PANAMA CITY BEACH— A great white shark named Bella has been making her rounds off the coast of Panama City Beach and Gulf County.
Ocearch is a global nonprofit that tracks 475 animals throughout the world’s oceans. One of the sharks it tracks is Bella, a 10-foot, 2-inch great white juvenile weighing 729 pounds.
Bella has been busy; she last passed Panama City Beach on March 17 on her way to Louisiana. The shark filled her Cajun cravings on March 22 and headed back to the Florida panhandle.
Her last ping was April 20, when Bella was spotted just off the coast of Cape San Blas in Gulf County. Her current location marker shows the shark heading back out into the Gulf.
Bella’s long journey in the past year
It’s been a long journey for the shark to make its way to the Gulf’s warm waters. Bella was tagged off the coast of Nova Scotia on July 18, 2025. From there, she made her way down the eastern seaboard.
The shark hung out off the Carolinas between December and January before making the long trek around the Florida peninsula.
“By tracking Bella’s movements, researchers will gain insights into migration patterns, habitat use, and the role of Canadian waters in the life cycle of white sharks,” reads Ocearch’s description of Bella. “But her journey is more than just scientific; it’s a symbol of the collective effort it takes to protect them.”
Studying the ‘great’ white shark
While the public commonly refers to them as “great” white sharks, the scientific terminology is just “white” shark.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, white sharks are apex predators that play an important ecological role in the world’s oceans. They are among the most protected sharks globally because of their vulnerability to human impacts.
The Gulf Great White Shark Society says that while it was once thought to be rare for them to emerge in the Florida panhandle, recent research has shown that they’re more common locally than once thought.
“In 2025, a charter fisherman filmed a roughly 14-foot great white about nine miles off Destin,” reads a release from GGWSS. “In early 2026, multiple large sharks — some over 13 and 14 feet — were caught and released near Navarre Beach and Pensacola.”
Their abundance isn’t new, just more well-documented now, according to the article.
Just a couple of weeks ago, on April 7, another charter boat out of Destin caught a close encounter with a white shark on video. The captain said the shark seemed to be 12 feet long.
“While shark encounters do occur, there have been no documented great white shark attacks in the Gulf of Mexico,” reads a release from GGWSS. “Most of these sharks remain offshore and are focused on natural prey and most of their activities in the Gulf are in winter and early spring.”
What are the chances of being attacked by a white shark?
The data shows that beachgoers are unlikely to have to worry about Bella. There were 65 unprovoked shark bites worldwide in 2025, nine of which were fatal. Only one of those fatalities occurred in the United States.
Data cited by U.S. Harbors found that the odds of dying as a result of a shark attack in the U.S. are 1 in 4,332,817. It is statistically more probable to be killed by wasps, dogs or snakes.
The last high-profile shark attack in the Florida panhandle occurred in Walton County in 2024. Three swimmers were attacked along the 30A corridor on the same day. While no fatalities resulted, one of the attacks led to a hand being amputated.
Readers can follow Bella’s journey on Ocearch’s website: https://www.ocearch.org/tracker/detail/bella.
This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Great white shark has been hanging out near the Florida panhandle
Reporting by Dylan Gentile, Panama City News Herald / The News Herald
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
