YouTube user kairokk posted a video featuring footage shot off Hawaii’s Kaena Point on January 12, 2012. The video shows a large shark circling a fishing boat and features some colorful commentary by the videographer. The shark in question is identified in the video title and throughout the video by the men on the boat as a great white shark, but a quick glance at the YouTube comments shows that there are others who are identifying it as a mako.

From the 2:08 mark until about the 2:15 mark gives about the best close-up view of the shark. So, to all the shark experts out there, is this a mako or a white shark? (My non-expert self is voting mako.)

The video above is the second in a series of footage of the shark, if you didn’t get enough from the clip above, check out the other clip.

The killing of a white shark in Australia is punishable by a fine of up to $11,000 and a two-year jail sentence, according to The Telegraph.

It was reported that some of the people on the scene claimed that the shark (seen in this photo) was a mako (Isurus oxyrinchus), which is not protected in Australia. A spokesperson for the Department of Primary Industries, who are investigating the incident, said that thinking the shark was a mako was “not an excuse.”

To read the full article head over The Telegraph.

Ocean Encounters has posted a video featuring divers Fred Buyle and William Winram freediving with great white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) to their YouTube channel.

It’s not entirely clear from the video description where this was filmed other than somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. From the looks of it, there was also a healthy tuna population at the dive site.

The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that an airline pilot had an encounter with a flying great white shark at “several thousand feet.” Don’t worry, SyFy’s “Mega Shark” has not become a reality, rather the shark in question was a wayward helium filled Air Swimmers toy, a popular item this Christmas, according to the report. The encounter occurred on December 26, during the pilot’s descent into New Zealand’s Christchurch International Airport. The incident was reported to ground control (no word on whether Major Tom was involved) to alert other air traffic to the presence of the toy.

William Mark Corporation, the designer of the toy, notes that it is strictly for indoor use. So, if you were the lucky recipient of an Air Swimmers great white over the holidays, please make sure to keep your shark inside at all times.

Underwater filmmaker Joe Romeiro has released yet another awesome white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) video. “Battle Scars” focuses on my favorite shark on the planet, “Cal Ripfin” (aka “Shredder”). Cal is a regular around Isla de Guadalupe in the fall months and is easily recognizable by his distinctive dorsal fin damage (as well as his many other “battle scars”).

Kudos to Joe for putting together another great video!

Central Coast News (KION 46) recently interviewed shark attack survivor Eric Tarantino about his encounter with a white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) while surfing off California’s Marina State Beach on October 29, 2011. Tarantino’s injuries from the shark bite have healed, and he plans to head back into the water before the end of the year, according to the interview with Central Coast News.

In addition to setting up a foundation to help Tarantino cover his medical expenses, Vernor Surfboards will be giving Tarantino a new surfboard and wetsuit to help get him back in the water.

Matt Garrett captured the video above of an adult white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) spotted about 25 miles southeast of Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. According to an NBC report Garrett, from Boston, was fishing with friends when the shark showed up and began circling the boat. Garrett says the shark stayed in the area for about 20 minutes.

While white shark sightings off of the coast of North Carolina are not unheard of, it is fairly rare for sightings in the area to be documented on video. Tracking data indicates that the waters off North Carolina are along Atlantic white sharks migratory routes. In the spring and summer months white sharks have been documented traveling north along the East Coast from Florida waters to the cooler waters off New England, and then returning south in the fall and winter months.

Western Australia officials have ruled out the culling of white sharks.

The Australian is reporting that Fisheries Minister Norman Moore has ruled out any cull of white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) in response to three fatal shark attacks in Western Australia. Instead a newly formed response unit will look examine the effectiveness of shark nets, correlations between weather conditions and shark attacks, and whether or not protection laws have resulted in an increase in the number of the species.

Moore said that his department is trying to balance protecting the species and providing as much information about the probability of shark attacks when they go swimming. Additionally, the response unit will assess the effectiveness of the SMS shark alert system.

Wildlife artist Frank Newmyer has added another video featuring more photos of his breaching white shark sculpture. The latest video features plenty of close-up shots that show off the level detail in the piece.

A juvenile male white shark recently released by the Monterey Bay Aquarium has died, according to a report from the aquarium. The white shark (seen in the video above) had been on display at the aquarium from August 31 until late October of this year. The shark was released on October 25. Data from a pop-up tracking tag, attached to the shark prior to his release, revealed that the he died “shortly after he was released.”

The report from the aquarium’s Sea Notes blog, goes on to say that the white shark team will review its procedures and protocols in order to see if changes to the program are necessary.

This marks the second time that tracking tags have revealed the death of a white shark released from the aquarium. A juvenile female white shark that was released in November of 2009 showed up dead in a fisherman’s gill-net in early 2010. After a tracking tag attached to the shark started reporting data on land, a Mexican researcher traced the tag movements to the home of a the fisherman who acknowledged having caught the shark.