Overview
- Researchers validated multiple quality position estimates placing Kara off Vancouver Island early this week, marking the program’s first confirmed detection in B.C.
- Subsequent data indicated a southward move toward Washington by Wednesday, with locations reported near Cape Disappointment and later off Tacoma.
- Kara is a roughly five‑metre, about 1,000‑kilogram mature female tagged in October 2025 as part of a six‑shark study run by MSCI with Sharktagger and the Expedition White Shark app.
- Scientists call such northern appearances extremely rare, noting prey availability and long‑term ocean warming could make similar visits more likely over time.
- The tags estimate positions from satellite Doppler shifts rather than GPS, so individual fixes can be off, and ongoing monitoring aims to map migration routes and identify pupping habitat.