Despite being physically terrifying, sharks rank low in the deadliest animals category. Out of 15, sharks rank last charting only 10 deaths per year. In comparison, domesticated dogs kill more around 25,000 people per year while seemingly weak freshwater snails kill around 10,000 every year. However, it seems like the statistics are about to change at least considering the daunting shark related deaths recorded last year.
The International Shark Attack File or ISAF recently released the official record of the number of shark attacks for 2015. The team investigated 164 reported shark-human interaction worldwide. Out of the lot, 98 have been confirmed to be incidents of unprovoked shark attacks. 2015's total number of shark recorded incidents have since beat the previous record set in 2000 which clocks in at 88 attacks.
The team from the International Attack File have explained the reason for the sudden rise in shark related incidents. According to them, as the world's population continues to be interested in aquatic recreation, the number of attacks is bound to increase as well.
"A shark attack is fundamentally an odd situation that's built on the number of humans in the water and the number of sharks in the water. We frankly are swamping sharks out of their own environment [because] we're putting so many people in water in nearshore areas where the sharks often are very common" explained George Burgess, director of the Florida Program for Shark Research and curator of the ISAF.
Burgess has also since given advice on how the general public can avoid shark attacks. The most important tip to remember, according to Burgess, is to avoid swimming near fish. He explains that sharks usually feast on tinier fish and a person would most likely be involved in an attack if they insist on staying near the shark's food source.
