Almost a decade before “Jaws” hit the big screen, shark fishing from piers was an accepted and popular practice in South Carolina. But that changed after Walter Maxwell landed a 1,780-pound tiger shark from the end of Cherry Grove Fishing Pier in North Myrtle Beach on June 14, 1964. Maxwell’s catch shattered the world record by more than 350 pounds and still stands today in what has been called “Big Game Fishing’s Greatest Catch.” Maxwell’s catch also became the catalyst for banning shark fishing from piers and populated bathing areas.

Here is the link to the rest of the story at web.charleston.net: http://web.charleston.net/news/2008/aug/21/one_didnt_get_away51527/

“Muscle and blubber from marine mammals were found in 24% of the stomachs we examined. Several species of sharks have been found with mammal remains in their stomachs, but the tiger shark with its cavernous mouth and large stomach capacity is particularly well adapted for devouring large prey. Because there is no evidence in the literature that tiger sharks successfully prey on healthy dolphins, porpoises, and whales, it is possible that these food items came from dead or moribund animals. Their large, blade-like teeth enable them to easily bite through bone and shells of large sea turtles. Although our data suggest that predation on sea turtles is relatively low north of Cape Hatteras, NC other studies have shown that in areas of higher turtle abundance (tropics and subtropics), turtle remains occur in tiger shark stomachs with much greater frequency (10-36%). The primary evidence of attacks on turtles is from the remains of shells and flippers found in shark stomachs. Some maimed turtles heal and survive, but an unknown percentage must surely die. Trash items we found in stomachs included small stones, sand, plastic bags, and assorted garbage such as pork chops, hot dogs, hamburgers, and beef bones. The small stones and sand were likely ingested along with bottom-dwelling prey. Overall, 46 stomachs (81%) contained some kind of food item.”

Here is a link to the artice: http://na.nefsc.noaa.gov/sharks/newsletter/98/tiger.html

We are proud to announce the publication of story of Simon Harmon’s 13 foot 6 inch tiger shark catch. The large tiger shark was landed after and extended battle on a Shimano Tiagra 80 reel from the beach on a large 40 lbs stingray. Simon’s tiger shark is just four inches shorter than the IGFA certified world record catch by Walter Maxwell at the Cherry Grove Pier, South Carolina in 1964.

The story is posted on the FLORIDA SHARK FISHING website. Here is the link to THE STORY.

Large Tiger Shark

Another Large Tiger Shark was landed offshore at Edisto, South Carolina. The tiger shark was landed on rod and reel and appears to be 600 to 700 pounts. Pictures of the shark can be found on the Cockytalk messageboard. To see pictures of the tiger shark, click here. South Carolina has always been famous for shark fishing. Walter Maxwell landed the world record tiger shark on Cherry Grove Pier in 1964.

Along the atlantic, Tiger sharks range as far north as North Carolina and Virginia, and as far south as Georgia and Florida. However it seems South Carolina is the best spot along the Atlantic for consistent action when fishing for tiger sharks.