Video: Fisherman and Shark Fight Over Massive Catch

In The Old Man and the Sea, Hemingway's fisherman protagonist loses his prized marlin catch to a group of hungry sharks after an arduous fight to hook it. It's an upsetting scenario for any fisherman, but not as uncommon in real life as one might think. New Zealand fisherman Tony Walker and his crewmates learned that lesson firsthand. 

The angler shared a video on July 4 that showed the dramatic ordeal he and his crew found himself in. They were looking for swordfish in the Coral Sea off the northeast coast of Australia when they reeled in a big one and attempted to haul it on board. While doing so, a hungry mako shark approached and promptly began chowing down on the swordfish. This led to a tense tug of war between Walker and the eight-foot shark. 

A crew member called out the "angry mako" when they saw the shark taking a chunk out of the swordfish. Another crew member can be heard telling the shark "Get off my fish! Give me my fish! Give it to me!"

Walker's clip went viral swiftly after he posted it. It's since been viewed more than 21 million times and garnered more than 106,000 likes. The fisherman spoke to Newsweek about the incident and broke down why the mako's behavior was par for the course. 

"Mako sharks are very common in the area, and it is their standard tactic to bite the tails of the swordfish first so they can eat at their leisure," he explained. "This is almost a daily occurrence for us, and quite often, we will have sharks camped under the boat."

Be that as it may, in this situation it might be better to let the shark have his snack rather than risk being pulled into a blood-stained feeding frenzy.