Shark attacks rare in Jamaica

Western Bureau:

If Falmouth native, 16-year-old Jahmaree Reid, was killed by a shark, as has been widely suspected, it would be a particularly rare occurrence as based on the Florida Museum of National History and the American Elasmobranch Society, Jamaica has only registered three unprovoked shark attacks since 1749.

Reid, a student at William Knibb High School, left his Falmouth Gardens home early Monday to go spearfishing, one of his passions, in the Falmouth harbour. After a search when he did not return home, his headless body and severed arm were found on Tuesday. Experienced fishermen, who viewed his remains, said the wounds on the body suggested a shark attack.

According to noted publication Business Insider, Jamaica is nowhere near the top of the list of places with frequent shark attacks though the island is relatively close to Florida in the United States (US), which tops the list.

According to research, Australia, South Africa, Brazil, The Bahamas, islands in the Indian Ocean, as well as the US states of Hawaii, South Carolina, North Carolina, and California are in the top 10, while Jamaica sits at 53.

The shark that is considered the most notorious for unprovoked attacks, the Great White Shark, is not known to be in Jamaican waters, which are primarily populated by the nurse shark. According to scientists, the nurse shark enjoys warm water, unlike the Great White, which prefers colder water.

National Geographic states that there is very little to fear from the nurse shark for persons who go out swimming or involve themselves in other activities in the water as this species of shark tends to stay close to the sea floor.

“Nurse sharks are slow-moving bottom-dwellers and, for the most part, harmless to humans. However, they can be huge – up to 14 feet- and have very strong jaws filled with thousands of tiny, serrated teeth, and will bite defensively if stepped on or bothered by divers who assume they’re docile,” an article in National Geographic states.

The National Geographic assessment is supported by sharksider.com, which contends that nurse sharks won’t bother anyone unless they feel threatened or provoked.

“The threat to humans is very minimal. There have only been a few attacks ever recorded, and only one of those attacks was unprovoked,” a sharksider.com article states.

At the same time, the website www.makeitjamaica.com, which is a travel guide for prospective visitors to the island, states that “if you go scuba diving or sail out in deep water or if you are snorkelling by the reefs away from the shore, you will see sharks which, 99.999 per cent of the time in Jamaica will be harmless nurse shark”. The website further notes that the odds of being attacked and killed by a shark are lower than the risk of being struck by lightning.

According to sharkattackdata.com, between 1927 and 2013, Jamaica recorded 10 fatal shark attacks. In the more recent incidents, in 2013, a fisherman, who had gone spearfishing with other fishermen, got separated and was killed by a shark three miles off Jamaica’s south coast. In September 2018, a fisherman was attacked by a shark near the James Bond Beach on the St Ann-St Mary border and was presumed dead. In May 2021, a fisherman was killed by a shark while spearfishing in Westmoreland.

If Reid’s death is confirmed as the result of a shark attack, it would be a first for the north coast, where larger sharks usually stay in the deeper waters away from the coral reefs.

While sharks have been sighted mostly on the southern coast of Jamaica, there have not been many to speak of on the northern coast. Of the recorded attacks, almost all were in the Kingston Harbour-Port Royal area, which is south to southeast, or in Westmoreland, which is on the southern side of western Jamaica.

In responding to a claim by another fisherman that sharks usually appear in the proximity of the Falmouth coastline, with ships coming into the Falmouth Pier, former fisherman Ralstan Gordon said that that would not be surprising to him as the dredging that took place to make the Falmouth Harbour deeper and more accommodating to large cruise ships has not only displaced coral reefs, but has created conditions to attract larger sharks.

“I seriously doubt you will see the bigger sharks straying into their nearby beaches adjoining the hotels and the public beaches as the water in those areas is fairly shallow,” said Gordon. “However, you can’t truly rule it out because before this youngster (Reid) was killed, I can’t really remember us having a shark attack in Falmouth.”

editorial@gleanerjm.com

Despite their conclusion that visitors to the island are unlikely to experience a shark attack, www.makeitjamaica.com has nonetheless put out some tips for persons using the ocean.

They are as follows:

· Follow the cardinal rule: never swim alone – ever. Always swim in groups. This is just common sense and not only to save you from sharks.

· Swim close to shore. Stay in more shallow water. Sharks like deep waters.

· Avoid swimming at twilight or at night. Sharks are most active after dark. Nurse sharks are an exception.

· Do not go swimming with open wounds or where there are fishermen. Sharks can smell blood from great distances away.

· Avoid jewellery or shiny items because light reflecting off the metal may be similar to light off fish scales – you don’t want to be confused for a fish. Plus, you don’t want to risk losing your jewellery, right?

· Only swim in designated areas.