THERE are roughly 100 shark attacks around the world each year, with scores of oblivious swimmers mauled by the killer fish.
Check out this year's latest shark injuries, deaths and sightings here.
How many shark attacks have there been this year?
As of September 1, 2023 there have been 58 shark attack bites publicly reported and verified, eight of which have been fatal.
Eight of these attacks were deemed to be provoked, meaning the person injured had been annoying the sharks.
These fatal shark attacks included:
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January 5 — The first fatal attack to happen in 2023 was in Mexico when 53-year-old Manuel Lopez was harvesting ax tripe.
Lopez reportedly hunted without an oxygen tank and it's thought the turbulence and sounds produced by Lopez's excursion may have attracted the 19-foot great white.
February 4 — Stella Berry, 16, was with friends in Perth’s Swan River, Western Australia when disaster struck.
The group were on jet skis near North Fremantle when they spotted a group of dolphins and swam to them.
Stella was pulled underwater by a shark and passed away.
February 19 — A 59-year-old man was swimming about 500 feet from the shore at a Nouméa beach in Australia when a shark, believed to be a 13-foot tiger shark, attacked.
The shark bit the victim's arms and legs numerous times before two lifeguards rushed him back to shore on a jet ski.
Unfortunately the injured man was unresponsive and died from his injuries.
May 14 — 46-year-old teacher Simon Baccanello was killed in a shark attack at Walkers Rock Beach on the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia.
What was estimated to be a 10-foot long shark with a white underbelly swimming near shore attacked Baccanello from behind, dragging him underwater.
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June 8 — a Russian man was killed in Hurghada, Egypt.
The 23-year-old died after being mauled by a tiger shark off one of Egypt’s Red Sea resorts.
More recently, there have been a number of non-fatal shark attacks, including a woman on a beach in Queens, New York being bitten on the leg on August 7.
A British man was also bitten on the leg at a holiday hotspot in Valencia on August 17.
How many shark attacks were there in 2022?
In 2022 there were a total of 57 unprovoked and 32 provoked shark bites.
This included an eight-year-old British boy who needed a three-hour operation after being attacked by sharks while on holiday with his family in the Bahamas.
Nine of these attacks were fatal, which included:
July 2 — Double fatal. Elizabeth Sauer, 68, was killed while on holiday in Egypt as she swam in the Red Sea. A Romanian woman was found dead the same day after she was attacked as well.
June 28 — Bruce Wolov was swimming off Plettenberg Bay, South Africa, when he was attacked by a white shark.
March 20 — Antonio Roseto Degli Abruzzi, 56, died from blood loss after what is believed to be a tiger shark took a chunk out of his leg.
The Italian suffered severe blood loss and went into hypovolemic shock as other people on the beach brought him back to shore and then took him to hospital.
This is the first recorded shark attack on the idyllic Caribbean island of San Andreas, which many people visit for its perfect snorkelling conditions and crystal clear water.
February 16 — Simon Nellist, 35, from Britain, was killed by a shark just 150 metres away from the beach at Buchan Point, near Little Bay in Sydney, Australia, in the first fatal attack in nearly 60 years.
He was mauled to death by a 15ft great white in an "incredibly rare" attack as he trained for a charity ocean swim.
February 12 — Victor Estrella was diving for scallops when he was attacked by a 13-foot shark about 10 miles off Yavaros, Sonora, Mexico.
His dive tender noticed the air hoses moving erratically and began pulling him up but as Estrella neared the surface, he saw a large shark.
By the time the tender was able to pull Estrella on to the boat, the shark had severed his leg and he died.
In the UK, a snorkeller was reportedly bitten by a shark while swimming off the coast of Cornwall.
The woman is understood to have been in the water near the harbour in Penzance when the beast allegedly struck on July 28, 2022.
It is estimated that there are around 126 species of shark and most will not attack unless they are disturbed or provoked.
How many shark attacks were there in 2021?
As of December 25 there were 81 shark attack bites in 2021 publicly reported and verified, according to Tracing Sharks.
Nine of these attacks were fatal, including:
December 24 — Tomas Butterfield, 42, of Sacramento, had been boogieboarding in California when he was found dead in the water with a bite from suspected white shark.
November 6 — British dad, Paul Millachip, 57, was attacked while swimming at Port Beach near Perth, Australia, and just his goggles were recovered.
September 5 — Dad-to-be Timothy Thompson, 31, died after the ferocious beast ripped his arm off in front of horrified onlookers off Emerald Beach in Coffs Harbour, Australia.
May 11 — A man in his 50s was killed after being attacked and suffering critical injuries to his upper right thigh in Tuncurry Beach in New South Wales.
April 13 — Robert Frauenstein, 38, who was due to be married the next month was body boarding alone when it was suspected he was attacked. His body was never recovered, but his board was found with teeth marks believed to be from a great white in Chintsa, Eastern Cape, South Africa.
April 24 — A 53-year-old paddle boarder was discovered by a fisherman with evidence of shark bites near a beach in Noumea, New Caledonia, Australia.
January 8 — Kaelah Marlow, 19, from Hamilton, New Zealand, died in a rare attack in Waihi Beach on North Island, the first fatality in the country since 2013.
Other none-fatal attacks in 2021 include a swimmer who fought off a massive shark that mauled his leg after he jumped into the water during a boat party, also lifeguards dragged a blood-soaked teenager out of the sea after he had his penis ripped off by a shark.
And an eight-foot shark sank its teeth into a spear fisherman's leg and ripped open an artery in the US.
Australian medics described a man "lucky to be alive" after he was hauling himself back on to his boat via a ladder when the sea beast repeatedly sunk its powerful jaws into his left leg.
Are shark attacks on the rise?
Experts have warned the number of attacks will rise thanks to environmental initiatives to protect seals - a key part of a shark's diet.
However, some people feel seals are now proving a real danger to humans as they are attracting record number of sharks closer to shore.
James Sulikowski, a researcher of Northeastern sharks based at Arizona State University, said: “They’re not looking for us. We’re not on the menu.
“But as these predator-prey relationships continue, and because they are so coastal, there’s potential for interaction with humans to increase.”
Robert Hueter, senior scientist and director at Mote Marine Laboratory’s Center for Shark Research, also warned swimmers to beware.
Sharks will follow their meal, he said adding wherever seals, dolphins and other prey go sharks will follow.
He said: “This is a natural predator-prey relationship going back eons.
“It’s not surprising that with a restored seal population we see the predator of the seal there.”
Shark attacks are very rare but marine biologists say swimmers should still avoid wearing dark clothing and should not swim alone.
Sharks are also far more under threat from humans than vice versa and every year millions are killed for sport.
And nearly one in five shark species are said to be endangered or vulnerable.
Hueter said: “People should always remember that the ocean is a wild place. It’s like going for a walk in the deep woods and you have to know how to prevent encounters with bears.”
