Latest news with #sharks
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Science
- Yahoo
You're probably not going to get attacked by a shark, but being in the U.S. does make it more likely
There is something about sharks. Of all the massive, deadly, fascinating creatures that roam our planet, sharks stand out for how much they capture our imaginations and trigger our fears. There's no Bear Week or Snake Week or Elephant Week. There's only Shark Week. There's good eason for that. Sharks are remarkable animals. They've been around for hundreds of millions of years and have survived five mass extinction events. Their surprise attack hunting tactics and cold, expressionless faces make them ideal fodder for cinematic horror stories. It's no surprise, then, that a majority of Americans have a significant fear of sharks. In a recent poll by Chapman University, more people said they are afraid of sharks than said the same about earthquakes, hurricanes and even murder. Sharks do kill people, but the number of fatal attacks is much smaller than you might think. Only four people died from shark bites last year, according to the International Shark Attack File (ISAF), a database of shark encounters maintained by researchers at the Florida Museum of Natural History for decades. Not all shark bites are deadly, of course. There were 47 unprovoked shark bites worldwide in 2024. Only one person in the U.S. was killed by a shark last year, an experienced surfer and lifeguard who died after being attacked while surfing in Hawaii last summer. But a majority of the world's sharks bites (60%) in 2024 occurred in U.S. waters. That's consistent with long-term trends. The United States consistently sees more shark bites than any other country. The researchers with the ISAF have tracked shark attacks all the way back to the 16th century. According to their database, there have been nearly 1,700 recorded shark attacks in the U.S. since the 1500s, more than double the number in any other nation and just under half of the total attacks worldwide. When it comes to deadly shark bites, though, the U.S. falls well behind Australia, which has seen more than 250 fatal attacks in its history. Why does the U.S. have so many shark attacks? The answer is more about circumstances than anything else. To put it simply, the U.S. has a whole lot of places where humans can come into contact with sharks and a whole lot of people for sharks to bite. The U.S. has nearly 100,000 miles of coastline (almost 70,000 if you don't include Alaska). Only a few countries have more and some of those, like Canada and Russia, bump up against frigid Arctic seas where you won't find many humans or sharks in the water. The U.S. also has a much larger population than other countries with large coastlines, which leads to many more opportunities for sharks and humans to come into contact. It's estimated that there are 3.4 billion trips made to American beaches every year. That's more than 100 times as many as Australia, the place with the second-largest number of shark attacks all time. Finally, the oceans surrounding the U.S. happen to be part of the habitat of the 'big three' sharks (great whites, tiger sharks and bull sharks) that are blamed for most deadly attacks. America's shark bite capital Shark bites aren't distributed evenly across the U.S. either. While California, Hawaii and the Carolinas see their share, Florida is unquestionably America's shark-attack capital. Half of all shark bites in the U.S. last year — more than a quarter of all bites worldwide — occurred in the Sunshine State. Over the past two centuries, Florida has seen four-and-a-half times as many shark attacks as any other state. If Florida were its own country, it would rank No. 1 on the list of nations with the most total shark attacks. Even within Florida, attacks are concentrated in certain areas. Volusia County, home to Daytona Beach, is where the bulk of the state's bites occur, thanks to its high population of sharks and popular surf spots. Fortunately the area is home mostly to spinner sharks and black tip reef sharks, which are much smaller and less dangerous than their deadlier relatives. How to make the risk even smaller The odds of any one person being killed by a shark are extraordinarily low, much lower than the odds of being killed by a dog, fireworks or lightning. But if the fear of being attacked still haunts you, there are things you can do to reduce your risk even further. Here are the top tips, according to Gavin Naylor, research director of the ISAF: Don't go in the water alone Don't go in the water at dawn or dusk Don't go in the water where there are a lot of fish Don't wear reflective jewelry in the water Try to avoid splashing at the surface
CNET
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CNET
Shark Week 2025: How to Stream the All the Splashy Programming
Looking for sharks? You've paddled to the right place. Discovery Channel's Shark Week programming event is underway, bringing loads of shark-centric content for those who want to celebrate the iconic top predator. It's the kind of annual tradition that shines on the right screen. According to a press release, Shark Week 2025 will include 20 hours of new specials debuting Sunday, July 20, through Saturday, July 26. The first program up is Dancing with Sharks, which involves "an unprecedented underwater dance competition between expert divers and their shark partners," per Discovery. If you want to pile up your week with specials tied to sharks, here are streaming details for Shark Week 2025. You'll also find a full rundown of programming for the fin-filled extravaganza in its 37th year. Read more: Netflix Jumped In on the Shark Week Action in July, Landing Two New Hits How to Stream Shark Week 2025 Shark Week kicked off on Discovery Channel on Sunday, July 20. Specials will be available to stream the same day and time on HBO Max and Discovery Plus. Here's the Shark Week 2025 lineup. Sunday, July 20 -- Dancing with Sharks (8 p.m. ET), Air Jaws: The Hunt for Colossus (9 p.m. ET), Great White Assassins (10 p.m. ET) Monday, July 21 -- Great White Sex Battle (8 p.m. ET), Jaws vs. Mega Croc (9 p.m. ET), In the Eye of the Storm: Shark Storm (10 p.m. ET) Tuesday, July 22 -- Great White North Invasion (8 p.m. ET), How to Survive a Shark Attack (9 p.m. ET), Black Mako of the Abyss (10 p.m. ET) Wednesday, July 23 -- Expedition Unknown: Shark Files (8 p.m. ET), Expedition X: Malpelo Monster Shark (9 p.m. ET), Alien Sharks: Death Down Under (10 p.m. ET) Thursday, July 24 -- Surviving Jaws (8 p.m. ET), Caught! Sharks Strike Back (9 p.m. ET), Frankenshark (10 p.m. ET) Friday, July 25 -- Great White Reign of Terror (8 p.m. ET), Florida's Death Beach (9 p.m. ET), Bull Shark Showdown (10 p.m. ET) Saturday, July 26 -- Attack of the Devil Shark (8 p.m. ET), Battle for Shark Mountain (9 p.m. ET) CNET/Discovery Plus Discovery Plus Streams Shark Week Discovery Plus, like Max, lets you stream content from brands like HGTV, Food Network, TLC, ID, Animal Planet, and Discovery Channel. You won't get access to HBO and HBO Max originals like The Penguin and Hacks, but it's cheaper than Max. Ad-supported plans are $6 a month and ad-free plans are $10 a month. See at Discovery Plus
Washington Post
a day ago
- Science
- Washington Post
Where will the next big hurricane hit? Ask the sharks.
In the so-bad-it's-good TV movie 'Sharknado,' heroes armed with bombs and chain saws battle sharks tossed inland by a hurricane. In reality, biologists have found a way for sharks to help anticipate the next big storm. Researchers are enlisting sharks as mobile marine monitors, attaching sensors to their dorsal fins. The hope is that as the sharks swim through the ocean, they will collect temperature readings and other information that can be used to predict the power and trajectory of Atlantic hurricanes.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Week-Long Exploration Of Sharks, From Their Forecasting Capabilities To Their Public Perception
Summer sends people flocking to the beaches, which means more opportunities to meet up with the ocean's most fearsome creatures — sharks! We're celebrating sharks with a week of discovery and exploration into the ocean's most feared predators, and maybe we'll be able to convince you not to be so afraid of them along the way. Here's what you can expect this week: A New Aquatic Competitor Enters The 'Best Forecast' Ring Sharks … as meteorologists? Say it isn't so! Sharks can in fact do a rudimentary form of forecasting, using a biological system that allows them to sense changes in pressure that often come before significant weather events like hurricanes. A Georgia Aquarium aquarist explains how this is possible. How To Keep 6.3 Million Gallons Of Water Shark-Safe UNLOCKS MONDAY, JULY 21 Fin Fact: 4 Things Shark Specialists Wish You Knew UNLOCKS TUESDAY, JULY 22 Climate Change: Warming Oceans And Warning Signs For Sharks UNLOCKS WEDNESDAY, JULY 23 Join Us On A Journey From Fear To Fascination UNLOCKS THURSDAY, JULY 24 Sara Tonks is a content meteorologist with and has a bachelor's and a master's degree from Georgia Tech in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences along with a master's degree from Unity Environmental University in Marine Science.
CNET
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- CNET
Shark Week 2025: How to Watch and Stream the Toothy Programming Event
Looking for sharks? You've paddled to the right place. Discovery Channel's Shark Week programming event starts tonight, bringing loads of shark-centric content for those who want to celebrate the iconic top predator. It's the kind of annual tradition that really shines on the right screen. According to a press release, Shark Week 2025 will include 20 hours of new specials debuting Sunday, July 20, through Saturday, July 26. The first program up is Dancing with Sharks, which involves "an unprecedented underwater dance competition between expert divers and their shark partners," per Discovery. If you want to pile up your week with specials tied to sharks, here are streaming details for Shark Week 2025. You'll also find a full rundown of programming for the fin-filled extravaganza in its 37th year. Read more: Netflix Jumped In on the Shark Week Action in July, Landing Two New Hits How to Stream Shark Week 2025 Shark Week will kick off on Discovery Channel on Sunday, July 20 at 8 p.m. ET. Specials will be available to stream the same day and time on HBO Max and Discovery Plus. Here's the Shark Week 2025 lineup. Sunday, July 20 -- Dancing with Sharks (8 p.m. ET), Air Jaws: The Hunt for Colossus (9 p.m. ET), Great White Assassins (10 p.m. ET) Monday, July 21 -- Great White Sex Battle (8 p.m. ET), Jaws vs. Mega Croc (9 p.m. ET), In the Eye of the Storm: Shark Storm (10 p.m. ET) Tuesday, July 22 -- Great White North Invasion (8 p.m. ET), How to Survive a Shark Attack (9 p.m. ET), Black Mako of the Abyss (10 p.m. ET) Wednesday, July 23 -- Expedition Unknown: Shark Files (8 p.m. ET), Expedition X: Malpelo Monster Shark (9 p.m. ET), Alien Sharks: Death Down Under (10 p.m. ET) Thursday, July 24 -- Surviving Jaws (8 p.m. ET), Caught! Sharks Strike Back (9 p.m. ET), Frankenshark (10 p.m. ET) Friday, July 25 -- Great White Reign of Terror (8 p.m. ET), Florida's Death Beach (9 p.m. ET), Bull Shark Showdown (10 p.m. ET) Saturday, July 26 -- Attack of the Devil Shark (8 p.m. ET), Battle for Shark Mountain (9 p.m. ET) CNET/Discovery Plus Discovery Plus Streams Shark Week Discovery Plus, like Max, lets you stream content from brands like HGTV, Food Network, TLC, ID, Animal Planet, and Discovery Channel. You won't get access to HBO and HBO Max originals like The Penguin and Hacks, but it's cheaper than Max. Ad-supported plans are $6 per month and ad-free plans are $10 per month. See at Discovery Plus
