Shark attacks worldwide returned to near-average levels in 2025, but fatalities climbed higher than usual, newly released figures show.
The Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File logged 65 unprovoked incidents and nine deaths last year.
The United States accounted 38 percent of the global total.
Why It Matters
The International Shark Attack File, established in 1958, is the world’s leading database on shark-human interactions. Maintained by the Florida Museum of Natural History, the archive includes records dating back to the 1500s and is used by scientists to track long-term trends, regional patterns and contributing factors behind shark bites.
Experts stress that shark attacks remain extremely rare relative to the millions of people who enter the ocean each year.
What To Know
Consistent with long-term patterns, the United States reported the highest number of unprovoked bites, with 25 confirmed cases. This represented 38 percent of the global total and was slightly lower than the 28 incidents recorded in 2024.
Australia followed with 21 unprovoked bites but accounted for five fatalities, more than half the number of global deaths. Other countries reporting unprovoked bites included the Bahamas (5) and New Zealand (3), along with single incidents across several regions, mostly in the Caribbean Sea.
White sharks were linked to several of 2025’s fatal attacks. Experts note that encounters with large predatory species are less common but more likely to result in severe injuries.
Florida Recorded Most U.S. Incidents
Although the United States recorded the highest number of unprovoked bites in 2025, researchers noted the country’s proportion of global incidents has declined. Since 2019, more than half the world’s reported bites occurred in U.S. waters each year. In 2025, that share fell.
Florida reported 11 unprovoked bites in 2025, the highest total of any U.S. state. The figure was below Florida’s recent five-year annual average of 19 incidents.
Volusia County accounted for six of the state’s bites, continuing its position as one of the world’s most active areas for shark encounters. None of Florida’s incidents were fatal.
California recorded five bites, including the nation’s only unprovoked fatality.
What People Are Saying
Joe Miguez, manager of the International Shark Attack File, said in a press release: “The majority of the bites in the database involve unidentified species.”
Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Program for Shark Research, said in a press release: “Shark bites are the consequence of the biology of the animals, the climatic conditions and the number of people in the water.”
What Happens Next
The Florida Museum emphasized that the probability of being bitten by a shark remains extremely low. By comparison, drowning causes more than 4,000 deaths annually in the United States alone, while lightning strikes kill an estimated 24,000 people worldwide each year.
