The Great White Lie

There are alot of myths about the Great White Shark but the most common one is that they mistake people for seals which is clearly false. So even though attacks on humans do happen it's not from mistaken identitly.

The most common myth is that great whites, with their poor vision, attack divers and surfers in wet suits, mistaking them for pinnipeds (seals and sea lions), their main prey. In this scenario, once the animal realizes its mistake, it releases the victim and swims away.

"Completely false," said R. Aidan Martin, director of ReefQuest Centre for Shark Research in Vancouver, Canada. A shark's behavior while hunting a pinniped differs markedly from its demeanor as it approaches people—suggesting that the animal does not confuse surfers for seals.

news.nationalgeographic.com...

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lol screw "Completely false," said R. Aidan Martin


i'll make sure to asks the sharks when we invent a communication device between us and our "less intelligable " buddies


im sure its a mixture of many things why they attack and im sure confusion is amongest it !

or maybe they know were humans and just think when they can get a good bite without being harpooned or tranqe'd its worth a shot



what you think this one was thinking??

This information does nothing to ease my absolute fear of water, it actually increases it. Sharks KNOW that we are humans, and attack us for reasons other than just food? That is extremely discouraging.

We probably shouldn't be messing around in their territory anyway and expect not to be ripped to tiny little shreds. Just like any other animal, they are gonna protect themselves and their surroundings...and with the thousands of teeth and amazing strength...ugh seriously, why do people put themselves in water around these things? It's just craziness to me.

reply to post by kro32


I think it is because they are mean as hell. They are just a big mouth with a tail. Their life consists of swimming around biting things, why NOT people?

reply to post by kro32


I find this to be pretty false in my opinion. Not sure how many sharks there are around Canada but there are loads where I live, and yes they certainly do mistake humans for seals. People even get dressed up in seal costumes to go surfing (wet suits)...it's madness.

There are also other factors that come into play though, so it is not ONLY because they may mistake them for prey.

Sharks do not attack humans for the sole purpose of hunger. In fact, sharks do not know what the feeling of hunger is, and in fact, can go for many months without eating. This is not to say that sharks do not attack with the intention of seeking prey. Many attacks on divers and surfers especially can be attained to searching for food. To a shark, a surfer on a surfboard slightly resembles that of a seal or sea lion, or a diver in a black wetsuit can look like other prey.

Sharks also attack humans because they have been provoked or agitated by the person. Many spear-fishers have been attacked by reef sharks because when they spear fish, the blood from the fish and it's vibrations can sometimes result in a feeding frenzy by many sharks. Bright colours can also be counted for attacks.

As many people have believed in the past, sharks do in fact can see colours, and do indeed have very good eyesight. Avoid wearing the colours of orange and yellow, as this can aggravate the shark, and possibly lead to attacks. Sharks are in fact attracted by splashing and vibrations in the water, and it can sometimes be attributed to attacks. Most scientists have not been able to predict why and where sharks attacks. Read more: wiki.answers.com...

Sharks are not scary. Sure sharks attack every once in a while but so do bears. The only reason people are so afraid of them is because the JAWS movement. The movie changed every thing. After that movie was made after school specials on the discovery channel have been playing stop. The scary music and close up of the teeth. Then they have those shows that play nothing but life threatening moments we all know those tv shows, a person could trip 2 floors into a swimming pool and they could make it seem as if they fell off a sky scraper. Fear sells.