This is the moment a fisherman drags up his bait to find it's been bitten off by a six-foot shark that had also been attacked.
Dave Perkins was fishing with two customers off the Florida coast when they decided to reel in a blacktip shark that had been chasing away their fish.
When they reeled in their bait they saw the predator swim up to the surface but had a huge chunk taken out of its body near the fin.
Mr Perkins said: “While I was holding the leader to unhook the fish, it jerked and writhed violently.
“I assumed that the shark was just angry at being manhandled – I didn’t know it was actually the shark being bit until I pulled it closer and saw the wound.
“I felt intimidated when I saw the bite. I was nervous that it was going to get bitten while I was holding the wire leader.
“I’ve caught and released nearly 1,000 sharks in my life and nothing like this has ever happened to me before.”
The trio were off South Florida, near the Everglades National Park, when they caught the shark.
The moment its gruesome wound comes into view is caught on camera, along with the shocked reaction of the crew.
In the footage, the shark is bleeding heavily, but somehow it’s still alive.
Fearing that whatever predator was responsible might come back to finish the job, Mr Perkins cut the line as quickly as possible, without retrieving the hook.
One possible culprit for the attack is an even bigger shark – a 10-foot suspect was seen circling the boat soon after the wounded animal escaped.
The 51-year-old said: "It was a bull shark.
“They are common in our waters and by far the most vicious and aggressive sharks on earth.
“They are often found in murky waters and will eat just about anything.”
In any case, it was a stomach-churning experience – even for an experienced catch-and-release fisherman like Mr Perkins.
He said: "I felt awful for the shark that was bitten. I love sharks, I hate to see them hurt.”
But he’s nonetheless hopeful that the smaller shark might have survived.
He said: “I was hopeful that if I could release it quickly, I might possibly get away and recover from its wound.
“It wasn’t bitten in its vitals and I’ve seen sharks with horrible scars on them in different stages of healing.
“I knew it would have zero chance of surviving if it got bitten again while I was trying to wrangle the hook out of its mouth.”
As for the animal responsible, Mr Perkins, who lives in Key Largo, thinks it was the bigger shark.
But the fishing captain agrees that the ocean still holds some secrets.
“I would say that there are still plenty of mysteries in the deep,” he said.
“Probably not as many in the shallows of the oceans – especially in very populated places like Florida.
“That being said, I have seen many crazy things out on the water in my half a century out on it.”
