Swimmers off the menu as sharks dodge storms

MIAMI - Sharks joined humans in fleeing as hurricanes battered Florida last year, causing a big drop in shark attacks in the state that usually has a third of the world's annual total.

Shark attacks occur most often in North American waters, and Florida normally has more than any other state or country because its long coastlines, dense population and year-round swimming weather often bring sharks and people together.

But last year, Florida had only 12 shark attacks, compared with 30 in 2003 and an average of 33.5 in the previous four years.

The number of shark attacks in American waters fell to 30 last year, down from 41 a year earlier. It was the lowest number in a decade that peaked with 52 attacks in 2000.

Researchers attributed the drop in Florida to the unusually vicious hurricane season, which brought hurricanes and a tropical storm.

They forced evacuations and caused destruction that kept people away from the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts.

Elsewhere in the US, California had six shark attacks last year, Texas four, Hawaii three and North Carolina two. Alabama, Oregon and South Carolina had one each.

Worldwide, 61 shark attacks were reported last year, slightly more than the 57 counted in 2003, but below the three previous years, when the total ranged from 63 to 78.

Australia had 12, Brazil and South Africa five each and Reunion Island, in the Indian Ocean, had three.

The Bahamas, Cuba, Egypt, Fiji, New Zealand, and Venezuela had one each.

Seven of last year's attacks were fatal - two in Australia and one each in Brazil, California, Egypt, Hawaii, and South Africa.

- REUTERS