Global Shark Attacks Low in 2024

New report documents low shark attacks and fatalities in USA and worldwide, 2025 heating up. The Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File recently published their annual shark attack report on global shark attacks in 2024.

The data from 2024 showed a  dramatic decline from attacks the year prior, and at 52 recorded encounters, far below the ten year average of 70 globally.  The 47 unprovoked attacks were down from 2023. Four of last year’s attacks resulted in fatalities, also a significant reduction from recent years.

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Shark Week News and the Kahu Manō

This week is Shark Week, Discovery Channels sensationalistic programs on feeding frenzies and shark attacks. On a more serious note, July 14 is International Shark Awareness Day, a day to recognize the importance of sharks to marine ecosystems, and the dire threat of extinction many species face. Shark Stewards lives for sharks everyday, and works to protect them from overfishing and the wildlife trade.

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Press Release: Kona celebrates sharks on International Shark Day with film

On July 13, International Shark Day will be recognized in Kona with shark films recognizing the beauty and importance of sharks. Divers, surfers, swimmers and ocean lovers are invited to watch shark films at the Kona Elk Theater as a benefit event for the Kalanihale.org educating youth in Miloli’i. 

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Hawaii’s Spiritual Connection to the Shark

Sharks play an important role in art, legends, and even spiritual beliefs. Throughout Hawaiian folklore, stories, legends and myths feature sharks as deities and their interactions with humans. Sharks as individuals, and as symbols, are even revered by many native Hawaiians. Some species of sharks, like the Tiger shark, have a special status as ‘aumakua, or family guardians.

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Pacific Tuna Fisheries Managers to Consider Bycatch Reduction for Oceanic Sharks

At the IATTC Shark Stewards Director David McGuire addressed the forum on the plight of oceanic whitetip sharks and posed the solution offered by the Hawai’i Longline Association and Western and Central Pacific Fishing Commission’s move to swap out wire leaders for monofilament so that captured sharks can bite free, while the target species of swordfish and tuna are still retained. 

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Celebrating AAPI Month by Demanding Change

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, a time to celebrate our rich cultural heritage and contributions. However, it also provides an opportunity to address challenging topics within our communities. Rooted in culinary tradition, the shark fin trade is a particularly problematic practice that has had devastating impacts on shark populations and marine ecosystems. 

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Support the Papahānaumokuākea National Marine Sanctuary Designation

Papahānaumokuākea is a sacred place with deep cosmological significance to Native Hawaiians who have a genealogical relationship to all living things in the Hawaiian archipelago.  The Monument is a  mixed (natural and cultural) World Heritage Site.  It preserves sacred places, stories, artifacts, and strong Polynesian cultural ties to the land and seas, dating back more than a thousand years.

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