Have shark attacks been increasing?

A recent spate of shark attacks in the US, particularly in Florida, has swimmers and surfers concerned. But are attacks really increasing?

According to trackingsharks.com, this year there’s been 50 attacks worldwide, 30 of them in the US, and 14 of those in Florida.

Florida was named the shark attack capital in 2022 and 2023 of both the United States and the world, by the International Shark Attack File (ISAF).

After that, the county’s Sheriff Michael Adkinson said during a news conference, authorities were speaking with experts to see if there was “something anomalous” going on.

Then, in June 28, a man was critically injured with a severe bite to his right arm near Fernandina Beach, in Nassau County authorities said.

In Volusia County, there were three shark attacks in the span of five days. On the 4th of July a 21 year-old man playing football in knee-deep water was bitten. A day later, a 26 year-old man was attacked while swimming and in July 8 a 14 year-old boy was beaten while doing lifeguard training, USA Today reported.

Captain Gary Jarvis, who has been fishing in the area for over 40 years, told ‘The Destin Log’ that there are more people that swim in the water than before and more sharks in the water than ever before. “So, the incident rate of shark bites is only going to go in one direction,” Jarvis added.

Similarly, some scientists have raised concerns that rising sea temperatures could be increasing the odds of human-shark encounters, thus resulting in more probability of shark sightings and shark attacks.

Mike Heithaus, a marine biologist at Florida International University, told ABC News, most marine life is tied to specific ranges of temperature, so warmer waters are causing some species to “expand and shift their ranges.”

Photo: Gerald Schombs/Unsplash

However, unprovoked shark attacks remain extremely rare, experts say: the risk of getting bitten is one in 3.75 million, according to the International Wildlife Museum. Moreover, data shows that the number of attacks has remained relatively stable over the years.

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