Diver has rare encounter with Great White shark in Mediterranean
Volunteer clearing fishing nets from wreck off Sicily says fingers trembled while videoing creature; hopes it doesn't spark hunt for endangered species, which was spotted far from shore
A diver on Monday described the “very special” moment he encountered and filmed a Great White shark while exploring a shipwreck in the Mediterranean in late May.
Speaking to the BBC, volunteer diver Derk Remmers said that his team of three spotted the huge creature swimming near them, in what was an extremely rare encounter.
“In fact, my fingers were trembling when I was trying to get the camera operating, but on the other hand, my biggest fear was that I couldn’t get the camera running to record this rare event,” he said.
The team was diving in the Strait of Sicily to clear abandoned fishing nets, known as ghost nets, from the shipwreck.
Remmers emphasized that he hopes the footage doesn’t scare anyone or spark a “hunt” for the creature, stressing that the shark was spotted in the middle of the Mediterranean, far from any beaches where it could endanger humans.
“When we learned this might very well be the first underwater footage of the adult white shark in its own habitat in the Mediterranean, then it sank in a little bit that this was somewhat pretty special,” he said.
Although Great Whites are protected in the Mediterranean under international law, illegal fishing is driving the species to extinction in the sea, experts say. Last year, US researchers, in cooperation with UK charity Blue Marine Foundation, found that at least 40 Great Whites were killed in 2025 alone, in a study of North African fishing ports.