5 Tips To Help You Avoid Getting Eaten by a Shark

It hasn’t been the best summer for shark-human relations.

On Wednesday, a 68-year-old man was bitten in the Outer Banks in North Carolina. It was the seventh attack in North Carolina this year, all in the last three weeks.

Sharks have attacked 25 people in the United States so far this year, according to Lindsay French, program assistant for the International Shark Attack File at the Florida Museum of Natural History.

Shark attacks still remain rare and a very minor threat. According to the museum, the United States averages just 18.7 shark attacks per year, with human deaths only coming, on average, once every two years. Lightning strikes, the museum says, kill close to an average of 38 people per year.

New Jersey has had 15 shark attacks in the last century, according to experts.

“Shark attacks are so rare, you have more of a chance of being hit by a meteor,“ said Marie Levine, executive director of the Princeton-based Shark Research Institute. “You might as well buy a lottery ticket.“

While the rate of incidents so far is on par with U.S. shark attack trends, a spate of attacks along the east coast has swimmers worried as we approach the Fourth of July weekend.

So how can you stay safe on your beach vacation this summer?

The surefire way to avoid a shark attack is to stay out of the water altogether. Short of that, here are five tips from the experts at the Florida museum and elsewhere.

1. Don’t enter the water when bleeding

This one is the most obvious and well-known. The museum says that “sharks’ ability to detect even minute amounts of blood and scents of other organic material is amazing.”

If you have an open wound, cover it up or stay out of the water.

One major concern for women is swimming during menstruation. FLMNH says that while menstrual blood could be “attractive to sharks in certain situations,” there is no data that shows women are more likely to be attacked while menstruating.

2. Don’t swim alone

The buddy system is a good safety rule in most situations, but especially so in the water.

At the very least, someone else can make sure help arrives quickly or help you escape from an attacking shark. The museum says that “sharks most often attack lone individuals,” so swimmers in groups are safer.

If you don’t have a friend or family member who wants to swim with you, make sure to stay near the crowds at the beach, within earshot of someone in case you need to call for help.

3. Avoid fishing areas

Fishermen often use smaller fish to catch bigger fish. The bait can attract hungry sharks.

“The combination of beautiful warm water, a lot of bait fish and smaller fish attracting sharks, and other large fish — and then add all of these people in the water — it’s a recipe for accidents or disasters,” National Park Service spokeswoman Cyndy Holda told NBC News.

Stay away from fishing boats and anybody fishing in the water.

4. Don’t swim at night, dawn or dusk

At nighttime, it’s difficult to see what’s going on in the water around you, so sharks are harder to spot. And their favorite times to hunt are at dawn and at dusk.

In fact, one study found that great white sharks like to attack at the angle of the sun at these times, so it’s harder for their prey to see them coming in the intense light.

Keep your swimming times to the middle of the day, when sharks are less likely to be on the prowl.

5. Don’t look like a fish

Certain cues can fool sharks into thinking an object is a tasty fish, whether it is or not.

Shiny jewelry, for one, can look like scales. Bright clothing creates a contrast that sharks associate with fish, the museum says.

Another sight sharks could be attracted to is an uneven tan, where contrasting skin tones can look like the colors of a fish.

So stick to plain clothing, leave your jewelry on the shore and keep up that even tan.