Basking shark spotted off B.C. coast, expert says sighting is like seeing a ‘unicorn’

A rare sighting in the waters off B.C.’s coast has nature lovers excited that a species may be making a comeback.

Nick Gallant with Island Magic Experiences told Global News that during a recent excursion, his wife spotted an incredibly rare creature in the water.

They had a group of guests on Wallace Island in the Gulf Islands with some hanging out at the camp or going for a paddleboard.

Gallant said his wife decided to go paddleboarding and take her camera and when she came back she said she had seen a basking shark.

“I was immediately like, ‘No, you didn’t. Like, you know, as cool as that would be, I very much doubt it,'” he said.

“They’re so rare. And she pulled up the footage and showed us and sure enough it was. So yeah, super exciting.”

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According to National Geographic, basking sharks are the second-largest fish in the world. They have six rows of teeth in their upper jaws and nine rows below for a total of about 1,500 tiny teeth.

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However, they are docile and no threat to humans. They eat tiny organisms called zooplankton, according to National Geographic.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans says basking sharks were abundant in many areas off B.C. but over the years their numbers in the area have declined.

“Since 1994, sightings in British Columbia waters have become increasingly rare, with only a small number of anecdotal reports from fishermen, boaters and kayakers and occasional validated reports from onboard observers on commercial vessels,” the DFO states on its website.

Scott Wallace, co-owner of Outer Shores Lodge and an author of a book about basking sharks, told Global News that for him, a basking shark sighting is like seeing a Sasquatch or unicorn.

“I know they exist out there,” he said. “They’re so rare that when someone sees one, it’s just such a, you know, remarkable sighting. And then the footage that (Gallant’s wife) took was incredible. You know, it wasn’t a question that it wasn’t a basking shark. You know, that’s amazing.”

Wallace said basking sharks are solitary animals and can live to be between 50 and 100 years old.

“I think that’s what this particular video has done is just really woken up people’s not just imagination, but woken up people’s understanding of what you see, what we’ve lost here on the B.C. coast,” Wallace added.

Gallant said this basking shark was huge and longer than his wife’s paddleboard.

While this sighting happened in June, Gallant said it is just getting some attention now.

“It gives me a lot of hope, you know, to see these animals coming back,” he said.

“People are just so happy that there’s hope that they’re coming back and that there could be more in the future.”