Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Summer's ill winds blew some good - fewer attacks by sharks

JACKSONVILLE - The four hurricanes that struck Florida last year helped reduce the state's number of shark attacks to their lowest level in more than a decade, a University of Florida researcher said Monday.

While Florida led the nation with 12 attacks in 2004, that's significantly fewer than the 30 bites reported in 2003, said George Burgess, director of the International Shark Attack File in UF's Florida Museum of Natural History.

Twelve is the lowest number in Florida since 1993, when there were 10 bites.

Burgess attributes some of Florida's decline to its coasts being battered by winds from hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne, although another reason could be a decline in the number of sharks from overfishing and habitat loss.

"When there are high winds and high surf, people don't go into the water," Burgess said. "It's a little hard to have a shark attack if you're in your vehicle heading inland as fast as you can drive."

In addition, he said, research has shown sharks tend to head for deep water as tropical systems approach.

The largest number of Florida attacks occurred near New Smyrna Beach in Volusia County, a popular surfing site, Burgess said. There were three attacks there in 2004, down from the 13 reported in 2003, 18 in 2002 and 22 in 2001.

Other Florida counties reporting attacks were Palm Beach and St. Johns, with two each, and Brevard, Duval, Lee, Pinellas and Martin, with one each.

The reduction in Florida, which has more shark attacks than any other other place in the world, also meant a decline in the United States.

The 30 attacks in U.S. territorial waters, including Hawaii, are down from the 41 recorded in 2003, 47 in 2002 and 50 each in 2001 and 2000, Burgess said.

Australia reported 12 attacks and there were five each in Brazil and South Africa and three in Reunion Island, a dependency of France in the Indian Ocean. Single attacks were reported in the Bahamas, Cuba, Egypt, Fiji, New Zealand and Venezuela.

The 61 shark attacks reported worldwide in 2004 was slightly higher than the 57 in 2003, but lower than totals of 63 in 2002, 68 in 2001 and 78 in 2000, Burgess said.

The number of deaths from shark attacks worldwide increased to seven in 2004, from four in 2003.

Two of last year's fatalities were in Australia, with one each in California, Hawaii, Brazil, Egypt and South Africa.

[Last modified February 15, 2005, 01:15:09]