On Tuesday, the Orleans Police Department in Massachusetts received an unusual piece of news: A great white shark had mysteriously washed ashore in Cape Cod. Officials called local tow company Nauset Recovery Inc,

A great white shark that washed ashore at a Cape Cod beach earlier this week is named Koala, and was known to local researchers, investigators said. Its cause of death is still a mystery, as a necropsy was inconclusive.

Local shark researchers have performed a rare necropsy of a 12-foot great white shark that washed up dead on a Cape Cod beach. The mature male shark — previously identified as “Koala” in 2022 — was found on Nauset Beach earlier this week, and he was secured by officials from the town of Orleans and the Orleans Police Department.

The white shark found washed up on an Orleans beach on Tuesday was named Koala, according to the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy. The shark was seen washed ashore and towed away by police in what they called an atypical call for service.