Chinese social media influencer under fire for eating great white shark

A Chinese social media influencer has come under scrutiny after she shared a video of herself eating a great white shark.

The influencer, who is known by her online name Tizi, claimed that the fish was a hook-tooth shark, but a probe later revealed that it was a great white shark. The Nanchong Police are not investigating how she managed to procure the fish.

In the video that went viral on Chinese social media in mid-July, the woman can be seen feasting on the massive creature. She even posed next to the 2-metre-long fish to show it is taller than her.

The shark is then cut in half, marinated and barbecued, and its head is cooked in a broth. "It may look vicious, but its meat is truly very tender," Tizi says while tearing off chunks of shark meat in the video.

She claimed that the shark was "edible" and "bred in captivity," and that she had bought it from a market in Nanchong, Sichuan.

The video attracted severe backlash. "It is flabbergasting that an internet celebrity can eat a protected animal in front of millions in broad daylight!" wrote one appalled commenter."

Another wrote, "These uncultured attention-mongers will stoop very low to attract eyeballs!" Apparently, this is not the first time that the social media star has posted a video of herself eating an "exotic" animal. "She also ate a crocodile and a golden giant salamander ... It was extremely disturbing," a user wrote in the video's comment section.

The social media platform has now removed all videos posted by Tizi, including the one wherein she could be seen eating the shark. But the video has somehow resurfaced on YouTube. It is not clear if the woman will be penalised for eating a vulnerable species.

Great white sharks are listed as a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. They are just one step away from being classified as endangered, according to a report in The Independent. In China, they are listed as protected and their illegal possession can lead to a prison term of between five to 10 years.