Page 5 - Carcharodon2001

ANNALES · Ser. hist. nat. · 11 · 2001 · 2 (25)

Alessandro DE MADDALENA et al.: AN ANAL YSIS OF THE PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCES OF THE LARGEST GREAT WHITE SHARKS, ..., 193-206

Tab. 2: Relations between the dimensions used in this study, obtained from morphometric data reported in De
Maddalena et al. (2002) of the 583 cm TOT white shark Carcharodon carcharias kept in the Museum of Zoology in

Lausanne.

Tab. 2: Razmerja med dimenzijami, uporabljenimi v tej studiji na osnovi morfometriénih podatkov, ki so jih pred-
stavili De Maddalena et al. (2002) o 583 cm dolgem (celotna iztegnjena dol:tina) belem morskem volku Carcharo-

don carcharias, razstavljenem v lausannskem Zooloskem muzeju.

MEASUREMENTS TOT Tln PRC
TOT- totallength (caudal fin in depressed position) 100.00% 127.29%
Tln- totallength (caudal fin in natura! position) 103.19% 123.36%
PRC - precaudal length 96.91% 100.00% 100.00%
PD1 - pre-first dorsal length 78.56%
PP2 - prepelvic length 37.74% 81.06% 48.03%
PP2-PP1 - prepelvic-prepectoral space 56.60% 38.94% 72.05%
31.73% 58.41% 40.39%
32.74%

RESULTS ANO DISCUSSION enough. To make an estimate we took, as reference, the
visible part of the man holding the shark's caudal fin.
Procida, ltaly, June 1924 Assuming that he was 175 cm tali, the shark's TOT was
estimated at 507 cm, corresponding to 491 cm Tln and
In mid-june 1924, a large white shark was caught 398 cm PRC.
near Procida (ltaly) with the tuna-trap (commonly called
"tonnara" in ltalian) "Simeone". In Anonymous (1924), Enfola, Isola d'Elba, ltaly, August 1ih 1938

where it is erroneously identified as a porbeagle Lamna During the night of August 12'h 1938, a white shark
nasus, it is said to measure ca. 6 m, with a weight of al- was caught with a small tuna-trap (tonnara) belonging to
the Ridi brothers at Enfola, Isola d'Elba (Thyrrenian Sea,
most 12 q. ltaly). Killed with harpoons and rifles, the shark was then
The source al so features a photo of the shark (Fig. 2), towed to land, where, in its stomach, 2 dolphins were
found. The shark was cut in pieces, carried to Florence
where it is visible in whole, even if the body is not in a and its meat sold at the market. lt seems that the same
straight position. In any case, this caused no problem in specimen had been sighted a little earlier in the same
the estimate of its length. The problems are the rather area feeding on dolphins and tunas. The specimen is re-
bad quality of the reproduced picture at our disposal ported in Anonymous (1938), and afterwards cited in De
and the fact that none of the severa! persons present on Maddalena (1999) and probably in Fergusson (1"996)
the photo, even if very dose to the shark, can be seen in (where it is reported without precise capture location
full (with the exception of the child sitting on the shark and it is said to be probably a female). Anonymous
which, however, is not particularly fit for use); con- (1938) state that it was ca. 6 m long, its girth exceeding
squently the references turned out to be not accurate 4 m, and weighing 1800 kg. Fergusson (1996) reported a
total length of over 51 O cm.
Fig. 2: Specimen caught off Procida (ltaly) in fune
1924. (Photo: from "La Domenica del Corriere" 15'h Two photographs of this specimen appear in
fune 1924) Anonymous (1938) and in De Maddalena (1999) (Fig.
SI. 2: Primerek, ujet v bli:tini Procide (ltalija) junija 3), but these are not easily applicable to produce an ac-
1924. (foto: iz éasnika "La Domenica del Corriere" 15. curate estimate. We had the chance to examine another
junija 1924) photograph (Fig. 4), evidently taken only some seconds
after the one reproduced in De Maddalena (1999), and
from side. We assumed as reference the visible part of
the giri on the left, dose to the shark's snout, who ap-
pears to be almost on the piane of the animai. The same
giri is well visible on the photo that appears in De Mad-
dalena (1999), and we assumed her height to be 170
cm. We estimated the PP2 at 338 cm, corresponding to
597 cm TOT, 579 cm Tln, 469 cm PRC. We calculated
that if the girl's height was 175 instead of 170 cm (and
this is surely possible by comparison with the heights of
other persons) the shark's length would increase to 613

197