FL Leads The World In Shark Bites For 2022: University Of Florida

FLORIDA — While unprovoked shark bites on humans decreased in 2022, Florida still ranked first in the world for attacks, according to data from the University of Florida’s International Shark Attack File.

Last year, ISAF investigated 108 interactions between sharks and humans and found that globally there were 57 unprovoked shark bites — the lowest level in a decade — and 32 provoked bites.

There has been an average of 74 unprovoked bites each year since 2013, with 2020 being the exception, likely because of COVID-19-related restrictions at beaches, the university said.

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The reduction in shark bites in 2022 could reflect the documented global decline of shark populations, the university added.

“Generally speaking, the number of sharks in the world’s oceans has decreased, which may have contributed to recent lulls,” Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Museum of Natural History’s Florida Program for Shark Research, said. “It’s likely that fatalities are down because some areas have recently implemented rigorous beach safety protocols, especially in Australia.”

The United States led the world in shark attacks in 2022 with 41, including one fatality, data shows. Australia had the second-highest number of attacks with nine. Egypt and South Africa each had two bites, while Brazil, New Zealand and Thailand each reported one attack.

And Florida topped U.S. and global charts for the number of shark attacks with 16 unprovoked bites in 2022, according to ISAF. This represents 39 percent of the U.S. total and 28 percent of bites worldwide.

The Sunshine State was followed by New York with eight bites, Hawaii with five, California and South Carolina with four each, North Carolina with two, and single incidents in Texas and Alabama.

In Florida, Volusia County, which includes Daytona Beach, New Smyrna Beach and Ormond Beach, is where most of the bites occurred — seven of them, representing 44 percent of the state’s total number of unprovoked bites.

“This represents a decrease from the five-year annual average of nine incidents in the area; however, Volusia County experiences considerable variation in the number of bites from one year to the next,” ISAF said.

Florida also saw four shark bites in Monroe County and single incidents reported in Martin, Nassau, Pinellas, Brevard and Palm Beach counties.