Friendly basking shark spotted off the coast of Ireland

Niamh Ní Dhrisceoil is used to seeing all types of sea life in her job as a skipper of the Cape Clear Ferry in County Cork, Ireland. However, Niamh was stunned and delighted by the sight of a friendly basking shark happily swimming alongside kayaks and others out enjoying the June weather.

Niamh managed to capture some fantastic photos and this video of the shark and its close interaction with the humans of Cape Clear Island. After posting the footage on June 17th, her video is going viral faster than you can say ... "wait, shouldn't those people be swimming away?!"

If you're wondering why nobody seems freaked out, it's because a basking shark has no sharp teeth and feeds mainly on plankton. They aren't known to be aggressive, and if they do get angry, their bite wouldn't cause any damage. (Though it's definitely better to keep your distance in any situation.)

Irish News notes that, "It is not uncommon for these basking sharks to be seen around the Irish coast at this time of year, particularly when the mercury rises." However, these sharks are typically a lot more shy around people. Guess this guy (or gal) just wanted someone to hang out with.