# Shark or Dolphin?



## Chuckt (Dec 30, 2013)

Two Pint-Sized SoCal Surfers "Photobombed" by Possible Shark | NBC Southern California


> A South Bay woman took the photograph near 31st Street in Manhattan Beach on Friday, and she said she didnt even realize the sea creature hiding in her photo until she checked the camera in the car.


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## Mad_Cabbie (Dec 30, 2013)

That would be called "photoshopped."

And yes, it's a shark, but not inside a wave sitting perfectly still.

Furthermore, why would she leave so much room to the right of the subject unless she either saw the shark and wanted to include it (contrary to being 'photobombed") or left room to later add the shark?


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## dannyboys (Dec 30, 2013)

Mad_Cabbie said:


> That would be called "photoshopped."
> 
> And yes, it's a shark, but not inside a wave sitting perfectly still.
> 
> Furthermore, why would she leave so much room to the right of the subject unless she either saw the shark and wanted to include it (contrary to being 'photobombed") or left room to later add the shark?


Notice the swimmers are also "perfectly still"? That's what happens when you use a device to take a photo that has a FUCKING SHUTTER!!!!!!!! Ever notice an F1 car "sitting Still" on a race track in a STILL PHOTO?!!!!!
Wise up pal.


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## Katzndogz (Dec 30, 2013)

Sharks are very common in the South Bay.  It's not surprising that someone might catch a shark in a photo.


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## Delta4Embassy (Dec 30, 2013)

Definitely a shark. Hard to tell type though because of how distorted the water and wave make it appear. As-is, looks like a blue shark with long slender body, but that'd be very unusual so close to shore. 

Spent my youth studying sharks, Dad being a fish and poultry butcher. At one point I'd probably read every book, and see every documentary ever made. Hard to tell much from the pic, but sharks do get into waves. My brother's a surfer and loves freaking me out with tales of the big dark shadow that swam beneath him that one time.  As a diver myself I've never seen a shark in the wild. But while snorkeling off Florida way back I later discovered an annual blacktip migration was taking place while I was there. So the thought of catching sight of dozens of sharks is just as well an experience I missed. Probably never go in teh water again 

One of the most disturbing shark sightings happened in think Massachusetts where a big female white shark go into a small river. Are videos and stills of it all over. But at point it's in this very narrow part where youc ould easily imagine going in for a dip and here's this 14 foot white shark lazily cruising around. 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nLaGZfyBCY]Great White Shark in Massachusetts salt pond - YouTube[/ame]


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## HereWeGoAgain (Dec 30, 2013)

It appears that the tail is horizontal which would indicate a dolphin.


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## Delta4Embassy (Dec 30, 2013)

That's true. Hard to tell conclusively, little more than shadow. Certainly more likely to see dolphins 'surfing' than sharks. But I think it's a shark.


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## Mad_Cabbie (Dec 30, 2013)

dannyboys said:


> Mad_Cabbie said:
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> 
> > That would be called "photoshopped."
> ...




What I mean by _still_ is that the shark would appear to be resting right smack dab in the middle of a wave. You fish for shark? I do and I fish the surf enough to know that any fish caught in a wave will quickly maneuver to try and avoid be smacked onto the surf. 

Fish that get caught in a wave will turn towards the deeper water and will usually be seen in the upper part of the wave. 

If this fish were directly behind the wave, it would be caught in a low point where water would be too shallow for their liking and the shark would normally move to deeper water, thus not being readily viewed this clearly.

A wave such as this one would usually break at a sand bar, which most sharks would AVOID getting caught in front of.


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## Mad_Cabbie (Dec 30, 2013)

HereWeGoAgain said:


> It appears that the tail is horizontal which would indicate a dolphin.



I don't see how that determination could be made with any kind of certainty. 

Tail fins will bend with the waves or tide. The 'body language" is wrong for a dolphin, who will usually "roll" in the water, whereas sharks don't swim that way and are much more lazy.


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## HereWeGoAgain (Dec 30, 2013)

Mad_Cabbie said:


> HereWeGoAgain said:
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> 
> > It appears that the tail is horizontal which would indicate a dolphin.
> ...



  I said it "appears"
It could be either. And sharks swim in waves like that all the time while patrolling the gut for food.  He'll drop out of the backside of the wave to stay in the gut.
Same for dolphins.


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## Mad_Cabbie (Dec 30, 2013)

HereWeGoAgain said:


> Mad_Cabbie said:
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At the bottom of the wave? Not really sure about that one. I could be wrong, but I've never seen one "hanging" in a wave like that. I think this is a fake.


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## HereWeGoAgain (Dec 30, 2013)

Mad_Cabbie said:


> HereWeGoAgain said:
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    I've seen them do it. I wont say I've seen it a bunch of times because the water on the upper Texas coast usually isnt that clear. I've seen it most often on the lower Texas coast past Corpus Christe where the water is cleaner due to fewer river mouths dumping sediment into the Gulf.
   The best chance of seeing this is from the backside of the waves. I've seen it while trolling for Tarpon along the beach front. They'll pop out of the back of the wave and drop back into the deeper water of the gut(where all the trout and reds hangout) before the wave breaks on the next bar.


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## Mad_Cabbie (Dec 30, 2013)

HereWeGoAgain said:


> Mad_Cabbie said:
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But, from the beach? At the bottom of the wave? I dunno. This is a pretty big wave, also and it seemed to break very close in.


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## Mad_Cabbie (Dec 30, 2013)

Same shit, different year.


*Shark or dolphin? A brief moment of panic at the Hurley Pro*
September 19, 2012 by Chris Mauro



> Rookie pro Kolohe Andino had a tough second-round match at the Hurley Pro, and then he had the real locals he had to contend with. Both Andino and fans watching got a good scare when this surfing fan got a little too close.



Shark or dolphin? A brief moment of panic at the Hurley Pro | GrindTV.com


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## Mad_Cabbie (Dec 30, 2013)

???????


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## Gracie (Dec 30, 2013)

Looks like a shark but I think it's a hoax.


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## HereWeGoAgain (Dec 30, 2013)

Mad_Cabbie said:


> HereWeGoAgain said:
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  I've seen seven footers in Two feet of water. Hell I've seen the top half of em out of the water while they cross a bar to get to the next gut.  Not to mention the stringer of trout I lost in chest deep water to what I assume was a bullshark a damn BIG bullshark based on how far and easy he dragged me.


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## keyboardwarrior (Jan 11, 2014)

Its Shark.


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## gallantwarrior (Jan 11, 2014)

HereWeGoAgain said:


> It appears that the tail is horizontal which would indicate a dolphin.



Exactly what I saw.  The tail is horizontal, not vertical.  I vote: dolphin.


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## Immanuel (Jan 11, 2014)

First glance, I thought shark then I noticed the tail fin and even though the article I read indicated it was a shark, I said bullshit, that is a dolphin.

Immie


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## Mad_Cabbie (Jan 11, 2014)

Immanuel said:


> First glance, I thought shark then I noticed the tail fin and even though the article I read indicated it was a shark, I said bullshit, that is a dolphin.
> 
> Immie



You will be hard pressed to see a dolphin sitting still like that - it would usually be rolling.


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## Immanuel (Jan 11, 2014)

Mad_Cabbie said:


> Immanuel said:
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> > First glance, I thought shark then I noticed the tail fin and even though the article I read indicated it was a shark, I said bullshit, that is a dolphin.
> ...



It is a still picture, I haven't seen any video.  And I have never seen a shark remain motionless either.  I think it is a dolphin.

On the other hand, I've seen pictures of people at the beach south of Tampa and a helicopter hovering over them filming swimmers literally surrounded by hammerhead sharks.  

Makes you want to get back out of the water!

Immie


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## Mad_Cabbie (Jan 11, 2014)

Dolphin dorsal fin

Looks more like a shark than a dolphin to me. They dont travel alone. If this were a dolphin, the people on the beach would have seen its companions nearby, even if they were not in the picture.
Also, the profile is wrong. The back half of the animal is too long and skinny to be a dolphin.


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