As well as being the first record of Carcharodon carcharias from Borneo, this represents the southernmost confirmed record of the species from the Northwest Pacific Ocean (Fig. 2). Carcharodon carcharias is widely distributed in the South China Sea (Compagno 2002; Compagno et al. 2005; Christiansen et al. 2014). Christiansen et al. (2014) most southerly records were two reports from Qui Nhon Bay, Vietnam, and one from the Philippines. One of the Vietnamese records was an unconfirmed media report of a 1.6 m TL juvenile, whereas the other was of a 5 m TL specimen (unknown sex) that was confirmed by a photograph (http://www.elasmollet.org/Cc/Cc_list.html). The record from the Philippines was based upon a media report of several purported sightings of C. carcharias near the towns of Limay and Orion, Manila Bay (Cervantes 2003). That report also included reference to an attack on a fisher by C. carcharias off Barangay Luz, Cebu Island; the capture of a 6 m pregnant female near Limay in April 2003; and sightings off Palawan and Mindanao (Cervantes 2003). Herre (1953) reported C. carcharias from Malampaya Sound, Palawan, and the Bohol Sea off Misamis Oriental, Mindanao (Fig. 2). Compagno et al. (2005) found no confirmed contemporary records of C. carcharias from the Philippines but commented these are to be expected given the species’ wide distribution in tropical waters.
Although the generally accepted maximum size of C. carcharias is 6.4 m TL, there are plausible reports of individuals up to 7.0 m TL (Mollet et al. 1996; Compagno 2001). As female C. carcharias are generally larger than males, the Sabah shark was probably a mature female. The maximum size of male C. carcharias is generally accepted to be 5.1 m TL, possibly 5.5 m TL (Compagno 2001). Fahmi and Dharmadi (2014) reported the capture of a 6.6 m TL male C. carcharias off Dompu, Lombok Strait, Indonesia (08° 51′ S, 118° 18′ E) in July 2013 (Fig. 2). However, this shark had been cut into five pieces for transport prior to measurement and it may have been less than or equal to 6 m TL (Fahmi, LIPI, pers. comm.).
The occurrence of C. carcharias off Sabah in April-May is consistent with the seasonal movements of the species in the Northwest Pacific inferred by Christiansen et al. (2014). They reported C. carcharias during all months except July-August in the south (China, Taiwan, Philippines, and Vietnam), and all months except October-January in the north (Russia and Republic of Korea). This is similar to the seasonal movements of C. carcharias in the Northeast Pacific, Southwest Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans (Casey and Pratt 1985; Bruce et al. 2006; Jorgensen et al. 2009; Duffy et al. 2012). In these regions juvenile and adult white sharks tend to undertake rapid, directed movements from temperate to subtropical and tropical waters in the autumn and winter, returning to inshore temperate habitats in the spring and early summer.