If there’s one thing we’ve learned from movies like Jaws, The Meg, and The Shallows, it’s not to go into the ocean if you don’t want a shark to nibble your toes – or take your entire leg off, says Melissa Hobson. But how much of a danger do sharks actually pose to humans?
How many species of shark are there?
There are more than 500 species of shark in the world and almost all of them are harmless to humans. Some – like whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) and megamouths (Megachasma pelagios) – eat plankton, bonnetheads (Sphyrna tiburo) are known to munch on seagrass and the rest eatmarine animals like fish, turtles, seals, or crustaceans. As sharks evolved around 450 million years ago, before humans existed, we aren’t on the menu.
Many sharks are powerful predators with a strong bite so they could do some damage if they wanted to. Using digital jaw reconstructions, scientists have estimated that the bite force of a large great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) could be over 1.8 tonnes – more than 20 times stronger than a human’s bite.
Meanwhile, tiger sharks, which have evolved to tear open tough turtle shells to get to the meat inside, have an estimated bite force of around 0.4 tonnes (864 pounds). But even though some shark species are capable of hurting humans, most want nothing to do with us.
The world’s largest shark – the plankton-eating whale shark – is totally harmless to humans and there’s only one recorded instance of the second largest shark on Earth – the basking shark harming humans. This was in Scotland in 1937 when a basking shark leapt out of the water and accidentally landed on a boat. The boat capsized and three of the five people onboard drowned.
How deadly are sharks to humans?
Considering how many people visit the ocean and coast all around the world, the risk of a negative encounter is incredibly low. According to the International Shark Attack File, there were just 47 unprovoked shark bites in 2024.
Another 24 were provoked, meaning the person harassed or tried to feed the shark or initiated contact in some way (intentionally or unintentionally), such as spearfishing or trying to release the shark from a net. In total, there were seven confirmed shark-related fatalities in 2024.
The International Shark File’s records go back to 1900. During that period, fewer than 25 different shark species have bitten humans. Those that have include great whites, bull sharks, tiger sharks, oceanic whitetips, blue sharks, and hammerheads.
On average, there are just six unprovoked fatalities each year in the world. Meanwhile, hundreds of people die each year from bicycle accidents in the US alone.
“Shark attack is a potential danger that must be acknowledged by anyone that frequents marine waters, but it should be kept in perspective,” says the International Shark Attack File on its website. “Bees, wasps and snakes are responsible for far more fatalities each year.”
Although the chance of a negative shark encounter is low, there are some things you can do to minimise your risk. Sharks tend to be most active at twilight or at night so avoid swimming during these hours. Avoid murky water and areas where people are fishing, and take off shiny jewellery (a sparkle of silver glinting in the water can look like a fish’s scales).
When you look at the numbers, sharks should be much more scared of us than we are of them. Humans kill around 100 million sharks every year, and we’re also destroying their habitats, polluting their waters, and wiping out their food sources through overfishing.
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