Something that may be a Great White shark has been spotted twice off the coast of Cornwall. "JAWS 2," splashes the Sun, happily. The latest sighting comes from a "shaken" mother of two, who filmed the creature with her camcorder.
Doubts arise further down the story. "I would not rule out the possibility of this being a Great White - the tail is identical," the curator of a sea life centre in landlocked Birmingham tells the paper. "There are other sharks off the coast of Britain that have similar features."
Surfers, naturally, are worried. The Sun has dispatched "page three stunner Danni" with a pair of binoculars. It may be to no avail: the chairman of the Shark Trust believes the "Great White" is probably a basking shark.
"Great White sharks have a fearsome reputation and a superstar iconic status with the fear they generate being disproportionate to the actuality," the Trust said six days ago.
[Update: Many readers agree with the Trust, judging from the comments. If you spot the beast, this explains how to distinguish a Great White from a porbeagle - and here's more about the basking shark, which is the second largest fish in the world, but a "harmless plankton eater".]
The Mail provides further proof that the silly season has reached the West Country.
"Demon of Dartmoor ... Legend has it that a four-legged fiend with glowing eyes and a blood-curdling howl stalks this very spot. Which makes these pictures of a mystery creature taken near Hound Tor on Dartmoor more intriguing than ever."
Unfortunately, the falconer who photographed the animal most recently believes it is a wild boar.
* This is an edited extract from the Wrap, our digest of the daily papers.
