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With eight fatalities last year, Australia was the deadliest location for shark attacks in the world.
In 2020, shark attacks decreased for the third consecutive year, falling to 57 unprovoked bites worldwide, compared with 64 bites
in 2019 and 66 in 2018, according to the annual summary issued by the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File (ISAF).
But 2020 proved to be the deadliest year since 2013, with 12 bites resulting in fatalities, up from the average of four per year.
Eight of those fatal bites were in Australia, three in the US and one in the waters of St Martin in the Caribbean.
Three people were killed in Western Australia, and two each in New South Wales and Queensland.
The total of eight came close to Australia's 90-year-old record of nine shark attack deaths in a single year.
There were 11 non-fatal bites recorded in Australia last year.
Local Australian figures from Taronga Zoo's shark file reported higher total attacks than the ISAF data across the decade in Australia (see below), but it too showed a spike in fatal attacks in 2020 compared with previous years.
Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Museum of Natural History's shark research program, said the high number of deaths globally in 2020 is likely an anomaly.
"It's a dramatic spike, but it's not yet cause for alarm," he said.
"We expect some year-to-year variability in bite numbers and fatalities. One year does not make a trend."
Mr Naylor said 2020's total bite count was "extremely low" and that long-term data showed the number of fatal bites is decreasing over time.
ISAF experts confirmed great white sharks were involved in at least 16 unprovoked bites in 2020, including six of the year's 10 fatalities: four in Australia, one in California and one in Maine.
Of the remaining deaths, two were the result of tiger shark bites, including the fatality in Hawaii, and two could not be identified to species.
Surfers and other board sport athletes experienced 61 per cent of bites worldwide in 2020, compared with 53 per cent in 2019 and 2018.
A tiger shark with a group of divers at Tiger Beach in the Bahamas. (Getty)
Ocean Ramsey, a shark researcher and advocate, swims with a large great white shark off the shore of Oahu. The two shark researchers came face-to-face with what could be one of the largest great whites ever recorded. They are using their encounter as an opportunity push for legislation that would protect sharks in Hawaii. (Juan Oliphant/AP)
While some scientists have suggested various reasons for the high number of bites caused by white sharks in 2020 – global warming, changing fish populations and migrations or even "rogue" sharks – Mr Naylor cautioned against jumping to conclusions.
"We need to focus on long-term trends and rigorous scientific study, rather than speculation," he said.
"I think the frequency of white sharks swimming in the same places as humans may be on the rise, but if so, we don't yet know the cause."
Encounters with white sharks can result in more serious wounds, because of the species' size and power, Mr Naylor added.
"A blacktip can give you four stitches while a nibble from a white shark can remove your leg," he said.
But Mr Naylor said there is no evidence sharks are actively hunting humans and that most bites occur when sharks mistake people for fish, seals or other animals.
He cited examples of drone footage showing sharks, including white sharks, approaching and circling surfers and swimmers before jetting in the opposite direction.
Words: Mark Saunokonoko
www.9news.com.au
In 2020, shark attacks decreased for the third consecutive year, falling to 57 unprovoked bites worldwide, compared with 64 bites
in 2019 and 66 in 2018, according to the annual summary issued by the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File (ISAF).
But 2020 proved to be the deadliest year since 2013, with 12 bites resulting in fatalities, up from the average of four per year.
Eight of those fatal bites were in Australia, three in the US and one in the waters of St Martin in the Caribbean.
Three people were killed in Western Australia, and two each in New South Wales and Queensland.
The total of eight came close to Australia's 90-year-old record of nine shark attack deaths in a single year.
There were 11 non-fatal bites recorded in Australia last year.
Local Australian figures from Taronga Zoo's shark file reported higher total attacks than the ISAF data across the decade in Australia (see below), but it too showed a spike in fatal attacks in 2020 compared with previous years.
Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Museum of Natural History's shark research program, said the high number of deaths globally in 2020 is likely an anomaly.
"It's a dramatic spike, but it's not yet cause for alarm," he said.
"We expect some year-to-year variability in bite numbers and fatalities. One year does not make a trend."
Mr Naylor said 2020's total bite count was "extremely low" and that long-term data showed the number of fatal bites is decreasing over time.
ISAF experts confirmed great white sharks were involved in at least 16 unprovoked bites in 2020, including six of the year's 10 fatalities: four in Australia, one in California and one in Maine.
Of the remaining deaths, two were the result of tiger shark bites, including the fatality in Hawaii, and two could not be identified to species.
Surfers and other board sport athletes experienced 61 per cent of bites worldwide in 2020, compared with 53 per cent in 2019 and 2018.
A tiger shark with a group of divers at Tiger Beach in the Bahamas. (Getty)
Ocean Ramsey, a shark researcher and advocate, swims with a large great white shark off the shore of Oahu. The two shark researchers came face-to-face with what could be one of the largest great whites ever recorded. They are using their encounter as an opportunity push for legislation that would protect sharks in Hawaii. (Juan Oliphant/AP)
While some scientists have suggested various reasons for the high number of bites caused by white sharks in 2020 – global warming, changing fish populations and migrations or even "rogue" sharks – Mr Naylor cautioned against jumping to conclusions.
"We need to focus on long-term trends and rigorous scientific study, rather than speculation," he said.
"I think the frequency of white sharks swimming in the same places as humans may be on the rise, but if so, we don't yet know the cause."
Encounters with white sharks can result in more serious wounds, because of the species' size and power, Mr Naylor added.
"A blacktip can give you four stitches while a nibble from a white shark can remove your leg," he said.
But Mr Naylor said there is no evidence sharks are actively hunting humans and that most bites occur when sharks mistake people for fish, seals or other animals.
He cited examples of drone footage showing sharks, including white sharks, approaching and circling surfers and swimmers before jetting in the opposite direction.
Words: Mark Saunokonoko
Australia deadliest country in world for shark attacks in 2020
With eight fatalities last year, Australia was the deadliest location for shark attacks in the world.
www.9news.com.au
