Don’t Call Them ‘Shark Attacks,’ Scientists Say

But bites are extraordinarily rare, she said — globally, there are about 70 to 80 unprovoked bites a year, and about five deaths — and sharks usually flee after physical contact with a person.

“A ‘shark attack’ is a story of intent,” said Christopher Pepin-Neff, a lecturer in public policy at the University of Sydney who has studied human perceptions of sharks. “But sharks don’t know what people are. They don’t know when you’re in the boat. They don’t know what a propeller is. It’s not an attack.”

In Australia, the Queensland government offers guidance to minimize “your risk of a negative encounter with a shark.” Western Australia uses “bite” and “incident” in its alert system and sometimes “shark interaction,” usually when there is no bite.

Most unprovoked shark bites are reported in the United States, where the shift in language began in earnest within the past 10 years. For example, fish and wildlife officials in California have tracked injuries, deaths and “incidents” since about 2017 for cases where a shark touches people or their surfboard, kayak or other item. In Hawaii, officials have used “human-shark encounters” for nearly a decade.

A Hawaii government website notes that “dog bites” are called “dog attacks” in only extraordinary cases. Dan Dennison, a spokesman for the Department of Land and Natural Resources, said that whenever he had been asked why a shark attacked someone, “My response is always, ‘Until we can interview the shark we have no idea.’”

One exception to the rebranding trend appears to be Florida, where the Fish and Wildlife Commission has a section on its website about “shark attacks.” A spokeswoman, Carly Jones, said that the commission “does not have involvement with this topic.”

Whatever term is used, shark scientists stressed that sharks are wild animals and should be treated with caution and respect. The risk of a serious bite is extraordinarily small — people are more likely to die from a bee sting, sunstroke or bicycle accident — but shark bites can cause devastating harm.