shark
The number of people killed or bitten by sharks in unprovoked attacks globally increased significantly in 2025, a report published on Wednesday has found, while a single Florida county maintained its crown as the so-called shark bite capital of the world.

The International Shark Attack File, compiled by the Florida Program for Shark Research at the University of Florida, recorded 65 unprovoked attacks worldwide, up from 47 during 2024, and an increase on the five-year average of 61.

The report confirmed 12 human fatalities from shark bites during the year, almost double the previous year's total of seven, which it suggested might be because of increasing numbers of great white sharks at "aggregation sites", beaches popular with surfers, especially in Australia.

"Shark bites are the consequence of the biology of the animals, the climatic conditions and the number of people in the water at the time of the incident," said Gavin Naylor, the organization's program director.

Despite the year-on-year figures changing dramatically, the report notes that the 10, 20 and 30-year averages for unprovoked bites differ by only four, and the average number of fatalities remained unchanged at six.

"These global patterns change only slightly from one year to the other. But the regional incidents do oscillate a lot," Naylor said.

Five of the year's fatalities were in Australia, with 21 unprovoked bites in the country. The previous year there were only nine bites classed as unprovoked, determined to be when a shark bites a person in its natural habitat with no prior interaction, and zero fatalities.

"If these bites occurred anywhere other than Australia, they would probably have resulted in even more fatalities. Their beach safety is second to none. Within minutes of a bite, they've got helicopters airborne ready to respond," Naylor said.

In one of the incidents, a woman in her 20s was killed and her male companion was seriously injured when a large bull shark attacked them as they swam from a beach at Crowdy Bay, New South Wales, in November.

Overall, the US remained at the top of the list, with 25 unprovoked bites, three fewer than the year previously, and with the number of fatalities unchanged at one. The sole recorded death in the US was triathlete Erica Fox, whose body was found in December near Santa Cruz, California, almost a week after the 55-year-old vanished during a group training swim with about a dozen others near Monterey.

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