Spending your holiday on a beautiful beach sounds great and heavenly. There are also many opportunities where you can explore the sea more and interact with various sea life. However, there have been various cases reporting shark attacks. Some caused minor injury and others are severe. There is also shark sighting programme accommodating by travel agents or companies. It is safe activity as long as you know about shark safety and follow the guides.
Avoiding shark attacks when swimming
The fact is, the number of shark attacks have been decreasing significantly. The chance to get attacked by a shark is in fact, very low. The cases that were reported are divided into provoked and unprovoked incidents.
Keep in mind that sharks are not there to get you. They are not waiting for you to get into the water so they can attack you mercilessly like what movies tell you. Sharks are not really interested in humans and they don’t see us as foods either. Most cases of shark attacks often happen when they mistake human as seal or food source.
Get to know your waters
Even if the chance of being attacked by sharks is low, you can still learn about the safety tips to avoid it. It is essential to now swimming, surfing, or paddling solo especially in places where it’s clear that sharks population is high. Do those activities in group instead because sharks mostly attack a solo person. If you are afraid of getting attacked by sharks, avoid doing activities in the water at dawn or dusk. Those time are when they are the most active. And for you, those times have low visibility which make you hard to see or identify any signs of danger.
Sharks like shiny things
It is better to not make yourself look so contrast. It is found that sharks like something shiny and sparkly. Thus, avoid wearing jewelry that shines when under water. Avoid wearing too bright clothes. Avoid entering murky water because it makes you unable to see clearly if there is shark. Also, it is best to avoid getting close to water where fishermen carry their activities. Sharks tend to get attracted to the bait. Avoid places where sharks tend to congregate such as steep drop-offs, or any areas near sandbars.
More travel stories to read: Why a Trip to the Remote Banda Neira is Worth It
Avoid large school of fish
If you are afraid of being mistaken as food source by sharks, avoid swimming near seals or large school of fish because they are often the target of the sharks. Also, it is best to avoid any erratic movements such as flailing or splashing while you are in the water. The best way to stay safe from shark attacks is always listen to the lifeguard and always pay attention to all warning flags and signs at the beach.
Shark deterrent products
You may try using some shark deterrent products in a form of electric device, bracelet, etc. However, they are not 100 % effective because most of them are not even tested on a large number of species. A product might be deter one species of shark but that might not work the same to another species.