The shark was in good shape when released. This was the only shark of the day, but just the start of the season. Several large porbeagles have been taken so far this year, including a 528 pound monster boated by Malcolm Prosser June 21st on the Kettle Grounds east of Bailey Island Maine. Sea surface temperatures have been average but bottom temperatures were well above normal this past winter. Mackerel first made their appearance on the 11th of June in the Mt. Desert Island area, and were running strongly as of the 18th.
Porbeagles are never far behind.
Warm Water brought large numbers of sharks into the Gulf of Maine in 1999. Reports of mako, blue, porbeagle and even thresher sharks were common. The water inshore is typically about 6-10 degrees F cooler than water offshore and further south. This seemed to suit the porbeagles just fine. Most of these porbeagles were juveniles, 3-5 feet in length, with the largest one being an over 8' female I caught on August 10.