2024 Had Fewer Shark Bites Than Usual—Here’s Why That Matters

2024 was an exceptionally calm year for shark bites, according to The International Shark Attack File year report. Worldwide, only 47 unprovoked attacks were recorded, a sharp decline from the previous year’s 69 and well below the 10-year average of 70. Four of these bites resulted in fatalities, marking a significant drop from recent years. And while these numbers are reassuring, understanding why they dipped is crucial for both shark conservation and public safety.

ISAF, maintained by the Florida Museum of Natural History, tracks what are considered unprovoked bites—incidents where a person does not initiate contact with a shark. “We’re interested in the natural patterns of shark behavior so that we can understand why people occasionally get bitten by these animals. Any cue or attribute that modifies an animal’s natural behavior is something that, we as scientists, want to exclude,” explained Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Program for Shark Research, on why instances in which a person intentionally or unintentionally initiates contact (such as spearfishing or releasing sharks from nets or hooks) are not included in the report.

The United States consistently records the highest number of unprovoked bites, a trend that continued last year with 29 reported incidents. Hawaii saw the only unprovoked fatality in the U.S., when an attack by an unknown shark species occurred off the northwest coast of Oahu. Florida, with its warm waters and extensive coastline, had 14 bites, the highest of any state; eight of these occurred in Volusia County, often called the shark bite capital of the world. Many of these bites were likely from juvenile blacktip sharks (Carcharhinus limbatus), which are still learning to distinguish between humans and their natural prey like fish and stingrays.

Florida did see a rare cluster of incidents in June, when three attacks occurred within four miles of each other in the Panhandle. A woman was bitten by a bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas) near Watersound Beach, and two teenagers were bitten just hours later at Seacrest Beach. Quick-thinking bystanders, including off-duty nurses and paramedics, provided lifesaving first aid to those bitten. While bull and tiger sharks are present in the region, they generally stay farther offshore. “You’ll see 20 to 30 of them patrolling the coast about 500 feet offshore, where they mind their own business,” said Naylor. Unusual conditions, such as blocked dune lakes reducing freshwater flow into the ocean, may have pushed bait fish—and the sharks following them—closer to shore.

The Northern Hemisphere summer holiday season naturally increases the chances of shark encounters as more people enter the water. This was particularly evident over the July 4 weekend, when six people were injured by sharks in Texas and Florida, five of which were unprovoked. “The South Padre Island bites were significant, with several incidents on the same day in the same vicinity,” said International Shark Attack File manager Joe Miguez. Early reports suggested a single shark might have been responsible, but there’s little evidence to support this idea. “We can’t preclude that it was the same animal, but what’s often overlooked is that the same climatic conditions that bring people into the water are the same conditions that bring sharks closer to shore,” Naylor said. “This naturally increases the likelihood of human-shark encounters,” Miguez further explained. “In the case of the Padre Island incidents, it is much more plausible that multiple sharks were present in the area, responding to the same environmental cues.”

Elsewhere in the U.S., three unprovoked attacks occurred in California, including one where a surfboard was punctured. Globally, surfers accounted for 33% of all attacks last year. “People surf where there are good waves, and where there are good waves, there’s turbidity, and where there’s turbidity, there are often bait fish that attract sharks,” Naylor said. Reduced visibility in these conditions may lead to mistaken identity bites.

Outside the U.S., Australia consistently reports the second-highest number of attacks, as many of the 13 shark species known to bite humans are found in its waters. The country’s white shark population is split into two groups along the southwest and southeast coasts, each with only a few hundred adults remaining. Even minor bites from large species like white and bull sharks can be serious, contributing to Australia’s fluctuating fatality rate. However, in years like 2019, 2022, and 2024, no fatalities from unprovoked attacks were recorded.

Several other countries had single bites last year, including Egypt, Belize, and The Bahamas. In India, a man wading through the Vaitarna River was bitten by what is believed to be a medium-sized bull shark. And an unusual attack occurred off Western Sahara, where a German tourist was fatally injured while swimming beside a British catamaran. Because the incident happened in remote international waters, emergency responders took hours to reach the victim.

While shark bites garner media attention, they remain statistically rare. Drowning is a far greater risk to beachgoers, with the World Health Organization listing it as the third leading cause of accidental death worldwide. Rip currents and strong tides pose a much higher danger than sharks. However, ISAF provides guidance on reducing risk when entering the ocean, such as removing shiny jewelry that can mimic fish scales, avoiding swimming at dawn and dusk when sharks are most active, and steering clear of fishing areas where bait may attract predators. You can see the curated list of recommendations here.

This drop in shark bites in 2024 could be attributed to several factors, scientists says. Environmental changes, such as shifts in ocean temperatures, currents, and prey distribution, may have altered shark behavior or migration patterns, reducing encounters with humans. Fewer people in the water due to weather conditions, economic factors, or changes in tourism could also have played a role. For those who did venture out to the beach, increased public awareness and improved safety measures - including better monitoring systems and adherence to shark safety guidelines - may have helped minimize interactions with these predators. And, of course, natural year-to-year variability is another possibility, as fluctuations in shark-human encounters are common. Conservation efforts protecting shark populations might also be influencing their movements, particularly among juvenile sharks that are often responsible for bites. While it’s difficult to pinpoint a single cause, these factors together likely contributed to the lower numbers, and researchers will continue analyzing data to determine whether this is an anomaly or part of a broader trend.

Even with fewer bites, the risk of encountering a shark remains extremely low, and people can further reduce that risk by following safety guidelines. Afterall, their populations face far greater threats from human activity—particularly overfishing—than humans do from them.