As we continue to follow the shark attacks in Walton County -- we’re hearing from Florida’s top shark expert. Reiterating shark attacks are incredibly rare -- Dr. Gavin Naylor also has tips on how to avoid becoming a victim should you encounter a shark.
) - Sharks in a lot of ways are a mystery. Dr. Gavin Naylor has made it his life’s work to better understand these prehistoric swimmers.
While much of his focus is on their genetics and migration -- his team also tracks shark attacks. Before the two separate instances last Friday in Walton County -- Dr. Naylor says the numbers were quite low this year. Despite initial reports -- Dr. Naylor says it’s highly unlikely it was the same shark responsible for attacking a woman and two teens four miles apart. The reason for the attacks -- Naylor says likely due to the sharks feeding close to shore. As the busy summer beach season begins -- the risks while rare can happen.
“It should be reassuring to your viewers... If sharks were actively targeting people -- there’s thousands of sharks in the water -- they’re swimming in and out all of the time. People don’t realize how close they are and there’s millions of people in the water. So, if sharks were targeting people -- people are very easy targets because they can’t move very well... We’d probably have about 10,000 bites a day,” said Dr. Naylor.“New Smyrna Beach in Florida. That’s an easy one to say.
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