Shark Safety

May 26, 2010

Memorial Day weekend brings hundreds of thousands of swimmers and surfers to the beach and all those people in the water boost the odds of a shark attack. University of Florida shark experts say the best way to avoid being a victim is avoiding sites where sharks are commonly found.

George Burgess/UF Shark Expert: “Area’s where there’s drop-offs, where there is fishing activity, if there’s effluent entry in the water, inlets. Those all are areas of high population density of sharks.”

And though an early morning or evening dip may sound inviting, experts say it’s best to think twice.

George Burgess/UF Shark Expert: “The time period between dusk and dawn, which is a time period when sharks are very active eating, and in particular the biggest and the largest, the bull and the tiger sharks, seem to be doing their most damage.”

Experts say that knowing how to avoid these oceanic predators has reduced the number of fatal attacks in recent years; a trend they hope will continue for beach seasons to come.