JUPITER, Fla. — One Florida diver got up close and personal with one of the most dangerous predators in the ocean: the bull shark.
Captain John Moore was free diving off the coast of Jupiter when he found himself face-to-face with the massive animal.
"A fish had grabbed the chunk of bait and run toward me for cover, before getting scared and dropping the chunk. This set me up for a shot that’s even too close for my 20mm lens," Moore wrote on Instagram.
The photos show the shark's razor-sharp teeth and yellow-tinted eyes.
The 55-year-old diver said it was a pregnant female shark that's likely overweight because of the influx of baitfish this time of year, according to CBS 12.
"She came powering right up through the bulls,” Moore told the news station. “She was super dominant, just right in the forefront of everything.”
Moore heads up local operations at Florida Shark Diving off the coast of Jupiter, known for taking visitors on thrilling shark dives. As you can see from his Instagram page, Moore is no stranger to a close shark encounter.
Bull sharks are often considered to be the most dangerous sharks to humans because of their aggressive tendencies and ability to migrate up rivers, according to the National Wildlife Foundation.
The organization says bull sharks live in coastal waters all over the world but can be found off the East Coast of the United States and in the Gulf of Mexico. Because they prefer shallow coastal water, they can often come into contact with humans, the NWF says.
Female bull sharks can grow to 11 or more feet, while males typically grow to about seven feet in length, according to the NWF. The organization says adult sharks usually weigh between 200 and 500 pounds.
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