Research has found people high in sensation-seeking, which is the tendency for people to pursue thrill-seeking experiences, view the risks of sharks as lower. It is plausible that many surfers are high on sensation-seeking, which may help explain why they perceive the risk of sharks to be low.
The study found 60% of surfers are not afraid of sharks despite 52% having seen sharks while surfing. And 17% said either they or someone they knew had been bitten by a shark.
If you see a shark near you, just get out of the water. Give them their space and come back and surf later. Chances are that if you see them you're probably safe since they do love a good sneak attack, but just the same, this small preventative measure may keep you surfing for years to come.
The odds of being attacked by a shark while surfing is actually incredibly low, according to the Florida Museum there is a 1 in 4,332,817 chance of dying because of a shark attack with between 70 and 100 attacks a year leading to approximately 5 deaths.
Sharks are apex predators, meaning they sit at the top of the food chain. Sharks help preserve the fragile balance of ecosystems by keeping other populations in check. They keep populations healthy, too, by dining on the sickest and weakest of their prey so that the healthy can thrive.
Most sharks are not dangerous to humans — people are not part of their natural diet. Despite their scary reputation, sharks rarely ever attack humans and would much rather feed on fish and marine mammals.
Psychologist Gabriella Hancock, who is working with the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach, said people aren't born being afraid of sharks. "We're not innately afraid of sharks," Hancock said. "Five-month-old babies were not afraid of sharks. So it appears as though our fear of them is learned and socially reinforced."
Most shark experts agree that the reason sharks attack humans (and specifically surfers) unprovoked is simply due to a case of mistaken identity, pointing out the similarity in shape between a surfboard and a seal.
Bump and bite: Bump and bites usually start with the shark circling around you, then they will engage by bumping into you then taking a bite. Usually this is like a hit and run where a shark is motivated by curiosity or sometimes, territorialism.
The most common surf fear is that of wave height. Many fear to ride big waves for three commonly cited reasons: the wipeout from the top of a giant wall of water; the chance of hitting a reef or a rocky bottom; and drowning, or the loss of breath.
Just like we check under our beds for monsters, sharks check for dolphins before nodding off. That's right, the toughest kids on the undersea block swim in fear of dolphins. Here, we've compiled a splash of facts to tell you why.
But, if a shark is near you in the water, stay calm and don't flail your arms. Experts say the best thing to do is to swim slowly and keep eye contact with the shark. They say the only time you should defend yourself is if a shark looks aggressive. In that case hit either its nose, eyes, or its gill openings.
Alternatively, divers and swimmers can probably reduce the chance of an interaction with a shark by avoiding bright and highly contrasting swimwear or dive gear. We personally prefer to use dark blue or black fins, mask, tank, and wetsuit while diving.
This hostile behavior, commonly referred to as surf localism, is an attempt to deter outsiders from enjoying coveted and choice waves.
What does a shark attack feel like? While each survivor describes the experience differently, a common description from shark attack survivors is the attack feels similar to being punched or bumped. Some survivors have even recounted no pain at all!
The great white shark has killed the most humans resulting in 52 known fatalities, though roughly 300 unprovoked attacks are recorded from the great white.
When and where do sharks attack? From 2021-2022, New South Wales and Western Australia were the most common states for human/shark interactions in Australia, with 14 cases within each state. This was followed by Queensland with 3 cases and Victoria with 2 cases.
If you do see a shark when you're surfing, please exit the water immediately. You don't need to thrash around and panic, but if you do see a dorsal or you hear somebody say that they saw a shark, you should leave the area. And I would recommend that you leave that area for a minimum of two days.
Whale Shark
Whale sharks are among the friendliest shark species, if not the friendliest. They have been known for giving divers trips on their backs, and baby whale sharks are known to interact with humans.
Quick Answer: They are Fast, Smart, and Work as a Dolphin Team. Sharks and dolphins are two of the most formidable creatures in the ocean, but while sharks are often seen as fearsome predators, they are known to be intimidated by dolphins.
In addition to those we have – sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste – sharks have two other senses, mediated by specialized receptors: electroreceptors and lateral lines. A shark's most acute sense, the one it may use to detect prey from the greatest distance, is probably its sense of hearing.
Sharks have a keen sense of smell and can detect anything that makes contact with their olfactory sensory cells, but emotions like fear are not among them.