Huge tiger shark swimming off MS Coast after 2,000-mile trek. And she’s pregnant
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- Pregnant tiger shark Hanna pinged near Biloxi after a 2,000-mile migration.
- OCEARCH researchers confirmed pregnancy via ultrasound during April tagging.
- Public can track Hanna’s movements through OCEARCH’s Global Shark Tracker.
A tiger shark with wanderlust has journeyed from the East Coast to just off the shore of Biloxi.
On Aug. 29, while South Mississippi was recalling the destruction of Hurricane Katrina 20 years earlier, Hanna was due south of Biloxi. She moved closer the next day. On Labor Day, while people were swimming and riding jet skis in the Mississippi Sound, Hanna moved closer still.
Hanna’s a big, female shark, measuring 11 feet, 11 inches. When she was tagged on April 13, she weighed an estimated 722 pounds. And she’s pregnant, according to OCEARCH, an organization that leads in ocean research and shark conservation.
“During the tagging process, an ultrasound confirmed that Hanna is pregnant, offering OCEARCH a rare opportunity to learn more about tiger shark reproduction,” the group’s website says.
Tiger sharks carry their young for 13 to 16 months. OCEARCH didn’t say when the tiger pup might be born.
Hanna’s a swimmer
Hanna also has her own blog on the group’s website, where people can track her movements on the OCEARCH Global Shark Tracker.
The shark has kept moving since she was tagged off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida, traveling 2,000 miles in 141 days. That’s an average of just over 14 miles a day in the 4.5 months since she was tagged.
The latest ping was on Labor Day, Sept. 1, at 1:31 p.m. close to Biloxi.
More about tiger sharks
- Tiger sharks aren’t as well known as the more threatening white shark, but are the fourth-largest species of shark, weighing as much as 1,300 pounds and growing to 15 feet long.
- They are nicknamed the “Dustbin of the Sea” because they will eat just about anything, according to the 10 facts about tiger sharks.
- Tiger sharks are covered in vertical stripes, like a tiger. Those stripes eventually fade but are still visible on adult tiger sharks.
- They also have an almost square jaw and excellent night vision, that is about 10 times better than a human’s in dim light.
These tagged sharks occasionally visit the waters off the Mississippi coast. In January 2024, Keji, a 9-foot-7, 578-pound, juvenile great white shark, pinged south of Pascagoula, a day after a ping registered south of Ft. Walton Beach, Florida.
He was tagged on Sept. 22, 2021, in the waters off Ironbound Island in Nova Scotia. His travels took him up and down the Atlantic seaboard before he headed west toward Mississippi.
This story was originally published September 4, 2025 at 10:53 AM.
