River Thames: Viral TikTok shows 'shark' swimming

The video, which now has 1.3 million views, was shared on Monday, July 22.

It shows what appears to be a shark fin gliding through the water with ominous music playing in the background.

The caption jokes “is this the end?” with the hashtag “shark attack”.

The video was posted by @charlottewebbb and has 96,000 likes, 641 comments and almost 14,000 shares.

The Zoological Society of London has confirmed that there are five different species of shark that live in the Thames, but there is not much known about how and why they choose the Thames estuary.

@charlottewebbb Is this the end? #shark #thames #sharkattack #london ♬ Tubarão - MAXXI MUSIC

A spokesperson for ZSL said: “The Thames estuary is known to be home to at least five different species of shark, including the Critically Endangered tope shark (or ‘soupfin’ shark) and starry smoothhound sharks.

“Tope and starry smoothhound give birth to live young and it is believed they use the estuary as pupping grounds and nursery habitats for their young.

“There is still little known about how exactly these sharks use the Thames estuary and why.

“We are working together with anglers to better understand the importance of the Thames estuary to these animals and to ensure their long-term survival in the wild.”

Are the sharks in the Thames dangerous?

If you are worried that the sharks in the Thames are dangerous, fear not as they are reported to not be from a 'dangerous' species.

ZSL explains: "It is highly unlikely that the species known to be in the Thames estuary would be encountered by visitors to the water, and they should not be considered a danger to people."