shark attack odds

[DawgDiver]

There is a Big difference between a Tiger and a Sand Tiger. One is a Pit Bull on a bad day, the other a cheerful Lab.

You know what's funny... my younger sister brought home a book the other day about Sharks... and on one page it had Sand Tigers, and it said that they were "a danger to divers" and I'm thinking "whoa, this goes against everything i heard about them..."

 

[MSilvia]

Good to know..
For now, I think I'll try to avoid both since I would hate to mistake one for the other!

They're not easy to mistake. Tiger sharks have a "blunt" head with a square nose and a stripped pattern on their sides.

Sand tigers have the snaggle teeth I mentioned before, and often have a slightly upturned nose and the appearance of a bend or hunch in the back.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Sand tigers can and do bite people. I have the pre-surgery pictures of a young women's arm that was severely mauled while wading in the surf in Florida. Nearly all the meat was removed from the entire forearm. They are certainly not as aggressive as some other sharks, but they get big and do have the ability to hurt a person severely.

 

[HowardE]

I can say - that after my recent encounter with a large Bull Shark, that it's quite obvious that they are curious and cautious of us - at least at first. The shark that circled us for a while (becuase my wife had a large fish that she shot) was only interested in the fish.

I've seen several sharks before our bull shark close encounter; and for the most part the bull was the only species of shark to even come close. Most other sharks swim away from me, faster than I can get a decent photo of one.

 

[PePaw]

Odds mean very little when you end up as the "one" in one and a million !

 

[BKP]

Odds mean very little when you end up as the "one" in one and a million !

Perhaps... however, they're still good odds... (much worse odds don't keep me from driving, flying, or riding toilet seats).

ISAF records only show 29 Sand Tiger (raggie-tooth) unprovoked attacks worldwide, with only 2 fatalities...

 

[Walter]

You know what's funny... my younger sister brought home a book the other day about Sharks... and on one page it had Sand Tigers, and it said that they were "a danger to divers" and I'm thinking "whoa, this goes against everything i heard about them..."

Any large shark is "a danger to divers." How much of a danger and what can you do to lessen that danger are important considerations. Don't dive where people are chumming, fishing or feeding sharks. If a shark becomes the least bit aggressive, swim underwater to the boat/shore and get out of the water. Don't react like prey. You can't outswim a shark, so don't try. The joke about outswimming your buddy ceased to be funny the second time I heard it (decades ago). If threatened, charge the shark.

 

[The Kraken]

That one's a classic, Walter, it never gets too old . . . .

the K

 

[Code Monkey]

Well, I'd guess that you should:

Stay in groups and keep close to the sink.
Avoid toilet seats first thing in the morning; toilet seats are most active, then.

 

[Splitlip]

That probably depends on whether you consider self-defense an attack. If you're wondering how many divers are just minding their own business while floating above the reef when suddenly a viscious octopus jumps out of nowhere and tries to strangle them... very few. There may be a number of people injured or killed annually by the odd blue-ringed octopus that was stepped on or prodded, or by some other octo upset about having been molested so some jerk could get a photo of his buddy wearing an octopus for a hat.

How about giant squid?:11: