Deep Dark Water - Shark Attack StoriesIts Not Safe.               Shark Attack Chronicles.

According to a database called the International Shark Attack File, New Smyrna Beach in Volusia County, Florida is the shark attack capital of the world!

Apparently there are several beaches like this in North America, where the number of sharks in the area is so great, that humans and sharks intermix. Most of the time swimmers don’t even realize that they are within 10 feet of less of a shark.

Stinson Beach in Northern California is notorious for attracting great white sharks in droves because of its seal population. Surfers say that its not uncommon to see large sharks cruise right by them in the waves.

Its seems as if actual attacks are very rare, though, and very few deaths occur per year. We’ve heard that more people are killed by coconuts falling out of trees each year ( what a weird way to go ) than by sharks. This doesn’t seem to do much to quell that uneasy feeling many people get when stepping into the water. Maybe its that we have an innate fear of predators…

Just looking at a picture of a great white shark can simultaneously evoke feelings of awe for its strange beauty and of dread for its killing prowess. Imagine how your body would react if you were to suddenly meet one in the open waters.

When seen from above, the shark tends to blend into the sea due to its darker dorsal coloring. Its camouflaged as well from below as its lighter grey - white color casts a minimal silhouette against the sun. With rows of razor-sharp teeth and elegant lines, its easy to see why its such an effective predator.

They usually range anywhere from 13 to 16 feet in length and generally weigh between 1500 to 2500 lbs. Occasionally, however, there are a few large ones weighing as much as 4200 lbs and growing as long as 20 feet.

This shark is known as an apex-predator, meaning its main function is to control the population of other fish. Any animal with a high content of fat is preferred , with great white typically targeting rays, tuna, smaller sharks, dolphins, seals, and sea lions. They have been known to sample nearly anything, however, and have even eaten objects they are unable to digest.

The only exceptions to the apex-predator rule is humans, which have contributed greatly to the sharks conservation status of “threatened”. There is also the occasional attack on a great white by an orca. Dolphins have been known to kill great whites, by repeatedly ramming the shark in groups. Larger great whites have also been known to feed on smaller specimens.

Studies have shown that they typically hunt in the mornings, usually within two hours after sunrise. Apparently its the most difficult to see a shark near the bottom around this time. A great white will typically attack its prey with a forceful bite, leaving the animal wounded and then later go in to finish after its stopped struggling.

Known to researchers as CA2, this Orca turns the tables and attacks sharks! She’s a 25 foot long female who seeks out, hunts down, and kills great white sharks for their livers.

Apparently Orcas, not sharks, are the true apex-killers in the ocean. Although its rare to see a killer whale attack a shark, there are photos and even an actual video of CA2 tearing apart a great white.

This is crazy, I mean, why not just throw a silverback gorilla in there to top it off ..

Most of the time killer whales prey on sea lions, sting ray, salmon, and whales.. even large whales! Their hunting techniques seem to go beyond those of a shark’s though and border on the wild, outrageous, and intelligent.

Besides the distinction of being the only animal besides humans known to hunt and kill sharks, orcas often show strong intelligence as they stalk their prey. For example, some species of orcas have learned to sneak up on sea lion pups on the beach! The result is a dramatic blast from the ocean with water and sand flying as the killer whale snatches the baby sea lion, flipping it behind with its tail and into the ocean. They’ll then play with the poor lion by flinging it back and forth with other orcas before eventually eating.

As the story goes, orcas got their name from attacking and killing whales. Whalers who witnessed this called them “whale killers”. Somehow the name was transposed along the way and they ended up being called “killer whales”. There is actually a well-documented attack on a blue whale, the largest mammal on the planet off the coast of Mexico where several orcas attacked it and nearly brought it down.

Despite all the attention and notoriety given to sharks, Orcas are the true top predators of the sea.

Date: April 28, 2008 Afternoon
Location: Pacific Coast of Mexico
Shark: Tiger Shark

A 24-year-old surfer and bartender, Adrian Ruiz, from San Francisco, California was on a surfing trip to the Pacific Coast of Mexico with a good friend, Brent Helms. They could never have expected the unfortunate ending.

The two surfers actually saw the Tiger shark in the water before the attack, joking to themselves about keeping their hands and toes out of the surf. Shark attacks are so rare in the area, and in general, that they couldn’t have thought it would target one of them. In fact, several of the residents in the area remarked that a shark attack hasn’t happened there before. Other sources say that no one has been killed by a shark on Mexico’s Pacific Coast in over thirty years.

Ruiz was hit in the thigh by the shark, which took a large bite which reached from the hip to the knee, completely exposing the femur. His friend dragged him to the shore where he attempted CPR on Ruiz, but it was too late. Ruiz never regained consciousness due to the severity of the would and the lack of medical help in the area.

I know I’m going to die …

Adrian said he knew he was going to die, according to his boss and the owner of the nightclub where Ruiz worked. Most people that came into contact with him loved him, though, and one coworker nicknamed him “smiley”. Apparently he was a great friend and seemed to be a fun-loving, free-spirited soul who loved life.

Surprisingly, Mexican authorities strung up nets in the area in a vain attempt to try and catch the predator. This has ignited a small controversy with environmentalists who are worried about indiscriminate killing of all kinds of marine species in the area. Can you really even hope to catch the same shark?

Sources: San Francisco Chronicle, NY Daily News, Timesonline.com

Jaques Cousteau, the famous oceanographic researcher, once described the oceanic whitetip as “the most dangerous of all sharks”. Generally the other four sharks notorious for threatening humans ( the bullshark, the tiger, and the great white ) all habitat areas of the ocean closer to land. The oceanic whitetip, however, is more dangerous than the others.

In fact, oceanic whitetips are responsible for more fatal attacks on humans than any other shark species. If you are ever stranded at sea, you should be wary of this beast. Extremely aggressive when curious, the whitetips have been known to attack anything that it sees as prey on the open water.

During World War II, these sharks repeatedly attacked crew members of the torpedoed USS Indianapolis, tearing apart 60 to 80 sailors.

A similar incident occurred when a German submarine sank the Nova Scotia, a steamship carrying over a thousand people in the waters of South Africa. Only 192 passengers survived and many of the deaths were at the jaws of the whitetip.

Whitetips are large sharks with rounded dorsal fins and short blunt snouts. They can grow very large ( up to 11 - 13 feet ), but are generally in the range of 10 feet long. They often swim in the deep ocean with packs of silky sharks.