Yeah, I see a lot of shark positivity posts on my dash these days and I really appreciate that. But I think something is being left out of the message so I’m just gonna say that:
- YES, Sharks are not bloodthirsty monsters. They only do what they do because they are instinctively driven to do so.
- NO, sharks are not your friends. They are not sea-puppies, gentle babies, or whatever BS anthropomorphic “cute” term you want to use to describe them.
- YES, you are more likely to be killed by falling coconuts and any number of improbable circumstances than you are to be killed by a shark attack,
- NO, sharks are not “harmless”. They are apex predators of their habitats and deserve to be treated with the same respect that you would give to a wild lion, bear, or wolf. JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT LIKELY TO ATTACK YOU DOES NOT MEAN THAT THEY WON’T. ACCIDENTS CAN ALWAYS HAPPEN, AND A SHARK’S PATIENCE IS NOT LIMITLESS.
- YES, you should take every precaution to prevent a shark from “test-biting” you.
- NO, a test-bite is not just a harmless consequence of shark curiosity. A TEST-BITE CAN KILL YOU. Just because sharks generally release people after the first nip and don’t make any effort to eat them does not mean that the bite is somehow any less deadly. You will bleed out in the water if the wound is bad enough.
- YES, sharks are endangered and unfairly demonised and worthy of our support.
- NO, that does not mean that anthropomorphising them and spreading false information is okay.
Please support sharks, but please, for the love of god, give them the respect they deserve when you do so. YOU ARE NOT HELPING THEM BY ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO SWIM RIGHT INTO THEIR JAWS.
Your annual Shark Week PSA. Sharks are incredible, thrilling creatures but spreading the idea that they are all harmless or interested in eusocial behavior with humans does them no favors.
Pro tip: if you are ever in a situation where a shark has chosen to test bite you, punch it in the eyes. I know its mean, but its a sure fire way to get the shark to release you, and the sooner you get away the better your chances are of survival. You do this because the eyes are its one weakspot, and it will back off before it gets angry enough to attack again, especially if youve blinded it; but that being said, its safest (considering) if you are relatively close to some kind of boat or raft, as sharks navigate with sense of smell generally before sight. Hitting it in the eye and hurting it in some capacity will dissorient it, and make it let go long enough to get out of the water if that is available nearby.
However, refrain from doing so before it bites, while not all sharks are immediatly aggressive, there is some that will be because they are, You know, Apex predators and all that.
If the shark has stripes resembling a tiger (its not super visable, but if its close enough to bite, youll know) do not anger it. I repeat, do NOT anger it. Tiger sharks are naturally one of three most aggressive sharks, and will attack unprovoked. (no, sharks are not normally aggressive, but this shark as well as great whites and bull sharks are known to be extrememly aggressive even unprovoked) In fact, if there is even a possibility that there is a tiger shark near by, if one has been spotted even a mile away, dont go swimming. -smae goes for the other two. Tiger sharks will eat anything- known to eat trash and glass and anything it can. That can include you.
If you spot a shark in a fresh water area that shouldnt have sharks, it is probably a bull shark. And like its namesake it is aggressive. They have been known to swim upstream in the mississippi, Although, they are mostly found in coasts, rivers, and streams of nicoragua.