Aug
6
2010

BOOK FACT FRIDAY

by Leslie Nangle | Filed in: Biological Sciences - Book Fact Friday | 9:47am EST

Fact: Three shark species–tiger, great white, and bull–are responsible for the majority of attacks.

“Shark! Swim, Eddie, swim!”  Remember Jaws2? Unfortunately, Eddie didn’t make it.   With recent shark sightings in the news, you may just want to know how to avoid being the main course.  Here are some suggestions:

1. Don’t swim at dawn or dusk, the favorite feeding time for most sharks.

2. Swimming with dolphins in the open sea may be fun, but you run the risk of being mistaken for dinner.

3. Surf at your peril–sharks often confuse boards for seals or sea lions, and your feet dangling over the edge are even more of an enticement.

4. Avoid Florida. Almost 40% of recorded shark attacks have occurred in Florida’s waters. The combination of 1,277 miles of coast, dangerous sharks, and millions of bathers leads to the inevitable . . .

For more facts about sharks, visit:  http://press.princeton.edu/releases/m7256.html

The Shark-Watcher’s Handbook:
A Guide to Sharks and Where to See Them
Mark Carwardine & Ken Watterson

Also available:
Sharks of the World
Leonard Compagno, Marc Dando, & Sarah Fowler

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This entry was posted on Friday, August 6th, 2010 at 9:47 am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 discussion feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

6 Responses

  1. On August 7th, 2010 at 7:37 am Alan replied:

    Thanks for the link. The facts about sharks are really very interesting!! I didn’t know half the things mentioned there. I will surely try to get this book.

  2. On August 7th, 2010 at 8:01 am cashapillar replied:

    Shark Attacks stories and movies became popular lately. My brother are fan of watching those movies like Deep Blue Sea, Jaws and Best Plot.

  3. On August 8th, 2010 at 11:43 pm Steve replied:

    Great info thanks! I was recently in Pensicola FL and just weeks after getting back saw on the news about the shark attacks there.

  4. On August 9th, 2010 at 12:22 pm Brad Miczko replied:

    Thanks for the link! I am fascinated of sharks and really don´t the picture painted by the Jaws films. How many people die each year by a lion, bear or snake attack? But sharks are always the “bad boys”.

    Thanks again, Brad

  5. On August 9th, 2010 at 1:46 pm James replied:

    Though I love Shark Week, and your suggestions, living in Indiana seems to be the best defense for me

  6. On August 9th, 2010 at 1:54 pm Mike White replied:

    As I’m fascinated with the sharks, I find this topic really interesting. I’ve been watching Shark Week on Discovery Channel and they share many of the facts mentioned in the book. Just ordered the book on amazon.com – looking forward to it.