get the tuna, and then the shark grabbed its tail," she said, explaining the shark bit off the tail of her catch. "There was blood dripping down the boat."
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It's believed the tuna initially weighed approximately 115 kilograms but Isabella could only claim credit for a 102 kilogram catch thanks to the shark — though the fisherwoman doesn't mind at all.
"People back home know how long I've wanted to catch a tuna and they thought I would have been sad it had been eaten, but no way — I would rather see a great white than loading any food. It was truly spectacular," she said.
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To keep tuna meat fresh the fish requires immediate bleeding and the encounter with the shark saved Isabella the laborious task, enjoying some fresh sashimi over the weekend.
"Great white sharks are my favourite animal of all time so I was next level excited."
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