I will post video footage of the GW from Woods Hole on www.greatwhite.org in the next couple of days under the GW Media section.


ESCAPE TO SEA FOR TRAPPED GW

A large great white shark, which had been trapped in a lagoon off Cape Cod for two weeks, apparently has slipped out to sea, local media reported Tuesday.

The shark, a 14-foot-long, 1,700-pound female -- named Gretel by the scientists monitoring her -- had been swimming around the lagoon on this island near the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute since Sept. 21, attracting scientists and tourists alike.

Last Friday, local fishermen, using electricity, a water gun and netting, managed to herd the giant fish into shallow Lackey's Bay inlet, just beyond the entrance to the lagoon. There, a sandbar between the inlet and the open ocean apparently deterred the animal temporarily.

Although the shark has disappeared, scientists will be able to track its movements, because while it was trapped, they managed to attach a radio transmitter containing a global-positioning system receiver.

Great white sharks are among the largest predators in the ocean and are responsible for many attacks on humans. A great white was played by a 25-foot mechanical shark in the 1975 blockbuster movie, Jaws. Gretel's calm and non-aggressive demeanor seemed to belie the species' fearsome reputation, however, scientists said