Shark attack Briton 'had no chance'

A British man killed by a shark in the Seychelles had "no chance of surviving", local police have said.

Ian Redmond, 30, from Lancashire, was on honeymoon when the attack happened off Anse Lazio beach on Praslin, the second largest island in the Indian Ocean archipelago.

One onlooker said she saw the victim's wife saying she "still had hope" for her husband while he lay on the beach with horrific injuries.

But police spokesman Jean Toussaint said Mr Redmond had been "badly injured" on the hips and lost an arm in the attack, which occurred while he was swimming in the early evening.

"We haven't got the autopsy report yet but he definitely lost a lot of blood. He had no chance of surviving because of the nature of the injuries," he added.

Earlier this month a 36-year-old French tourist was killed by a shark in the same area. Government officials have issued a ban on swimming in certain areas until the shark is captured.

Jeanne Vargiolu, 56, owner of a nearby restaurant, said she went to the beach after hearing ambulance sirens to find a French doctor treating the man and "a lot of police officers" surrounding him.

She said police told her the man had lost one arm, had a badly damaged leg and holes in his chest and stomach from shark bites. She added: "They were trying to help him but they could not get him alive."

Mr Toussaint confirmed that Mr Redmond and his wife were in the second week of their honeymoon and had been due to fly home on Sunday.

He said "a big effort" is now under way to catch the shark. "We had this first incident two weeks ago and for the local community it was a freak incident because it had never been reported before around the islands. It took everybody by surprise," he added.

Red Sea Shark Attacks: Killing Spree Puzzles Scientists

Reuters – Tourists are seen at a beach at which swimming and diving is prohibited at the Red Sea resort of Sharm …

By ABIGAIL HAUSLOHNER / SHARM EL-SHEIKH


Hoping to protect the local tourism industry over July 4, the beach resort's mayor initially downplays the danger of shark attacks - but is forced to bring in a marine biologist and a shark hunter when things turn really ugly. That was the story line in Jaws, Steven Spielberg's 1975 blockbuster movie, and a similar scenario is currently being played out in real life at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

It began 10 days ago when the normally pristine tropical waters turned a murky red, after sharks mauled three Russians and a Ukrainian over a two-day period. With the world-renowned snorkel and dive center heading into the holiday high season, local governor Mohammed Shosha closed off the beaches for 48 hours, during which time the authorities killed two sharks. He then declared the all clear and reopened the beaches. But within 24 hours, in keeping with the Jaws story line, it became brutally clear that Shosha had been wrong: a German woman standing chest-deep in the water was killed by another shark. (Read "Humans and Sharks: Why Can't We Be Friends?")

"We did some efforts last week but I think we failed," Salem Saleh, director of the town's Tourism Authority told TIME on Monday. He acknowledged that the sharks responsible for the killings are probably still at large. The resort, which Egyptian authorities say draws some 4 million tourists every year, has become the site of an international biological murder mystery.

Over six days, five swimmers were attacked by sharks. That compares to just six attacks over the previous decade in Egypt, according to the Global Shark Attack File, a scientific archive that documents shark attacks worldwide. And at least six of those 11 incidents are believed to have involved the solitary oceanic whitetip - a shark species that doesn't usually rank among the top killers. More startling still is that the clear, coral-rimmed waters off Sharm el-Sheikh aren't exactly shark central. "The last sharks I saw were maybe four or five months ago," says Sherrif Khairat, a local dive instructor, who leads two or three dives a day. A shark sighting is considered "lucky," he says, because the animals are so rare.

And then the story gets downright creepy: scientists and government authorities declared Wednesday night, after a day of preliminary investigations, that at least two of the five attacks had been carried out by a single shark - a lone "serial attacker," says shark expert George Burgess, one of three American scientists flown in to find answers. "This is a really unusual event - not just because they occurred so close to each other in such a geographic space, but because of the fact that we can actually say with certainty that one individual shark was involved in two of them without fail," he says. "That has not been documented before."

Less than two weeks after the first of the series of attacks, scientists are still scratching their heads as to what motivated the rampage. They say there has never been proof of a shark acquiring a taste for human flesh, but there are no absolutes in science. They say the serial-killer shark is a member of a migratory species that often travels dozens of miles in a single day. But it could still be lurking in the same waters. (View photographs of sharks.)

Egyptian authorities now plan to enforce the ban on swimming and water sports indefinitely - with exceptions made for expert divers and protected swimming areas. It's a decision that has the local tourism outfits already cutting their losses as Sharm el-Sheikh heads into high season. "We're not selling masks or any flippers because the beach is closed," says Bishoy Boutros, who hawks fins, masks and T-shirts, including one with a shark on it that reads "How 'Bout Lunch?"

State authorities say the shark attacks will hardly cause a blip in tourism revenues, but the governor's public posturing days after the woman's death - sending his deputy for a dip before a boatload of beaming reporters - suggests they fear the worst. Moldovan tour guide Elena Ribac says the shark scare has dramatically cut bookings. Tourists, she says, "come just for the sea, so if there is no opportunity to go to the sea, there is no reason to come here."

Local explanations for the shark surge varied wildly in the days following the first attacks, citing everything from climate change to the de rigueur blaming of local calamities on alleged Israeli plots. More sober explanations are fewer, and hardly final.

Local fishermen say their catches of fish that sharks would feed on are lower this year, and sharks could be seeking alternative food sources. Snorkelers may also have exacerbated the danger by feeding the fish, in violation of local regulations. "The fish get in the habit of staying in certain places where they get easy food," says Khairat. "After that the big fish that eat the small fish will also come closer - and then the bigger fish." (Read "A Brief History of Shark Week.")

And then there's the sheep hypothesis. Last month, Muslims celebrated Islam's Feast of the Sacrifice, during which it is traditional for each family to slaughter a sheep - and the extra demand requires that many more sheep are imported. Ships transporting sheep were discovered to have dumped carcasses in the Red Sea, South Sinai authorities say, drawing sharks to the area. On Wednesday, the governor said authorities are taking legal action against one of the shipping companies.

The question is whether the sharks involved in the latest attacks will return to the waters off Sharm el-Sheikh. "These are open-ocean sharks that are living in an environment that is food-poor," says Burgess. "So when you do find food, you darn well better take advantage of it. Do they remember things? Sure, they remember where the good places to eat were, and they'll come back."

Running through the different theories is the sense that human behavior is conditioning the sharks to stick around. "Sharks can be trained and are trained, specifically in some of these feeding dives where they become accustomed to being fed by the humans," says Burgess. In some cases, sharks become so accustomed to the sound of a boat engine signaling feeding time that all boat operators have to do is rev it up.
But he cautions against overanalyzing, because sharks are still just big predators with little brains. "They're not connect-the-dots kind of animals," he says. "They're basically swimming, sensory machines." Sometimes, a killing spree, however rare, could be explained by little more than a convergence of the right variables. "Sometimes we make mistakes, sometimes they make mistakes. And sometimes we just happen to be in the wrong place at the right time - for them."

View this article on Time.com

Red Sea Shark Attacks: Killing Spree Puzzles Scientists

Reuters – Tourists are seen at a beach at which swimming and diving is prohibited at the Red Sea resort of Sharm …

By ABIGAIL HAUSLOHNER / SHARM EL-SHEIKH


Hoping to protect the local tourism industry over July 4, the beach resort's mayor initially downplays the danger of shark attacks - but is forced to bring in a marine biologist and a shark hunter when things turn really ugly. That was the story line in Jaws, Steven Spielberg's 1975 blockbuster movie, and a similar scenario is currently being played out in real life at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

It began 10 days ago when the normally pristine tropical waters turned a murky red, after sharks mauled three Russians and a Ukrainian over a two-day period. With the world-renowned snorkel and dive center heading into the holiday high season, local governor Mohammed Shosha closed off the beaches for 48 hours, during which time the authorities killed two sharks. He then declared the all clear and reopened the beaches. But within 24 hours, in keeping with the Jaws story line, it became brutally clear that Shosha had been wrong: a German woman standing chest-deep in the water was killed by another shark. (Read "Humans and Sharks: Why Can't We Be Friends?")

"We did some efforts last week but I think we failed," Salem Saleh, director of the town's Tourism Authority told TIME on Monday. He acknowledged that the sharks responsible for the killings are probably still at large. The resort, which Egyptian authorities say draws some 4 million tourists every year, has become the site of an international biological murder mystery.

Over six days, five swimmers were attacked by sharks. That compares to just six attacks over the previous decade in Egypt, according to the Global Shark Attack File, a scientific archive that documents shark attacks worldwide. And at least six of those 11 incidents are believed to have involved the solitary oceanic whitetip - a shark species that doesn't usually rank among the top killers. More startling still is that the clear, coral-rimmed waters off Sharm el-Sheikh aren't exactly shark central. "The last sharks I saw were maybe four or five months ago," says Sherrif Khairat, a local dive instructor, who leads two or three dives a day. A shark sighting is considered "lucky," he says, because the animals are so rare.

And then the story gets downright creepy: scientists and government authorities declared Wednesday night, after a day of preliminary investigations, that at least two of the five attacks had been carried out by a single shark - a lone "serial attacker," says shark expert George Burgess, one of three American scientists flown in to find answers. "This is a really unusual event - not just because they occurred so close to each other in such a geographic space, but because of the fact that we can actually say with certainty that one individual shark was involved in two of them without fail," he says. "That has not been documented before."

Less than two weeks after the first of the series of attacks, scientists are still scratching their heads as to what motivated the rampage. They say there has never been proof of a shark acquiring a taste for human flesh, but there are no absolutes in science. They say the serial-killer shark is a member of a migratory species that often travels dozens of miles in a single day. But it could still be lurking in the same waters. (View photographs of sharks.)

Egyptian authorities now plan to enforce the ban on swimming and water sports indefinitely - with exceptions made for expert divers and protected swimming areas. It's a decision that has the local tourism outfits already cutting their losses as Sharm el-Sheikh heads into high season. "We're not selling masks or any flippers because the beach is closed," says Bishoy Boutros, who hawks fins, masks and T-shirts, including one with a shark on it that reads "How 'Bout Lunch?"

State authorities say the shark attacks will hardly cause a blip in tourism revenues, but the governor's public posturing days after the woman's death - sending his deputy for a dip before a boatload of beaming reporters - suggests they fear the worst. Moldovan tour guide Elena Ribac says the shark scare has dramatically cut bookings. Tourists, she says, "come just for the sea, so if there is no opportunity to go to the sea, there is no reason to come here."

Local explanations for the shark surge varied wildly in the days following the first attacks, citing everything from climate change to the de rigueur blaming of local calamities on alleged Israeli plots. More sober explanations are fewer, and hardly final.

Local fishermen say their catches of fish that sharks would feed on are lower this year, and sharks could be seeking alternative food sources. Snorkelers may also have exacerbated the danger by feeding the fish, in violation of local regulations. "The fish get in the habit of staying in certain places where they get easy food," says Khairat. "After that the big fish that eat the small fish will also come closer - and then the bigger fish." (Read "A Brief History of Shark Week.")

And then there's the sheep hypothesis. Last month, Muslims celebrated Islam's Feast of the Sacrifice, during which it is traditional for each family to slaughter a sheep - and the extra demand requires that many more sheep are imported. Ships transporting sheep were discovered to have dumped carcasses in the Red Sea, South Sinai authorities say, drawing sharks to the area. On Wednesday, the governor said authorities are taking legal action against one of the shipping companies.

The question is whether the sharks involved in the latest attacks will return to the waters off Sharm el-Sheikh. "These are open-ocean sharks that are living in an environment that is food-poor," says Burgess. "So when you do find food, you darn well better take advantage of it. Do they remember things? Sure, they remember where the good places to eat were, and they'll come back."

Running through the different theories is the sense that human behavior is conditioning the sharks to stick around. "Sharks can be trained and are trained, specifically in some of these feeding dives where they become accustomed to being fed by the humans," says Burgess. In some cases, sharks become so accustomed to the sound of a boat engine signaling feeding time that all boat operators have to do is rev it up.
But he cautions against overanalyzing, because sharks are still just big predators with little brains. "They're not connect-the-dots kind of animals," he says. "They're basically swimming, sensory machines." Sometimes, a killing spree, however rare, could be explained by little more than a convergence of the right variables. "Sometimes we make mistakes, sometimes they make mistakes. And sometimes we just happen to be in the wrong place at the right time - for them."

View this article on Time.com

Isreal blamed for Egypt shark attacks

South Sinai governor backs theory that sharks involved in attacks off Sharm El-Sheik are controlled by Israel via GPS


A Sharm El Sheikh marine biologist slammed the conspiracy theory circulating around the country that last week's shark attacks off the South Sinai resort of Sharm El-Sheikh were part of an Israeli conspiracy, but the South Sinai governor supports it.

Mahmoud Hanafy, a professor of marine biology at the Suez Canal University, told Ahram Online that it is "sad," that Egyptian national TV helped perpetuate the theory that the shark attacks, which resulted in one death and four serious injuries this week, may have been controlled by Israel.

Speaking on the public TV program "Egypt Today" yesterday, a specialist introduced as "Captain Mustafa Ismail, a famous diver in Sharm El Sheikh," said that the sharks involved in the attack are ocean sharks and do not live in Egypt's waters.

When asked by the anchor how the shark entered Sharm El Sheikh waters, he burst out, "no, it's who let them in?"

Urged to elaborate, Ismail said that he recently got a call from an Israeli diver in Eilat telling him that they captured a small shark with a GPS planted in its back, implying that the sharks were monitored to attack in Egypt's waters only.

"Why would these sharks travel 4000 km and not have any accidents until they entered Sinai waters?" asked Ismail.

Earlier today, General Abdel-Fadeel Shosha, the governor of South Sinai, backed Ismail's theory. In a phone call to the TV program, he said that it is possible that Israeli intelligence, Mossad, is behind the incidents and that they are doing it to undermine the Egyptian tourism industry. He added that Egypt needs time to investigate the theory.

Marine biologist Hanafy refuted the allegations, saying that the Oceanic White Tip, blamed for the attacks, does indeed exist in Egypt's waters. He also added that the existence of a GPS inside the shark does not mean there is a conspiracy at play, adding that these "tracking devices" are often used by marine biologists to study sea life.

"Here in Egypt we put these devices on turtles, in danger of becoming extinct, so that we can watch their behavior, see where they live, feed and lay their eggs," explains Hanafy. "It sends signals to the satellite every time the creature appears on the surface of the ocean. It is sad that they made a person whose only knowledge of sharks comes from the movie Jaws go on national TV to propagate this mumbo-jumbo."

This morning, a team of Egyptian and foreign divers and photographers started surveying the popular diving spots of Sharm El-Sheikh, the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and Tiran.

According to General Shosha, the surveillance will be conducted for 72 hours in diving areas and 24 hours in swimming and snorkeling areas.

Shosha added that shark experts from Australia and the US were expected to arrive soon. He also added that several beaches are temporarily closed and tourists are currently redirected to alternative beaches in the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and for the first time the Nabq Protectorate has been opened to accommodate tourists.

Earlier today, Hisham Gabr of the Chamber of Diving and Water Sports said that Sharm El-Sheikh will be open for diving tomorrow, but only for divers with at least 50 logged dives.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/1343/Egypt/Politics-/Experts-shoot-down-theory-that-Israel-is-behind-sh.aspx
 

Isreal blamed for Egypt shark attacks

South Sinai governor backs theory that sharks involved in attacks off Sharm El-Sheik are controlled by Israel via GPS


A Sharm El Sheikh marine biologist slammed the conspiracy theory circulating around the country that last week's shark attacks off the South Sinai resort of Sharm El-Sheikh were part of an Israeli conspiracy, but the South Sinai governor supports it.

Mahmoud Hanafy, a professor of marine biology at the Suez Canal University, told Ahram Online that it is "sad," that Egyptian national TV helped perpetuate the theory that the shark attacks, which resulted in one death and four serious injuries this week, may have been controlled by Israel.

Speaking on the public TV program "Egypt Today" yesterday, a specialist introduced as "Captain Mustafa Ismail, a famous diver in Sharm El Sheikh," said that the sharks involved in the attack are ocean sharks and do not live in Egypt's waters.

When asked by the anchor how the shark entered Sharm El Sheikh waters, he burst out, "no, it's who let them in?"

Urged to elaborate, Ismail said that he recently got a call from an Israeli diver in Eilat telling him that they captured a small shark with a GPS planted in its back, implying that the sharks were monitored to attack in Egypt's waters only.

"Why would these sharks travel 4000 km and not have any accidents until they entered Sinai waters?" asked Ismail.

Earlier today, General Abdel-Fadeel Shosha, the governor of South Sinai, backed Ismail's theory. In a phone call to the TV program, he said that it is possible that Israeli intelligence, Mossad, is behind the incidents and that they are doing it to undermine the Egyptian tourism industry. He added that Egypt needs time to investigate the theory.

Marine biologist Hanafy refuted the allegations, saying that the Oceanic White Tip, blamed for the attacks, does indeed exist in Egypt's waters. He also added that the existence of a GPS inside the shark does not mean there is a conspiracy at play, adding that these "tracking devices" are often used by marine biologists to study sea life.

"Here in Egypt we put these devices on turtles, in danger of becoming extinct, so that we can watch their behavior, see where they live, feed and lay their eggs," explains Hanafy. "It sends signals to the satellite every time the creature appears on the surface of the ocean. It is sad that they made a person whose only knowledge of sharks comes from the movie Jaws go on national TV to propagate this mumbo-jumbo."

This morning, a team of Egyptian and foreign divers and photographers started surveying the popular diving spots of Sharm El-Sheikh, the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and Tiran.

According to General Shosha, the surveillance will be conducted for 72 hours in diving areas and 24 hours in swimming and snorkeling areas.

Shosha added that shark experts from Australia and the US were expected to arrive soon. He also added that several beaches are temporarily closed and tourists are currently redirected to alternative beaches in the Ras Mohamed Protectorate, and for the first time the Nabq Protectorate has been opened to accommodate tourists.

Earlier today, Hisham Gabr of the Chamber of Diving and Water Sports said that Sharm El-Sheikh will be open for diving tomorrow, but only for divers with at least 50 logged dives.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/1343/Egypt/Politics-/Experts-shoot-down-theory-that-Israel-is-behind-sh.aspx
 

Sailor's body found inside shark at Jaws Beach

The body of a sailor who disappeared off Jaws Beach – on an island where one of the "Jaws" movies was filmed – has been found inside the stomach of a shark.

Published: 11:20PM BST 15 Sep 2010

Police in the Bahamas used fingerprints to identify Judson Newton, although they are still waiting for DNA test results.

It is unclear if the 43-year-old Mr Newton was alive when he was eaten.

Mr Newton went on a boating trip with friends off Jaws Beach, where Jaws: The Revenge was filmed, on August 29.

The group, who were fishing off New Providence Island, encountered engine trouble and called for help.

Rescuers found three men aboard who said that Mr Newton and a friend jumped into the water to try to swim back to shore. Officials launched a search for them, but neither was found.

On September 4, a local investment banker caught the 12-foot tiger shark while on a deep-sea fishing trip and he said a left leg popped out of its mouth as they hauled it in.

When officers cut the shark open, they found the right leg, two severed arms and a severed torso.

One of Newton's friends, Samuel Woodside, 37, said that he was surprised when he heard police say Mr Newton probably drowned.

"To me, he was always a strong swimmer," Mr Woodside said. "I don't know what happened."

Mr Woodside said he and Mr Newton were childhood friends and would go fishing almost every weekend when Mr Newton wasn't working as a sailor on cargo boats or as a chef at local restaurants.

"He was a sailor, you see," he said. "Anywhere where he could get a fishing line, he would go there."

The beach near where Mr Newton was last seen is located on the small island where the 1987 Jaws film was partially filmed.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/centralamericaandthecaribbean/bahamas/8005531/Sailors-body-found-inside-shark-at-Jaws-Beach.html

Sailor's body found inside shark at Jaws Beach

The body of a sailor who disappeared off Jaws Beach – on an island where one of the "Jaws" movies was filmed – has been found inside the stomach of a shark.

Published: 11:20PM BST 15 Sep 2010

Police in the Bahamas used fingerprints to identify Judson Newton, although they are still waiting for DNA test results.

It is unclear if the 43-year-old Mr Newton was alive when he was eaten.

Mr Newton went on a boating trip with friends off Jaws Beach, where Jaws: The Revenge was filmed, on August 29.

The group, who were fishing off New Providence Island, encountered engine trouble and called for help.

Rescuers found three men aboard who said that Mr Newton and a friend jumped into the water to try to swim back to shore. Officials launched a search for them, but neither was found.

On September 4, a local investment banker caught the 12-foot tiger shark while on a deep-sea fishing trip and he said a left leg popped out of its mouth as they hauled it in.

When officers cut the shark open, they found the right leg, two severed arms and a severed torso.

One of Newton's friends, Samuel Woodside, 37, said that he was surprised when he heard police say Mr Newton probably drowned.

"To me, he was always a strong swimmer," Mr Woodside said. "I don't know what happened."

Mr Woodside said he and Mr Newton were childhood friends and would go fishing almost every weekend when Mr Newton wasn't working as a sailor on cargo boats or as a chef at local restaurants.

"He was a sailor, you see," he said. "Anywhere where he could get a fishing line, he would go there."

The beach near where Mr Newton was last seen is located on the small island where the 1987 Jaws film was partially filmed.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/centralamericaandthecaribbean/bahamas/8005531/Sailors-body-found-inside-shark-at-Jaws-Beach.html

Surfer Killed In Shark Attack Off Australia

A surfer has died after being attacked by a shark off the coast of Australia, despite attempts to revive him on the beach.

The 31-year-old man, who has not been named, was surfing on his own near Gracetown, south of Perth. Rob Balder, who lives in the bay, said he saw the man catching good waves and decided to head down and join him.

But when he took another look through his binoculars he caught sight of a surfboard floating in the water with the surfer nowhere to be seen. Mr Balder called the local sea rescue centre and cycled down to check on the surfer, thinking he may have hit a wave hard and snapped his board.

"When I got down my friend Craig was already sitting with the man with a tourniquet around his leg and had pulled him out of the water. We started CPR... we continued until the ambulance crew arrived and then we carried him up the beach to the ambulance, by which time we managed to get a lot of colour back in him.

"We were very hopeful."

Breaking down into tears when asked if it was an unpleasant experience, Mr Balder said: "It's an honour to be able to offer that kind of help to somebody else." Another local surfer Eddie Kilgallon was out with three friends when he saw someone on rocks at the shore.

He thought the person was stuck until two men began waving their arms and shouting "shark, shark". The four surfers planned to catch the next wave into shore but when none came they were forced to paddle the whole way in. They ran down the beach to find Mr Balder, his friend Craig and another man trying to resuscitate the victim.

Mr Kilgallon took over holding the tourniquet as they tried to save the man's life. "There was no real blood, they had already stopped the blood flow but half his leg was sort of hanging and half his calf muscles," Mr Killagon said. "He was out cold and white but after a while the colour went back into his face. We were confident he was coming back."

But the surfer, who was from Busselton, died of his injuries on the way to hospital, Sky News Australia correspondent Adam Harvey said. Mr Balder said he knew of one previous shark attack around the beach but said he had to accept there was a risk if he chose to surf in shark territory.

In July 2004, 29-year-old carpenter Brad Smith was attacked and killed by two sharks in the region.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20100817/twl-surfer-killed-in-shark-attack-off-au-3fd0ae9.html

Aussie surfer survives shark attack

A surfer was in a stable condition this morning after being attacked by a shark off the Australian west coast, an official said.

Michael Bedford was rescued by a friend and a group of fishermen after he was attacked twice by a shark on Sunday off Conspicuous Cliff Beach, south of the Western Australia state capital Perth, The West Australian newspaper reported Monday.

He suffered deep gashes to his right leg, the newspaper reported.

Bedford was hospitalised in stable condition today, a Health Department spokesman said on the department's condition of anonymity.

Bedford's friend Lee Cummuskey told the newspaper that he watched the attack from the beach.

Bedford "thought it was just going to go under him, but it suddenly came up and hit him ... and I think that is when it bit him," Cummuskey told the newspaper.

"It hit him once and then came back a second time. He thought it was a white pointer, he is not totally sure, but he said it had a bloody big head on it," Cummuskey added.

Bedford caught a wave in to the beach where eight people used his surfboard as a stretcher to carry him along the beach, then up a steep climb to a car park, Cummuskey said.

- AP

Case study analyzes why, where and when of leading shark attack site

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Shark attacks are most likely to occur on Sunday, in less than 6 feet of water, during a new moon and involve surfers wearing black and white bathing suits, a first of its kind study from the University of Florida suggests.


Researchers analyzed statistics from shark attacks that occurred in Florida's Volusia County, dubbed the "Shark Attack Capital of the World," between 1956 and 2008. They also spent a year observing people between Daytona Beach and New Smyrna Beach, said George Burgess, director of the International Shark Attack File at UF.

"It's basically an analysis of why, where and when in an area that traditionally has had more shark-human interactions than any other stretch of coastline in the world," he said. "One of our students, Brittany Garner, essentially camped out there, counted the number of heads on the beach and took photographs."

While this 47-mile-long section of Central Florida's Atlantic coast leads in human-shark skirmishes, making up 21 percent of all global attacks between 1999 and 2008, most are "hit and run" incidents that seldom cause serious injury and no fatalities occurred, he said.

"Calling them attacks is probably a misnomer because the consequences are usually no more severe than a dog bite," he said. "They're not the same kind of bites made by 10- to 20-foot-long white sharks that you have off the coast of California. Here we see a different style of attack, primarily perpetrated by smaller fish-eating sharks such as spinners and blacktips that are less than 6 to 7 feet long, which because of their size normally seek smaller prey."

There have been 231 shark attacks between the first one reported in 1956 in Volusia County and 2008, said Burgess, who works at UF's Florida Museum of Natural History. The study, part of which was published recently in the edited volume "Sharks and Their Relatives II," uses statistics from 220 of those cases for which detailed information is available.

Human, shark and environmental factors combine to create a perfect storm of favorable conditions in Volusia County for attacks, particularly near Ponce Inlet between Daytona Beach and New Smyrna Beach, he said.

The more people in the water the greater the chances they will encounter a shark, and New Smyrna Beach south of the inlet is a "hot spot" for surfers with its well developed sand bars and good waves, Burgess said. Hand splashing and feet kicking provoke sharks, which bite and release what they mistake for normal prey items in the turbid waters, he said.

Also, the strong tidal flow in the inlet makes it "an aquatic smorgasbord of food items for sharks, barracudas, mackerel and other large predators," boosting shark numbers, he said.

Young white males were attacked most because they spend the most time in the water, Burgess said. Ninety percent of victims were male, 77 percent of 196 victims were between 11 and 30 years old and in the 171 cases where race was known, 98 percent were white, he said.

Well over half of the 220 victims were bit on the leg — 158 — more than five times the number bit on the arms — 34 — the second highest body part to be injured, he said.

Surfers were the most frequent victims, making up 61 percent of the total, Burgess said. They tended to be bitten more in the early morning and late afternoon when waves were highest and they spend more time surfing, he said.

"At the time of the attack, most of the surfers were sitting or holding onto the board waiting for a wave, which explains why most surf victims were bitten on the legs," he said.

Sharks are not weekend warriors. Rather it is human leisure that leads to the fewest number of human encounters on Wednesdays and the highest on Sundays, followed by Saturdays, Burgess said. "There are a fair number of attacks on Fridays as well, reflective of people skipping work and taking three-day weekends," he said.

The greatest number of attacks occurred during new moons, followed by full moons, the edges of the lunar extreme when the moon has its biggest pull on the tidal phase, Burgess said. Probably the moon's phases influence the movements and reproductive patterns of fish, the shark's food source, just as they affect human behavior, he said.

Not surprisingly, attacks were highest during the swimming season, from May through October, peaking in August, Burgess said. They spiked in April as sharks began their seasonal northern migration up the eastern coast of the United States, he said.

Most incidents involved one bite, occurred in turbid, murky or muddy waters and were at the water's surface, Burgess said. Only one attack was on a diver, he said.

More victims wore swimsuits that were black and white than any other color combination, followed by black and yellow, attesting to sharks' abilities to see contrast, he said.

Between 1999 and 2008, shark attacks worldwide numbered 639, of which there were 428 reports in the United States, 275 in Florida and 135 in Volusia County. Burgess said.

(submitted by Chad Arment)