Name: ______Date: ______
Great White Shark Attacks: Defanging the Myths
There is good and bad news for surfers regarding the great white shark. The bad news, according to shark scientists, and contrary to popular opinion, is that great whites are sharp sighted, curious animals, prone to taking "taste tests" of unfamiliar objects that catch their eye. The good news is they generally don't like to eat people.
"In the 20th century, there were 108 authenticated, unprovoked shark attacks along the Pacific Coast of the United States," of those, eight attacks were fatal. "When you consider the number of people in the water during that hundred year period, you realize deadly strikes are very rare," said Collier.
A great white shark can reach 20 feet (6 meters) in length and weigh up to 5,000 pounds (2,270 kilograms); survivors' explanations of their escapes amplify misconceptions about the nature of this beast.
Mistaken Identity
The most common myth is that great whites, with their poor vision, attack divers and surfers in wet suits, mistaking them for seals and sea lions, their main prey. In this scenario, once the animal realizes its mistake, it releases the victim and swims away.
On August 15, 1987, Craig Rogers was sitting up on his board, legs dangling over each side, searching the horizon for the next set of waves. Abruptly, he noticed his board stopped bobbing in the water.
"I looked down and my eyes filled with a sight of instantaneous horror," said Rogers. A great white shark was biting his board just in front of his left hand; the head was almost three feet (one meter) across. He flung up his hands, accidentally grazing two of his fingers along the shark's teeth. "I yelled in terror and slid off the board to the opposite side," Rogers explained in a written report made just after the attack.
He was bleeding when he entered the water.
Submerging to his shoulder, he watched the shark gently release his board and sink like a submarine, disappearing beneath him. Later analyses of the puncture marks on his board suggest the shark was 17 feet (5 meters) in length.
"It is typical for a great white to swim up to someone at a relaxed pace, take a bite, then swim off," said Collier. This contrasts with the torpedo-like attacks on the seal, suggesting that the shark's goal is not predation.
A great white uses its teeth the way humans use their hands ,they're very adept at grabbing things that snag their curiosity."
Great whites are also sharp sighted, further evidence that they do not mistake humans for other prey. Scientists believe that sharks see as well below the surface as humans do above it. And they see in color.
"I've seen these sharks swim 70 feet to the surface to investigate a piece of debris no bigger than the palm of my hand," said Martin. They are also known to take bites of buoys, paddle boards, brightly colored kayaks, zodiac boats, and other man-made objects floating in the ocean.
"Everyone wants to think sharks just search out seals, but they bite a lot of things that don't resemble any of their known prey,"
If sharks bite to figure out the nature of various objects, then why do they usually spit out people rather than adding them to the menu? "They spit us out because we're too bony," said Martin.
Great whites have extremely slow digestive tracts; if they eat something less than optimal, it slows down their digestive tract for days, prohibiting them from eating other things. "That makes them selective about what they eat," said Klimley.
The insulation that keeps seals warm is pure fat, which provides twice the calories of muscle. That makes them a favorite of great whites. A high fat diet is mandatory for the great white to maintain its body temperature and keep its brain warm in cold water.
"What we need to remember is that if great whites really liked to eat people, there would be a lot more fatalities," said Collier. "And I wouldn't interview so many survivors."
- According to the article, what is the common myth about “great white” sharks?
- Use two pieces of evidence from the article to explain why this myth must be untrue.
- What reason does the article give to explain why great whites sharks sometimes bite human swimmers or surfers?
- Explain why “Collier” says that sharks don’t like to eat humans.