ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Researchers: Shark attacks increase after 3 years of decline

Photo of a shark. (Pexels.com) Photo of a shark. (Pexels.com)
Share
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -

Shark attacks increased around the world in 2021 following three consecutive years of decline, though beach closures in 2020 caused by the COVID-19 pandemic could be making the numbers seem more dramatic than they are, officials said Monday.

Researchers with the International Shark Attack File recorded 73 unprovoked incidents last year, compared to 52 bites in 2020, according to a new report. The research is administered by the Florida Museum of Natural History and the American Elasmobranch Society.

International Shark Attack File manager Tyler Bowling pointed out that 52 bites in 2020 were the lowest documented in more than a decade. The 73 bites in 2021 more closely align with the five-year global average of 72.

"Shark bites dropped drastically in 2020 due to the pandemic." Bowling said in a statement. "This past year was much more typical, with average bite numbers from an assortment of species and fatalities from white sharks, bull sharks and tiger sharks."

Researchers saw a total of 11 shark-related fatalities last year, with nine considered unprovoked. Australia led the world with three unprovoked deaths, followed by New Caledonia with two. The United States, Brazil, New Zealand and South Africa each had a single unprovoked fatal shark attack.

Unprovoked attacks occur when there is no human provocation. Provoked attacks are defined as when humans initiate contact, such as divers trying to touch a shark or fishermen removing a shark from a fishing net, according to the International Shark Attack File.

Florida has led the U.S. and the rest of the world in unprovoked shark bites for decades, and the trend continued in 2021, researchers said. Florida had 28 unprovoked bites last year, compared to 19 in the rest of the U.S. and 26 total outside the U.S. This is consistent with Florida's most recent five-year annual average of 25 attacks. Of Florida's 28 unprovoked bites, 17 were in Volusia County, which includes Daytona Beach.

The single fatal unprovoked shark attack in the U.S. in 2021 was in California. A man was killed while boogie boarding in Morro Bay on Christmas Eve.

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

BREAKING

BREAKING

Three men were injured after a man armed with a knife entered a Montreal-area Islamic cultural centre Friday afternoon.

A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.

Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

The parents of a teenager who died after allegedly consuming the poisonous products of a Mississauga man are now suing him, as well as several doctors involved in her care.

The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

Local Spotlight

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.