What to Do if You Are available Contact With a Shark

In the previous two months, a number of folks have been attacked by sharks in Florida, Hawaii and Texas. And whereas a few of these occurrences might not be out of the strange, they nonetheless create a component of concern for these desirous to take to the seashore in the course of the hotter months of the 12 months.

In early June, two separate shark assaults left three folks damage alongside Florida’s Gulf Coast, main authorities to warn residents about shark hazard within the water, and urging them to tread fastidiously when swimming within the ocean. Just a few weeks in the past, there was one other shark assault in Hawaii, which killed a lifeguard who was browsing off the island of Oahu. And, all through the Fourth of July festivities, at the very least 4 folks had been bitten by sharks in Texas and Florida.

Shark assault cases, traits, and interactive maps for these curious are logged with the Worldwide Shark Assault File (ISAF) on the Florida Museum of Pure Historical past—a complete database of all recognized shark assaults initiated in 1958. 

So what do you do in the event you encounter a shark? An skilled shares with TIME what to do within the occasion you see a shark and tips on how to greatest put together for avoiding harm.

Learn Extra: Are Shark Assaults Rising? Right here Are What the Information Say

Bait fish provide warning for evacuation

In line with Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Program for Shark Analysis and of ISAF, folks can fairly often be in shut proximity to sharks, although swimmers are sometimes unaware since sharks are swimming roughly 100 yards to 200 yards offshore. Sharks do usually attempt to keep away from folks and hold to themselves, in accordance with Naylor.

However, after they come nearer to shore—normally, on the lookout for meals in bait fish— there are a number of methods folks can “encounter” a shark within the water, and every of those cases require completely different approaches. If folks see bait fish leaping out of the water, that may be a good indication {that a} shark is close to, and they need to evacuate, Naylor says, particularly if the waters will not be clear.

“If water could be very murky, and [the sharks are] fishing, they usually’re, on the lookout for bait fish, they usually’re going via a morass of individuals, then clearly extra more likely to make a mistake,” Naylor tells TIME.

If a shark prices, battle again

It’s essential to concentrate to the shark’s habits, and see if its actions are erratic, if it’s transferring backwards and forwards, circling, or simply has a swimmer on the middle of its consideration. 

If the shark does handle to cost you, Naylor says hitting the shark within the snout very onerous will normally spook the animal off.

“They’ve a whole lot of receptors on the snout, so in the event that they’re actually fairly alarmed, it will flip and it will go away,” Naylor continues. “That occurs 9 occasions out of 10.”

If that doesn’t work, and a shark tries to chew a swimmer—and even has a limb in its mouth—Naylor says the perfect plan of action is to poke the shark onerous within the eyes. Then, one ought to reverse out of the water, retaining eye contact with the shark and ensuring to by no means depart their again in the direction of the animal till they’re again up onto the seashore.

Completely different our bodies of waters, completely different shark threats

By way of prevention and preparation, Naylor says this usually depends upon the waters one is in, and thus the sharks that swim in these waters. 

“Individuals say ‘Do not watch your shiny jewellery.’ Nicely, positive that that helps in the event you’re anxious about Blacktip sharks, as a result of they feed on education fishes,” Naylor mentioned. “However in the event you’re in Australia, whether or not you are sporting jewellery or not, will make a blind little bit of distinction to a white shark, as a result of they feed on seals.”

In line with Naylor, this 12 months’s assaults in Florida particularly will not be out of the strange, with hundreds of sharks and thousands and thousands of vacationers within the summers. Nonetheless, in 2023, the ISAF confirmed solely 69 unprovoked shark bites on people and 22 provoked shark bites, a slight uptick from the newest five-year common of 63 incidents yearly, however a quantity they nonetheless categorize as “extraordinarily low,” since fluctuation is predicted.

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