Great White Shark Attacks in Western Australia

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According to the International Shark Attack File there were two confirmed fatalities and six unprovoked attacks by great white sharks in Western Australia between 1876 and 2002. That's one death every 60 years and one non-fatal attack once every twenty years. With a population of approximately 2 million at that time, Western Australians stood a far better chance of winning the National Lottery than being attacked by a great white shark. [Source: Divernet News, October 31, 2003]

But since then it seems like there's been an awful lot of great white shark attack in West Australia There were six fatal shark attacks in Australia between December 2008 and September 2011. All but one were off the west coast. In December 2008 a great white shark attacked a 51-year-old man while snorkeling off a beach south of Perth. A 31-year-old man died in 2010 ago while surfing in Cowaramup Bay. Around November, large sharks appear Western Australia chasing schools of fish and often hang around into the southern hemisphere summer..

The Washington Post reported in 2014: The chances of being taken by a shark in Western Australia state are remote — but they appear to be rising. Of the 20 people killed by sharks in the state over the past century, seven died in the past three years, according to the state government, which has found a statistically significant increase in attacks since 1995. [Source: A. Odysseus Patrick, Washington Post, February 7, 2014]

In November 2013, 35-year-old plumber Chris Boyd was surfing at a secluded break on Australia’s western coast when he was attacked by a great white shark. The shark severed his left arm and ripped off part of his right leg. The man died in the shark’s jaws. In January 2014, following the attack described above and at least five other fatal attacks off Western Australia beaches in three years, the Western Australia government ordered a cull of sharks. Baited hooks were installed off Perth's popular beaches. Any shark more than three meters long — which could include Great White, Tiger and Bull sharks — were ordered be shot. The controversial move prompted thousands of people to take to the streets to protests against the culls. Some people got really made when a a female tiger shark was caught on one of the hooks and was shot four times with a .22-caliber rifle and then dumped in the sea. In the end the cull blocked by Australia’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which said the cull there was "a high degree of scientific uncertainty" about the impact on the population of great white shark, listed as a “vulnerable” species.

Websites and Resources: Australian Shark Incident Database, Taronga Conservation Society Australia taronga.org.au ; Shark Foundation shark.swiss ; International Shark Attack Files, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida floridamuseum.ufl.edu/shark-attacks ; Tracking Sharks trackingsharks.com, which records all global shark attacks; Animal Diversity Web (ADW) animaldiversity.org; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) noaa.gov; Fishbase fishbase.se ; Encyclopedia of Life eol.org ; Smithsonian Oceans Portal ocean.si.edu/ocean-life-ecosystems

When and Where Great White Attacks Occur in West Australia

number and type of shark attacks in Western Australia, from Kathi, Young Scientist,

Esperance, on the Southern Ocean coastline approximately 720 kilometers (450 miles) east-southeast of Perth, is a hotspot for great white shark attacks Seventeen-year-old Laeticia Brouwer was also killed by a great white while surfing there in 2017. There are also a lot of attacks in the Perth area. In May 2016, Ben Gerring, 29, was surfing near Perth, when his leg was bitten off by a great white shark. He died of his injuries later that week. Local officials caught and killed a 15-foot shark soon after, but weren't sure if it was the same one that killed Gerring. In June 2016, a 60-year-old woman diving at a popular spot in Perth, Australia, was killed by a large shark. Nearby fishermen said the shark was larger than their five and half meter (17-foot) boat.

The Gracetown area, about 270 kilometers (167 miles) south of Perth. is well-known for surfing and sharks. Surfer Paul Paterson, brother of former professional West Australia surfer Jake Paterson, said lone-surfing was usually not a problem, but at certain times of the year sharks were known to follow whales and salmon to the area. "There's a lot of whales in really close and that seems to attract the sharks this time of year," Paterson said. "March, April and May is a very dangerous season because its the salmon season and it increases the probability of sharks." He said South Point beach was a very protected spot and a good place to surf after a big storm. "The last guy that got attacked by a shark was just around the corner, which is only about one or two kilometers away," he said. [Source: Katherine Fenech and Aja Styles, West Australia Today August 17, 2010]

Shark expert Mike Roennfeldt said "We've always been of the opinion that the danger time of the year was the October, November early December period with the whales being followed by the sharks and that's when we should be watching out but just lately we've had quite a few incidents with great whites along this south-west coast and it probably means we should be more vigilant right though the year."

Following reports that shark numbers had increased in West Australia, Premier Colin Barnett said his government would look into raising the number of sharks fishermen were allowed to catch, according to ABC Australia. According to The West Australian Barnett said that August to November was "a risk period" and on days like Saturday, "grey, dull days," were the times when recent shark attacks seem to have occurred. He said the risk was greater for people out in deep waters diving and spear fishing.

Shark expert Hugh Edwards told the West Australian newspaper that the area, from Cape Naturaliste to Cape Leeuwin, was a "travel route" for sharks, particularly great whites. "The risk of being attacked while in the water is very low but there's no doubt that there are far more people in the water in these areas than there were 10, 20 years ago so we are seeing more attacks," he said.

Surfers Attacked by Great White Sharks in West Australia

Unprovoked attacks of the white shark per month since 1900 in Western Australia, source, same as above

In October 1997, a five-meter (16-foot shark), believed to be a great white, knocked two men from the long surfboard they were paddling before crushing it.Both men escaped serious injury. Brian Sierakowski, 51, said he and a friend were paddling about 200 yards off Cottesloe Beach in Perth when the shark attacked, chomping just a foot from where he was sitting. “He missed my feet by about one foot, and as we attempted to maintain balance, he (the shark) kept chewing into the (board)... and chewed it in half,'' Sierakowski told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio. The men were thrown into the water and Seirakowski was hit on the head by the shark's tail. [Source: AP]

The shark turned around, apparently to make a second attack. But the men had already been picked up by a couple paddling nearby and rushed back to the beach. Sierakowskia, a former professional Australian rules football player, suffered minor facial injuries from the tail-strike. His companion, Dr. Barney Hanranhan, a plastic surgeon, was uninjured. The shark was tracked for more than 30 minutes along the coast by a helicopter and a boat. Observers estimated the shark to be 16 feet. Beaches along the Perth foreshore were closed, but several surfers ignored the warning.

In July 2004, 29-year-old Bradley Adrian Smith died after being savaged by a great white shark off Left Handers Beach, near Gracetown, south of Perth. Witnesses said Smith tried to fight off at least one and possibly two sharks. ABC TV reported: Local resident Mitchell Campbell was one of those who witnessed the attack. "I thought I saw him laying on his back and I was saying, oh is anyone going to go out and grab him, so I was going out expecting I'd have to do CPR or something like that but by the time I got out there, there was just no chance," he said. A teenage surfer who witnessed the attack says one of the sharks was extremely aggressive and at least three meters long. Sixteen-year-old Cameron Rowe was surfing nearby when heard someone call out a warning and looked up to see two sharks nearby. "This big shark was eating this guy with this other shark circling him and coming up and around him, nudging him and one of them was lunging on him and attacking him," he said. "There was just blood everywhere and the shark kept just getting him." "I saw the shark get him once more then he was lying face down in the water, we saw the other shark coming towards us, so I caught another wave in." [Source: ABC TV, July 11 2004]

Shark expert Mike Roennfeldt says reports that two sharks were working together is very unusual. "Generally they're lone sharks, when they're big so it's fairly unusual and I would have thought that would make them easy to identify if they're working as a pair," he said. Mr Roennfeldt says if the sharks can be identified, they should be shot. However the dead man's family have asked authorities not to kill the animals.

In August 2010, not far away from the above-mentioned attack, 31-year-old Nicholas Edwards,died after being attacked by a shark while surfing alone early in the morning at Gracetown. A police spokeswoman said the man received life-threatening injuries and died later at Margaret River Hospital. Rob Alder told ABC he had rushed down to the beach and alerted a rescue crew, while he tried to resuscitate the man. Mr Alder said there were reports of a large number of seals in the area at the time of the attack. "It's my thought, as often happens, the shark had probably mistaken the surfer for a seal," Mr Alder was quoted as saying. "He hadn't bitten away anything, it was just like a nip, there was no sign that the shark had viewed the surfer as a meal."

Dunsborough police Sergeant Craig Anderson said Edwards was attacked 300 meters from the South Point surf break south of Cowaramup Bay, near Gracetown. He said a couple walking on the beach about 8:00am local time saw him sitting on his board waiting for a wave but when they turned around four minutes later, he had disappeared. "They just saw the board only and a lot of grey objects around the board," Sergeant Anderson said. "They've gone down a bit further and seen the fellow face down in the water amongst the rocks." It took the pair another six minutes to wade in and pull the unconscious surfer from the water. Sergeant Anderson said he was believed to already be dead but one of the rescuers tied a tourniquet and began CPR with the help of surfers who were suiting up in the carpark at the time. "It appears that his right leg has been shredded with some significant injuries to the top of his leg and minor injuries to the calf," Sergeant Anderson said. About 10 minutes later his board washed up to shore after being bitten in half. [Source: Katherine Fenech and Aja Styles, West Australia Today August 17, 2010]

Gracetown surfer Rob Alder, who performed CPR on the dying man, said he did what he could in a desperate effort to save a "brother" surfer's life. "I took my leg rope and used it as a tourniquet because he had a severe laceration and we put him on my surfboard to bring him up the beach," he said. "But we realised it was too hard so we began mouth to mouth resuscitation and CPR." While this was happening, his friend ran along the beach screaming at other surfers to get out of the water. "He looked like he was in deep shock. He was unconscious," Mr Alder said. "We got colour back into his face and cared for him, and tried to bring him back to the surface," he said in a shaky voice.He said it looked like there had been a single bite that tore through the man's calf and thigh.

Man Killed in Great White Attack at Popular Perth Beach

In November 2000, a 49-year-old father of three, Ken Crew, was killed and another person was badly hurt in an attack by a large shark near Perth. The shark, which witnesses said was more than five meters (16 feet) long, tore through Crew's torso and severed the leg as he walked in waist-deep water at Cotteslow Beach. Scores of people watched in horror as the man was killed by the shark. One of his legs was bitten off by the 16-foot Great White as he swam with friends just 50 yards from the shore. A witness told Reuters, "There was a whole sea of blood. From he balcony I could see this huge shark — it was really huge. When we saw the fin and tail, people thought it was two sharks, it was so big."

The attack, off the popular beach happened at about 6.30am as the shallow waters were crowded with early-morning swimmers. There were about 100 people on the beach. Two men used a surf-ski to pull the victim ashore but he died at the scene, despite frantic efforts by surf club medics. One of the rescuers, Dirk Avery, 52, was also bitten on the feet and legs before the shark swam way. He later underwent surgery and was also treated for shock. One said, "Two men went to the rescue. One was hurt on the legs but the other man, I think, is the hero because he really tried to drag his friend away from the shark."[Source: Frank Thorne, AP]

Another eye-witness, who had just left the water, said: "All of a sudden, I heard this yelling and screaming and looked down the beach, saw the blood in the water and realized what had happened. Everything went on from there. The beach was cleared and we were trying to do our best to help." Beach café owner Kim Gamble said he had never seen a bigger shark. The first thing he saw was blood spreading in the water. "There was a whole sea of blood and the shark was pulling the person. It's something I wouldn't want to see again," he said.

It was the second shark attack at Cottesloe in three years, although there has not been a fatal attack in Perth for more than 30 years. Sea-rescue authorities said there had been more sightings than usual of great whites off the coast. Only last month, Perth beachgoers were warned after two sharks - one believed to be a white pointer - were seen.

Beachgoers Horrified by Sight of Great White Shark with a Man’s Body In Its Jaws

In December 2008, fifty-one-year-old bank officer Brian Guest was taken by a shark as he was snorkelling for crabs with his 24-year-old son Daniel just six meters (25 feet) from the beach at Port Kennedy, 32 kilometers (20 miles) south of Perth. Afterwards the shark rolled over in the water with the body of a man in its jaws as people on the beach looked on in horror. The water turned red with blood as the shark carried the father of three away. [Source: Richard Shears, Dail Mail, December 28, 2008}

The Dail Mail reported: Witnesses on the beach told of seeing a 'flash of fin' but local man Luke Tubbs, who lives near the beach, described a horrific scene in which the shark could be seen with Mr Guest's body in its jaws. While he did not witness the event personally, he said it had been described to him by another man who had run to his home to raise the alarm. “e told me he just saw a big splash and then the shark roll over in the water with the guy — and then (he saw) no body or anything.”

Police, emergency services and volunteers search the coastline for any sign of Mr Guest, but his body had not been found several hours after the terrifying attack. Mr Guest's son was swimming some 20 feet from his father when the shark struck and while Daniel is understood not to have witnessed the actual attack, he realised his father was in trouble when he saw the water turn red with blood. He swam quickly to the beach, shouting for help. Rescuers later reported they had found parts of a wetsuit believed to belong to the missing man, as warnings went out to beachgoers to stay out of the water. Guest’s family insisted the great white responsible should not be hunted down and destroyed, with Mr Guest previously telling his family that if he were ever to fall victim to a man-eating shark then 'so be it'.

Shark Attacks in Western Australia in 2010 and 2011

There were four fatal shark attack in the Perth area of West Australian in 14 months in 2010 and 2011. Three of the attacks took place in a two month period between August and October 2011. In October 2011, sixty-four-year-old Perth resident Bryn Martin is believed to have been taken by a shark at one of Perth's most popular beaches when he went swimming and never returned. Martin took a regular morning swim from Perth's premier Cottesloe Beach toward a buoy about 380 yards offshore. But an analysis of Martin's torn swimming trunks recovered from the seabed near the buoy pointed to a great white shark being the culprit. No other trace of Martin was found.

In June 2012, a 62-year-old Australian man in kayak was attacked by great white shark off of Mullaloo Beach in western Australia. The man, Martin Kane, was shaken but otherwise uninjured after the three-meter (9-foot) shark bit his kayak and believes he was still alive because the fish was driven off by his kayak. Kane, 62, said the attack felt like being "rammed by a jet ski" as he heard a loud crunching sound. "Because it [the kayak] is a sealed unit, when the shark bit it, it went off like an explosion," Kane told reporters. "It really surprised me — I just didn't know what it was. It didn't strike me until I saw the fin that it was a shark." [Source: AAP, June 20, 2012]

Shark Kills U.S. Man Near Perth

In October 2011, Huffington Post reported a shark a killed a U.S. tourist off Perth, Western Australia. The 32-year-old tourist is believed to have been diving off the popular Rottnest Island, 12.5 miles northwest of Perth, at Little Armstrong Bay, PerthNow reported. The shark, described by the divers friends as a 9.8-foot great white, struck around 1.30pm. [Source: msnbc.com, Bonnie Christian,Huffington Post, October 22, 2011]

Police said two of his friends watched in horror from a private 25-foot Bertram boat as they saw a "flurry of bubbles" in the water. Their friend's body surfaced shortly after with traumatic injuries. The man had been living and working in Australia for six months, according to The West Australian.

The shark struck 500 yards north of the picturesque tourist haven of Rottnest Island, which is 11 miles from a popular Perth city mainland beach where a 64-year-old swimmer is believed to have been taken by a great white 12 days before. Authorities cannot say whether he was killed by the same shark that is believed to have taken Bryn Martin as he made his regular morning swim from Perth's premier Cottesloe Beach toward a buoy about 380 yards offshore.

Western Australia Police Sgt. Gerry Cassidy said: "It's a cloudy old day today which is the same as we had the other day with Cottesloe, and they're the conditions that sharks love," Cassidy said.

The West Australian reported the Department of Fisheries were given permission to kill the shark. "The decision has been made that if we capture the shark we will kill it," Department of Fisheries regional manager Tony Cappelluti said. "The intention is for us to set some gear at the site of the attack and see if we can capture the shark. The policy is that if there's a clear and present danger that we can take a great white," Fox News reported. "The exemption to destroy sharks only applies in WA state waters in an area up to three nautical miles offshore and must be conducted under strict guidelines using a firearm," according to PerthNow.

Shark Kills 21-Year-old Boogie Boarding off Western Australia

In September 2011, CNN reported: “A popular Western Australian beach was closed to the public Monday as authorities hunted for the shark they believe killed a 21-year-old man while he was out boogie boarding with friends. Dunsborough Police Sgt. Craig Anderson said the man was boogie boarding in a tourist haven known as Bunker Bay when a shark apparently bit into him. His friends, as well as a fellow surfer, were able to drag his body — which had "significant injuries" in its lower half — onto the beach, where rescue personnel soon arrived. [Source: Greg Botelho, CNN, AFP, September 05, 2011]

The victim, Kyle Burden was in the water off Bunker Bay, a popular tourist spot on Australia's west coast, when the shark attacked, biting him so badly the lower half of his body was torn away and most of his arm and legs were missing, police said. Local reports said either a Great White Shark or a bronze whaler, up to 4.5 metres (15 feet) long, was thought to be responsible.

Anderson said that authorities believe the man died while he was in the water. "When we share the water with aquatic creatures, these things will happen from time to time," said Anderson, adding that the man's death has shaken residents in the picturesque southwestern Australian coastal community. "It is all a bit quiet today in town."

James Cottrell told CNN affiliate Channel 10 that the victim had phoned him Sunday morning, saying he "was pretty keen to surf." "I just didn't believe it," Cottrell said of his friend's death. "It's too much to comprehend, really." A 31-year-old man died just over a year ago while surfing about 45 kilometers (27 miles) away from this weekend's incident, in Cowaramup Bay. But this is the first shark attack, in Anderson's recollection, to happen in Bunker Bay.

Yet the police officer admitted that conditions may have factored into the shark being in the vicinity. For one, a seal colony — common targets for sharks — sits west of where the incident occurred, part of a wealth of sea life that makes the bay "quite active." Moreover, there were fairly overcast skies over a "dark and gloomy" sea, at the time. "It was just ideal shark conditions," Anderson said, alluding to his conversations with local experts. "Unfortunately, everything stacked up."

About 30 surfers were in the water a surfing spot known as The Farm, off Bunker Bay near the western town of Dunsborough. when the shark attacked, according to beachside cafe employee, Deb Pickett, who called police and an ambulance after hearing the disturbance. "We had some sharks spotted far out at sea a few months ago, but they never come this close to the shore," Pickett said. No one — including the victim's friends and nearby surfers — reported that they saw the shark at the scene. Nor have there been any sightings, beyond unconfirmed reports from canoeists, in the general area. Anderson said Burden was among a group of about five surfing in the area. "You have to take your hat off to the young fellow who was surfing with him and his mate for bringing him ashore, the nature of his injuries were significant," he said.

The beach has been closed to swimmers and surfers for a 36-hour period until at least midnight Monday, Anderson noted. In that time, aircraft from a government fisheries department will conduct "a sweep of the bay and the coastline looking over areas where the shark may be lurking." Several rescue boats were in the area as well, searching closer to the water's surface for the sharks as well as the victims limbs. Authorities said there were no plans to kill the shark, just usher it out to sea.

Two Surfers Attacked With Hours of Each Other in the Gracetown Area

In April 2018, a person was attacked by a shark near Gracetown just hours after a man's legs were savaged in an incident which forced the Margaret River Pro surfing competition to be temporarily suspended. ABC reported: A Denmark man suffered minor injuries when he was bitten on the leg at the Lefthanders surf breakwith the shark leaving significant bite marks on his surfboard. Jason Longrass — who was surfing at a closed beach at the time — was treated by paramedics at the scene and said he was "very lucky". The 41-year-old said he had been "having a ball" in the water prior to the shark attacking, with other surfers having cleared out of the water. "[It was] just heading straight for me, beelining straight at me … and just nailed the board," he said. "I knew straight away 'don't kick your legs, just swim'." [Source: ABC, April 16 2018]

Earlier, another man was mauled about 2 kilometers away at Cobblestones surfing spot shortly before 8:00am, with fellow surfers helping him back to shore before applying tourniquets to his legs. Margaret River resident Alejandro Travaglini, 37, suffered significant leg injuries and was flown by a rescue helicopter to Royal Perth Hospital (RPH), where he is recovering from surgery in the trauma unit.

St John Ambulance said paramedics on the ground reported that first aid from his friends was crucial in the moments after the attack, as they used a leg rope to stem blood flow.Surf photographer Peter Jovic witnessed the attack on Mr Travaglini from the beach. "A shark popped up and pretty much ended up knocking a surfer from his board," he said. "There was a lot more thrashing around. After that it was hard to see what was going on. [I] saw the guy who had been attacked get separated from the [surf] board and then start to paddle for an inside wave, which he managed to body surf all the way in. They got him to shore and started working on him to stem the bleeding.

Another witness, Brett Newland, said there were about five surfers in the area when "a big shark popped up in the water amongst them". "It swam under a couple of guys and came around and bit a third person," he said. "We could see its fin, and then when it attacked the man we could see its tail splashing and saw it launch up out of the water at him. "It was a large shark and from the way it was behaving, it would have been a white pointer. "All the other surfers swam to him, helped him get away from his board and leg rope and helped him get on a wave, and luckily [he] caught a wave onto the reef."

Mr Newland said the man was conscious the whole time. "The surfers that helped him in got tourniquets on his legs as soon as they got on the shallow reef, and then other people came down from the carpark and put him onto a surfboard and carried him up to the carpark," he said."He had cuts to both legs."

Beaches in the Gracetown area were closed following the earlier attack, including North Point, Big Rock and Lefthanders, and a shark warning was issued for waters between Kilcarnup and North Point. An alert was also issued about a whale carcass found at Lefthanders, with beach users warned the decomposing carcass could draw sharks close to shore. Speaking after the second attack, Acting Fisheries Minister Roger Cook said authorities had taken every precaution possible. "Following the first incident authorities cleared beaches, erected beach closure signs, patrolled the area in boats and on foot to ensure the safety of other beach users," he said. "Lefthanders beach was closed due to a whale carcass and a shark being sighted in the area. "Signs had been erected at the beach, the helicopter was patrolling the beach and alerts had been issued on both SharkSmart.com.au and Surf Life Saving WA's Twitter. "Unfortunately despite the warnings and beach closures being in place, a surfer has been bitten on the leg. "This incident highlights the importance of heeding the beach closures and other warnings put in place by authorities." Margaret River Pro suspended for an hour

Diver and Surfer Killed by Great White Shark near Perth Within Days of Each Other

In June 2016, a British grandmother, 60-year-old Doreen Collyer was fatally mauled by a huge shark — described by witnesses as larger than their boat — near Perth. AFP reported: “The attack on the woman off the northern Perth suburb of Mindarie comes just two days after a surfer died after having his leg bitten off by a shark along the same coastline. Western Australia state police said the woman had "significant injuries that are consistent with a shark attack". [Source: AFP, June 5, 2016]

“Police Inspector Danny Mulligan added that three fishermen who tried to help the woman and her partner described the shark as being longer than their 5.3-meter (17.4-foot) boat. “He said the woman's diving partner felt "something go past him" when he was in the water. "When he surfaced he saw a commotion in the water and then another boat arrived to pull him out of the water, and then it was noticed that the lady had suffered some severe and fatal injuries," Mulligan said according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. "Given the nature of the injuries and the location of the incident, it is likely that a large white shark greater than three meters in size is responsible," the state's Department of Fisheries said it a statement.

“The department added that it had deployed "capture gear" — reported to be drum lines — to "fish for the shark" after the attack, which happened one kilometer (0.62 miles) offshore. Surf Life Saving West Australia tweeted earlier Sunday that a 4.5-meter shark had been reportedly sighted offshore from Mindarie.

“The suspected attack came two days after Ben Gerring — a surfer who lost a leg in a mauling off Falcon Beach some 115 kilometers south of Mindarie— died in hospital. The 29-year-old was with a group of surfers when what is believed to have been a great white shark pounced on him, ripping off his right leg above the knee and snapping his surfboard in half. A 4.2-meter shark caught on Wednesday near to where the attack occurred was destroyed at sea, although authorities could not confirm whether it was responsible.

Impact of Great White Shark Attacks on West Australia

The Washington Post reported in 2014: West Australia’s tourism industry, which employees 56,000 people, is deeply concerned about the long-term consequences of the rise in attacks. Sixty-four percent of foreign tourists visit a beach, and there is anecdotal evidence some businesses are already being hurt, according to the federal government. [Source: A. Odysseus Patrick, Washington Post, February 7, 2014]

One of the state’s prettiest beaches, Cottesloe, in the city of Perth, used to be packed every holiday season. Now, toward the end of the Southern Hemisphere summer, the water is almost empty. “It’s hard to convey to outsiders the impact in our community of these shark attacks,” Jane Marwick, a radio broadcaster, wrote in a recent article in a newspaper called the Australian. “People on the beach talk about sharks, people in shops talk about sharks, patients and staff at the doctor’s surgery talk about sharks. But few are sure of just what, if anything, should be done.”

Image Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); Wikimedia Commons

Text Sources: Mostly National Geographic articles. Also the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian magazine, Natural History magazine, Discover magazine, Times of London, The New Yorker, Time, Newsweek, Reuters, AP, AFP, Lonely Planet Guides, Compton’s Encyclopedia and various books and other publications.

Last updated March 2023