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Great White Shark Reeled In On Popular Tourist Beach

A shark-fishing group at Panama City Beach in Florida reeled in a nearly 10-foot great white shark Sunday morning.
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This is a 9-foot 8-inch great white shark reeled in from Panama City Beach in Florida on Sunday morning. 

The folks who reeled it in call themselves the Dark Side Sharkers and specialize in catch-and-release shark fishing. 

The group works in collaboration with the National Marine Fisheries Service and tagged the shark, which they say was pretty docile once reeled in, before releasing it. 

The tags help other anglers who might catch the shark in the future report it so the NMFS can keep track of the fish.

The group believes it's the first time a great white has been reeled in from the shore in the entire Gulf of Mexico.  

Fisherman Derrick Keeny told WJHG, "Probably one of the biggest moments, and probably will be the biggest moment we'll ever have in land-based shark fishing."

The Dark Side Sharkers have been active for some 15 years and tend to catch and release the sharks, although they say they do keep their catches every once in a while.

This video includes images from Facebook /Dark Side Sharkers