Whether you are surfing the Outer Banks, fishing off a pier, or swimming with family, understanding local marine life is key to a safe and enjoyable day at the beach. While media headlines often sensationalize “shark attacks,” marine scientists and conservationists prefer to discuss these rare events as shark encounters or shark bites.

By understanding shark behavior and following basic safety guidelines, we can easily share the water with these incredible creatures.

Shark Safety Tips for Ocean Lovers

Although the relative risk of a shark bite is very small, swimmers and surfers can help prevent negative interactions by following these International Shark Attack File (ISAF) safety tips:

• Always stay with a buddy, since sharks are more likely to approach a solitary individual.
• Do not wander too far from shore. Being far from shore also isolates you from any emergency assistance.
• Exercise caution when occupying the area between sandbars or near steep dropoffs, these are favorite hangouts for sharks.
• Avoid being in the water during low light hours (dawn or dusk) and at night when many sharks are most active and feeding.
• Sharks have never been shown to be attracted to the smell of human blood, however, it may still be advisable to stay out of the water if bleeding from an open wound.
• Wearing shiny jewelry is discouraged because the reflected light may resemble the sheen of fish scales.
• Avoid areas with known effluents or sewage and those being used by sport or commercial anglers, especially if there are signs of bait fishes or feeding activity. Diving seabirds are good indicators of these fishes’ presence.
• Avoid water being used by recreational or commercial anglers.
• Sightings of porpoises or dolphins do not indicate the absence of sharks, both often eat the same food items.
• Use extra caution when waters are murky, some shark species will have just as much trouble seeing as you.
• Avoid uneven tanning, bright-colored and/or high contrasting clothing, sharks see contrast particularly well.
• Refrain from excess splashing, particularly in a single spot. Sharks can hear the low-frequency sounds from splashing and may investigate to see if there is a fish/prey in distress.
• Do not enter the water if sharks are known to be present. Slowly and calmly evacuate the water if sharks are seen.

North Carolina Shark Bite FAQ

Why are scientists moving away from the term “shark attack”?

Marine biologists and global research organizations (like the International Shark Attack File) prefer terms like shark bite or shark interaction. The word “attack” implies a calculated, predatory ambush on humans. In reality, the vast majority of incidents are cases of “investigative bites” or mistaken identity in murky water. Once a shark realizes a human is not a seal or fish, it almost always swims away. Changing the language helps reduce irrational public fear, which historically has undermined vital marine conservation efforts.

Are shark bites becoming more common in North Carolina?

While the total number of reported interactions globally has shown a slight upward trend over the last few decades, scientists attribute this to two primary factors: a massive increase in the number of people entering the ocean for recreation, and better global tracking and reporting technologies. The individual risk of a beachgoer experiencing a shark bite remains extraordinarily low.

What is shark depredation?

Shark depredation occurs when a shark partially or completely consumes a hooked fish before a fisher can reel it in. This interaction leads to gear damage, financial losses, and growing conflict between humans and wildlife in both commercial and recreational fisheries.

North Carolina Shark Research Spotlight

Do Atlantic Sharpnose Sharks Get Smarter as They Age?

Featured on NC Sea Grant’s Hook, Line & Science, research from the University of North Carolina Wilmington highlights that an Atlantic sharpnose shark’s brain continues to grow throughout its entire lifespan. Specifically, the regions of the brain responsible for smell and motor control expand as they mature, helping them adapt as they shift environments and diets.

Developing Electrosensory Deterrents to Reduce Shark Bycatch

NC Sea Grant fisheries extension specialist Sara Mirabilio helped develop an industry‐deployable, microprocessor‐based, shark bycatch reduction device (M‐B BRD). By emitting a small electric pulse around baited hooks, this funded technology has successfully reduced accidental shark bycatch by over 50% in some species—protecting vulnerable shark populations and saving fishermen money.

To learn more about the data behind the technology, read the full study below. The paper outlines the controlled tank trials testing the device on spiny dogfish (above).

Watch on PBS: Sharks are often killed by accident. Here’s a way to fix it.

This feature explores the global problem of accidental shark deaths and features NC Sea Grant’s Sara Mirabilio and her field research with the bycatch reduction device.

The “shark tickler”

This video explains the science behind the M‐B BRD and how it disrupts a shark’s prey-sensing abilities. The technology was developed by students at Indiana University South Bend and field-tested by NC Sea Grant’s Sara Mirabilio aboard the F/V Kaitlyn C off the Outer Banks.

DNA Detectives: Working with Local Charter Fishermen to Understand Shark Depredation Events in North Carolina

Funded by the WRRI and NC Sea Grant’s Community Collaborative Research Grant (CCRG) program, researchers are investigating shark depredation across North Carolina’s three major Cape regions. Lead principal investigator Joel Fodrie and co-PI Chelsea Black, both from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, are partnering with commercial captain Anthony Procida to bridge scientific expertise with local fishing knowledge. As the first study in the state to utilize DNA sampling to identify the exact shark species involved in these events, the project aims to deliver targeted insights that can reduce gear damage, prevent economic loss, and mitigate human-shark conflict.

Socioeconomic Impacts of Shark Depredation Events in North Carolina’s Commercial and For-Hire Fisheries

A new NC Sea Grant 2026–28 core research project is investigating the socioeconomic impacts of shark depredation on North Carolina’s commercial and for-hire fisheries. Principal investigator Nadine Heck of East Carolina University, alongside co-PI John Whitehead of Appalachian State University and collaborator Sara Mirabilio, will assess the frequency of these events and evaluate their financial toll on local fleets. By gathering direct feedback from vessel operators on potential reduction strategies, the study aims to provide fishery managers with the concrete data needed to shape practical management actions across the South Atlantic.