Headlines have dubbed the southeastern US state of Florida the world's most likely place to be bitten by a shark. They're right, but, at the same time, shark bites are exceedingly rare overall -- a fact scientists wish more people knew, especially amid declining shark populations desperately in need of conservation. "Sharks are trying to avoid people," says shark researcher Gavin Naylor. They are "targeting the fishes that they normally feed on, but once in a while, people get in the way and the sharks make a mistake and they bite the people," he adds.
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00:00 [Sounds of water]
00:26 Because they see sharks on TV, they see sharks on movies, you know, these scary monsters.
00:31 And in the water, they're actually shy puppy dogs.
00:34 [Sounds of water]
00:42 [Spanish]
00:45 [Sounds of water]
01:01 So the sharks are trying to avoid people.
01:03 We know that they must be doing because there's so many of them and so many people.
01:07 And people are very easy to target.
01:11 They're a little bit like floating sausages if you're a shark.
01:14 Sharks are targeting the fishes that they normally feed on.
01:17 But once in a while, people get in the way and the sharks make a mistake and they bite the people.
01:22 [Sounds of water]