Shark attacks rose in 2025, and the only U.S. death was in California

Shark attacks returned to near-average levels in 2025 after a decline the previous year, according to the latest report from the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, released Wednesday.

Researchers recorded 65 unprovoked shark bites worldwide last year, slightly fewer than the 10-year average of 72, but an increase from 2024. Nine of those bites were fatal, higher than the 10-year average of six deaths.

The United States once again had the highest number of reported incidents, accounting for 38% of unprovoked bites worldwide when assessed on a country-by-country basis. That said, this is actually a decline from recent years, including in 2024, when more than half of all reported bites worldwide occurred off the coast of the United States.

In 2025, Florida led all states with 11 recorded attacks. California, Hawaii, Texas and North Carolina account for the other incidents in the United States.

But California stood out in another way: It experienced the nation’s only fatal unprovoked shark attack in 2025.

A 55-year-old triathlete was attacked by a white shark after entering the water off Monterey Bay with members of the deep sea swim club she co-founded. This is the only fatality in the United States among 25 shark bites reported nationwide.

It’s not surprising that the only shark-related death in the United States occurred in California, said Steve Midway, an associate professor of fisheries at Louisiana State University. “In California, there are generally fewer attacks from year to year than in other places in the United States and around the world,” Midway said. “But you tend to have more serious attacks, a higher proportion of fatal attacks.”

The difference is species and geography, Midway said. Along the East Coast, particularly in Florida, many bites involve smaller coastal sharks in shallow water, which are more likely to result in non-fatal injuries. California’s deeper, colder waters are home to larger species, like the great white shark.

“It turns out great whites are bigger,” Midway said. “You’re less likely to be attacked, but if you are, the results tend to be worse.”

Whether measured over 10, 20, or 30 years, average annual global shark bite totals are actually very stable.

“Global trends only change slightly from year to year,” said Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Shark Research Program.

According to the researchers, these annual fluctuations are influenced by a combination of shark biology, ocean conditions and the number of people in the water at a given time and in a given location.

At the same time, global shark populations remain well below historic levels. Naylor classifies about 30 percent of shark species as endangered, largely due to overfishing. In some countries, notably the United States and Australia, stricter protections have allowed some shark populations to recover.

However, the risk of being bitten by a shark remains extremely low. The report notes that drowning is a much more common cause of death worldwide – and, if it helps you sleep (or swim), the data shows you’re much more likely to be killed by lightning than you are by a shark.