Sunfish spotted in Linekin Bay
Boaters have kept a close eye on the waters around Boothbay Harbor since a great white shark sighting made national headlines at the beginning of the month.
On August 17, Michael Schafer said he spotted a dorsal fin breaching the waters in Linekin Bay. He initially thought a whale was swimming too close to shore, but as his sailboat approached the fin, he said it looked more like a shark hovering around the surface, until he saw a large fish jump completely out of the water twice. Upon closer inspection, Schafer identified the species as an ocean sunfish.
Known as the heaviest bony fish in the world, ocean sunfish typically inhabit warmer waters, but have been spotted in the gulf of Maine more frequently during the summer months. The average adult weight of an ocean sunfish is 2,200 pounds.
Schafer recorded a video and submitted the footage to the Boothbay Register on August 20.
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