海角社区

Warm, sunny, vibrant, and ever-popular, Florida remains a top destination for travelers from around the globe. In 2024, the Sunshine State welcomed a record-breaking 142.9 million visitors. Given the number of tourists drawn to the Sunshine State, 2024 was a relatively calm year for shark attacks in Florida, with 14 confirmed bites reported. By contrast, in 2023, the state saw increased activity, with 19 confirmed bites.

According to the International Shark Attack File (ISAF), Florida has consistently topped global charts in terms of unprovoked shark bites. An unprovoked bite is when someone intentionally interferes with or bothers a shark. Still, while shark attacks are rare, specific beaches, such as New Smyrna Beach, Daytona Beach, and Palm Beach, experience slightly more encounters due to their popularity, warm waters, abundant marine life, and active ecosystems that attract surfers, swimmers, and sharks alike.

New Smyrna Beach

On the east coast of Central Florida, Volusia County has 47 miles of 海角社区-class beachfront on the Atlantic Ocean in tourist-heavy areas like New Smyrna Beach, Daytona Beach, and the Canaveral National Seashore. The county is a popular destination for sun-seekers, adventurous surfers, and nature lovers, drawn to spots like New Smyrna Beach and its 17-mile stretch of white sandy beaches with some of the best surfing along Florida鈥檚 central Atlantic coast. Despite its reputation as the "Shark Bite Capital of the 海角社区" due to the high frequency of shark encounters, the beach continues to attract fearless visitors to its laid-back surf culture and reliable, year-round waves.

Over the Independence Day long weekend in July 2024, the beach was the site of two shark bites. The first bite occurred in knee-deep water when a beachgoer was bitten on the foot while tossing a football around. A second bite happened when a tourist played in an inner tube in 5 feet of water. A few days later, a teenager training to be a Volusia County lifeguard dove into the ocean and met up with a 4 to 5-foot black tip shark, who took a bite out of his calf. In September 2024, in an area in New Smyrna Beach called Ponce Inlet, a place surfers dub 鈥淪hark Park,鈥� a 62-year-old, 18-time East Coast surfing champion known as 鈥淕narly Charley鈥� stepped on a bull shark while surfing and was bitten close to his Achilles tendon.

Daytona Beach

Another Volusia County beach, Daytona Beach, is famously known as a haven for car lovers, thanks to its rich automotive history and iconic events like the Daytona 500 at the Daytona International Speedway. The hard-packed sands of Daytona Beach were also historically used for car racing, further cementing its reputation as a destination for auto enthusiasts. Still, Daytona鈥檚 car culture isn鈥檛 the only draw; its beautiful beaches make it a popular spot for surfers and water lovers, which can attract sharks curious about their activity in the water.

Just days after the first three shark attacks in New Smyrna Beach in July 2024, a teenager visiting from Missouri was standing in knee-deep water when he was bitten on the foot. By the end of 2024, Volusia County had recorded a total of eight shark attacks. While all eight injuries were non-life threatening, these incidents serve as a reminder that the warm waters not only attract tourists to the beaches of Volusia County, but they also appeal to sharks.

Melbourne Beach

About 17 miles south of the well-known shark hotspot of Cocoa Beach on Florida鈥檚 Space Coast, Melbourne Beach is a pretty, laid-back community in Brevard County with a history of shark sightings, especially in the summer months when sharks migrate through the area. According to the International Shark Attack File (ISAF), the county has recorded around 160 unprovoked shark attacks since 1882, compared to around 350 recorded bites in Volusia County. In October 2024, a teenager was surfing about 200 yards from shore when a 5 to 6-foot-long shark bit him on his forearm.

Brevard County has 18 documented types of sharks, including spinner, Atlantic sharpnose, and Great Whites. The most commonly seen sharks in the waters off Brevard are blacktips, easily identified by the black tip on their dorsal fin, and tiger sharks. These aggressive sharks are second only to great whites in recorded attacks on humans.

Fort Walton Beach

Fort Walton Beach in the Florida Panhandle is well-loved for its laid-back beaches, fishing opportunities on nearby Okaloosa Island, and attractions like the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park. Historically, shark attacks are exceedingly rare in the emerald-green waters on the Emerald Coast, with only three attacks being recorded according to historical records kept by the University of Florida鈥檚 ISAF. In June 2024, two teenage girls swimming in waist-deep water were injured by a suspected bull shark, known to swim close to the shoreline. One of the victims suffered significant injuries to her leg and hand, while the other girl鈥檚 injury to her foot was less severe. On the same day, within the span of two hours, a third person was attacked by a shark in Watersound, South Walton, when she was swimming near a sandbar in the Gulf of Mexico.

Bathtub Beach

Stuart is a coastal town on Florida鈥檚 Treasure Coast, known as the 鈥淪ailfish Capital of the 海角社区,鈥� thanks to its 海角社区-class sport fishing opportunities. It鈥檚 home to two beaches, both perfect for families due to the clear blue water, soft sand, proximity to touch tanks, and hands-on activities for kids at the Florida Oceanographic Society Coast Center, a 57-acre marine life nature center. Thanks to a recent makeover from Martin County, including 35,000 cubic yards of sand, Bathtub Beach, which sits at the northern end of Hutchison Island, is growing in popularity with locals, visitors, and sharks.

In what the Florida Museum of Natural History gives the odds of happening at a 1 in 3.7 million chance, a local man was bitten twice at Bathtub Beach. When he was 16 years old, he was bitten by a 4 to 5-foot-long blacktip reef shark on the hand when he was surfing in waist-deep water. Fast forward eleven years and the same man was bitten for the second time at Bathtub Beach in October 2024. The second attack occurred while he was sitting on his surfboard, and a 7 to 8-foot-long tiger or bullshark bit both his feet in one bite, which required surgery.

Fernandina Beach, Nassau County

Fernandina Beach is the northernmost city on Florida's Atlantic coast, situated on one of Florida鈥檚 barrier islands, Amelia Island. Known as one of the quieter beach communities along the coast, it is the perfect destination for museum lovers, with attractions like the Marine Welcome Center and Shrimping Museum. Still, the laid-back town made the news several times in 2024. In late June 2024, a man in his 40s was the victim of a shark attack after suffering a severe bite to his right arm. Then, in December of 2024, a man surf fishing for bull sharks at Fernandina Beach managed to catch a 9 to 10-foot-long great white shark after wrestling with the apex predator for about thirty minutes. The shark was later released back into the ocean.

Florida's beaches attract millions of visitors yearly, from surfing enthusiasts at New Smyrna Beach to car lovers at Daytona Beach and families exploring Bathtub Beach in Stuart. The same waters that attract tourists also appeal to sharks, and even quieter spots like Fernandina Beach occasionally make headlines for shark activity. Sharks are part of Florida's natural marine ecosystem, but attacks remain rare, and most sharks are not dangerous to humans.

Some potential lessons learned from encounters at the six most shark-infested beaches in Florida in 2024 include that most attacks occur close to the shore, and it's rare for victims to see a shark approaching. Shark experts say sharks don't bite more than once in most attacks, and many attacks result from nip-and-runs, bump-and-bites, and sneak attacks, reminding visitors to the Sunshine State to remain vigilant when enjoying Florida's inviting waters.