A Biting Review of Shark Attacks Off Florida's Coast, 1960 - 2016

Abstract

The authors examine the monthly total and average number of unprovoked shark attacks off Florida’s Atlantic and Gulf coasts between 1960 and 2016, with special emphasis on the last twenty-seven years, divided into three nine-year intervals.  Two-way connected-line plots, bar graphs and a series of two-sample t-tests reveal that monthly averages were highest in April (1999 – 2007) and September (1999 – 2007 and 2008 – 2016).  Topographic maps created for each nine-year period show the lowest densities (shark attacks per square mile) from 1990 to 1998 and the highest densities from 1999 to 2007, off the shore of the east-central part of the state, northeast of Orlando in Volusia County, home to Daytona Beach.