The number of fatalities from unprovoked shark attacks worldwide in 2023 were up to 10, nearly double the previous five years' average, according to the International Shark Attack File (ISAF) kept by the University of Florida.
In data released on Monday, the ISAF researchers confirmed 14 shark-related fatalities, including 10 categorized as unprovoked. The figure is near double the average of six unprovoked fatalities per year in 2018-22.
The ISAF report said there had been 69 unprovoked shark bites on humans and 22 provoked bites. The figure is in line with the average of 63 attacks a year in the five-year stretch from 2018-22.
"This is within the range of the normal number of bites, though the fatalities are a bit unnerving this year," said Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Museum of Natural History's shark research program.
Most of the attacks occurred in the United States, 36 including two deadly, and Australia, which saw 15 attacks including four deadly. Three of the four deaths in Australia were due to bites from white sharks on surfers, the ISAF said.
Three of the Australian deaths occurred around the Eyre Peninsula off the coast of southern Australia, a remote surfing destination home to seal colonies and white sharks.
"If a white shark is going after a seal and the seal knows it, the white shark hasn't got a chance," Naylor said. "Seals are really agile, so the only ones that get caught are the ones that are goofing off and flopping around on the surface minding their own business. And that's kind of what a surfer looks like."
Most bites (42%) were associated with surfing and other board sports, while swimmers and waders accounted for 39% of incidents, the data showed.
The risk of being bitten by a shark remained extremely low, the university said, stressing that it was more likely to win the lottery than being attacked by a shark.