New app lets users track sharks and report sightings

CHATHAM, Mass. – A Massachusetts nonprofit is launching a smartphone application so beachgoers along the East Coast can report their own shark sightings.

The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy says users of Sharktivity will become “citizen scientists,” providing valuable tracking data for researchers trying to better understand the animals. The Chatham-based organization says the app is free and currently only available for Apple products.

It’s being launched as Cape Cod’s waters begin to warm and great white sharks begin to appear in earnest.

Greater numbers of the powerful sharks are being spotted each year near the Cape Cod shoreline because of a booming population of seals, one of their favorite delicacies.

Shark researchers counted 141 different great whites off Cape Cod last year, up from 80 the previous year.