Norwegian news reports that Florida have been invaded by large schools of sharks, and that beaches are closed. The theory is that they are following small squids and sardines.

Any truth to this, or just sensational press? Is this a regulary occuring thing?

Ref: http://www.vg.no/pub/vgart.hbs?artid=103726
(It's in norwegian, but the pictures are nice, and Palm Beach is mentioned as closed. Unfortunately, Babelfish doesn't do scandinavian languages yet.)

It's something that happens pretty much on a yearly basis. A couple years ago a large school was spotted near Anclote Island which is just north of where we launch here on the west coast. The sharks made the news for a couple of days. I'm sure the sharks get together alot more than we know and they've been doing it for 10's of millions of years around here.

Here is the story that was in the Miami Herald yesterday, April 7.

PALM BEACH - Surfers and beachgoers returned to the waves and sunny shores Wednesday after sharks migrating along the coast closed some South Florida beaches for days.

The sharks, mostly blacktips and spinners, are chasing bait fish in their annual trek north.

''This is the time of year when everything from whales to birds are making that movement northward,'' said Larry Wood, curator at the Marinelife Center of Juno Beach.

Come this fall, they'll make the same trip back south.

Parks officials in Palm Beach and Broward counties have posted red flags closing public beaches a few times over the past few weeks as scores of the sharks, some as long as five feet, were sighted. No injuries have been reported.

The public areas of Juno Beach were closed to swimmers Tuesday, but all beaches in the area were open Wednesday.

''They had red flags everywhere (on Tuesday). I think the sharks are just coming in a little closer to shore than normal,'' said Rick Williams, manager at the Juno Surf Shop.

Williams said typically the sharks will stay far from surfers, who gather just beyond where the waves break.

This year, he said, he's seen a group of only five to 10 sharks, but some surfers reported seeing hundreds. Television news helicopters frequently show large schools just off the coast.

Blacktip and spinner sharks typically pose little danger to swimmers and surfers, but they can lurk closer to shore if bait fish are nearby.

Bites often occur because sharks mistake a swimmer's splash for a smaller fish or because they are attracted to a shiny piece of jewelry or an ankle dangling off a surfboard.

Josh Cameron, 19, who spent Wednesday morning surfing in the waters off Palm Beach with two friends, said he hasn't seen sharks in weeks. The trio said the conditions were just about perfect, with sunny skies, 75 degree-weather and a light, three-foot chop to the ocean.

A caution flag nearby urged swimmers to watch out for Portuguese men-of-war, but sharks were not considered a problem.

''They don't bother us. And we don't bother them,'' Cameron said.

Aha, just like I tought. Just sensational press as this is a seasonal migration.

Good to have somebody local to disbunk them.. Thanks!

Sounds like it might be a good idea to wear neoprene boots if you are out surfing tough, if they are 'attracted' to naked ankles like the article says.

I find sharks a bit scary, as we are not used to them. Going surfing amongst smaller whales and orcas feels pretty safe compared with sharks (even if a friend who found himself sharing his wave with an orca did not find it especially pleasant. Good thing he already was wearing a 'wet' suit )..

FACT: More deaths occur in the US from vending machines falling on people than shark attacks around the world. The real news should be these tippy vending machines!

Well Jake, I guess there must be some responsibilty on the customers part if he gets a vending machine over himself. The proverbial kick in the side?

Puts things into perspective tough.. How about shark attacs, they can be plenty nasty.

Hmmm. Some as large as 5 feet ? I`m sure glad we don`t get schools of sharks here, we measure ours in metres, and 3-5m sharks are not uncommon, but then they`re not called Great Whites for nothing. Last count was 14 sharks just behind the break-line in False Bay, a day after a lady was killed by one. That`s where the surfers tend to hang their legs off their boards, think I`ll stick to sailing, thanks.
There seems to have been an increase in shark attacks in Cape Town recently, I think cage diving operations who bait for them have caused this.
Oh and Jake, While I understand your point, when last did you see a vending machine swimming just below the surface, looking for food ?

Paragliding is safer, `cos sharks can`t fly.

Steve

This whole threads should be retitled:

"Motivations for an quick and effective righting solution"

OK, Ok....so vending machines don't have teeth or a preditorial disposition. I suppose that does make for a different feel for the situation. :-)

On that note, however, I once gave surfing a shot. However, having been bumped by a 5 to 6 foot shark once in shoulder deep water, I have a hard time not thinking about that while bobbing in the water like a fishing cork.

Jake, I've heard that if you spray yourself liberally with Obsession perfume, the sharks will be repelled (albeit, along with all your friends).

Yes it's true they are here now, and every year but there does seem to be more than usual. The water here is very clear so unless you were in a school of fish a bite would be very rare. These are called spinners or black tip, and they are fun and beautiful to watch, we have sailed, or should say they have swam and jumped near our boat in the past. For some reason(feeding or mating?)they spend alot of time jumping and spinning, sometimes quite high out of the water.
That photo is why I take my rings off before going in the water. The baracuda here are just as frightening also most of the time harmless.

Jerry

When I a wee lad I surfed, and was indeed bumped by a smaller shark in Ocean City NJ.

Not an experience that I'd like to repeat.

If one latches on, punch them in the gills. I'm told its like a kick to the family jewels.

Most sharks (and barracuda) are just looking for easy food. And most (of the few) attacks in the Atlantic off South Florida and in the Bahamas are due to scuba divers spearfishing and keeping fish in a bag attached to them. The shark and barracuda want the fish, not the diver, but sometimes the diver gets in the way.

Surfers on a surfboard, with arms and legs hanging in the water, tend to look like a turtle from the shark's perspective looking upward.

And on the Atlantic side of the U.S., I have heard that it is best not to wear bright, tropical-looking bathing suits, because you look too much like a tropical fish. On the Pacific side of the U.S., on the other hand, if you wear a black wetsuit, you tend to look like a seal, their favorite meal.

So just try not to look like food or smell like food or have "shark food" attached to your body.

If you are in clear waters where the sharks can see you, and you don't look like their normal food, you have less worries about being attacked. A lot of attacks seem to occur in murky waters where they cannot actually see the victim -- these are usually cases of mistaken identity.

One time when Rick was running charter trips to the Bahamas, all the passengers jumped off the boat to go for a swim after they were anchored in a peaceful cove. They noticed that a big mako shark was lounging in the shade beneath the boat. They all scrambled back aboard the boat in record time! It's no wonder sharks are kind of antisocial, experiencing this kind of rejection all the time. Maybe they just want to be friends and play.

Sharks in Florida may go for a dangling white foot because it might resemble its natural food. Here they feed on bright colored fish for the most part.

However, if you are in California, the natural prey is a seal. So, if you are wearing a black wetsuit, you would look a lot like its natural prey.
Wetsuits in Florida would probably be a lot safer looking than in California.

Rick

Here in Australia the "man eating" variety of shark (mainly white pointers or great white) tend to casually, swim up to anything that may look like food, take a little bite to see if it is appetising and either swim away if it is unpalatable or RIP IT TO SHREDS if it likes what it tastes.
I have seen whites gnaw on the leg of an outboard motor, bite a 2’ hole in the side of a timber boat, tear a mouth sized chunk out of a surf board, and bite on the side of a friend from under his armpit to his waist and half way round his body while he was spear fishing (he survived and you probably know his name – Rodney Fox) Another friend was bitten through the thigh at the same location the next year in the same circumstances, and survived. The third person to be mauled at the same location a year or so later survived the attack but later died from shock due to loss of blood. So we feel here that the sharks are not hunting humans so much as testing them for their menu, hope they never find a “sauce” to put on us to make us more desirable!