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850-Pound Shark Spotted Swimming Along Jersey Shore Last Weekend

An 850-pound shark was spotted swimming along the Jersey Shore last weekend.

Freya is a sub-adult female white shark. Her name was chosen by Sea World, and translates to "Noble Woman". Freya was named to honor the noble women researchers on both Expedition Carolinas and on all past research expeditions.

Freya is a sub-adult female white shark. Her name was chosen by Sea World, and translates to "Noble Woman". Freya was named to honor the noble women researchers on both Expedition Carolinas and on all past research expeditions.

Photo Credit: OCEARCH/Chris Ross

Freya -- a sub-adult female white shark -- "pinged" in off the coast of Atlantic City on June 18 around 11:35 a.m., according to shark-tracking organization OCEARCH.

Sharks will "ping" when their dorsal fin is above the surface long enough to be detected by a satellite.

Researches at OCEARCh believe Freya was following the massive schools of menhaden up the coast and into the bay.

Menhaden are important forage fish that help balance the coastal marine ecosystem, according to OCEARCH, and thousands of them have recently been spotted dead in bodies of New Jersey waters.

The OCEARCh tracker shows Freya swam from the Delaware Bay on June 17 along the New Jersey coastline and through Long Island on June 20.

Freya was last "pinged" June 21 on the Rhode Island Sound.

Freya is a sub-adult female white shark and her name was chosen by OCEARCH's partner, Sea World. 

The name translates to "Noble Woman," and Freya was named to honor to the noble women researchers on both Expedition Carolinas and on all past research expeditions who are working to uncover crucial shark insights related to their species' conservation, OCEARCH says.

Click here to track Freya.

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