When a group of youngsters saw a large shark swim past their boat, they did the unexpected and jumped on top of the creature. Their actions have outraged many netizens.
A fun day on the water in July took an ugly turn when a group of friends decided to harass an animal. In the brief clip, what appears to be a large basking shark lurks just above the water’s surface.
The group is on their boat, and one of them records the events as they unfold. The youngsters initially seem stunned by the creature, and some of them can be heard exclaiming in the clip.
JUMPING ON TOP OF THE SHARK
The last few seconds of the video showed one of the men launch himself into the water. His leap landed him right on top of the large fish.
It is uncertain whether the men were aware of the shark’s breed and knew it was a harmless animal. Regardless, much of the online community called out the man’s actions.
It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off for ’em @stooloutdoors (via ig:wtwmass) pic.twitter.com/ya14VS1D7p
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) July 8, 2021
THE DISTURBING BEHAVIOR
The now-viral footage also captured a second man join his friend in the water. In the same scenes, viewers could see as the water splashed and a large commotion took place. As a result, the shark swam away quickly.
Had this group of friends misjudged the shark, things could quickly have turned deadly.
The noisy group may have thought these actions were funny or brave, but many netizens did not agree with them. Furious commenters expressed that they were disturbed by this behavior.
THE ONLINE REACTION
On Twitter, one user said, “I’ve never rooted for a shark to attack someone till I saw this video.” Someone else simply stated that the actions were “incredibly stupid.”
While the location of the video remains unknown, people were relatively certain that the shark in the footage was a basking shark. They are known to be slow plankton eaters that are unbothered by divers.
THINGS COULD HAVE TURNED DEADLY
Despite this, it is believed that people can easily mistake great whites for basking sharks. Had this group of friends misjudged the shark, things could quickly have turned deadly. One user pointed out this fact and alerted viewers to it: