A 13-foot long great white shark washed up on shore near the Massachusetts/Rhode Island border over the weekend, its body battered by the rocks but otherwise free of any trauma which would have contributed to an untimely death. Marine biologists and fishermen are stumped as to what could have happened to it, and answers aren’t forthcoming.

“They will have a difficult time, if at all, figuring out how he was killed,” said Krista Selmi, a Marine Fisheries spokeswoman.

Because of the shark’s great size–about 1,600 pounds–removing the body isn’t a possibility; officials are hoping the tide will pull it back in to the ocean. However, a necropsy was performed which showed an empty stomach on the beast, so it’s unlikely biologists will ever find out what caused the death.

Officials closed nearby beaches while a water search was made to locate more sharks that may have been circling the area; none were found. However, several shark attacks have frightened beach-goers in the past year, including one made on a man who barely escaped with injuries to his legs.

Image courtesy ABC News