Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Sharks’ reputation as man-eaters is unfair and threatens the species, authors say

Ladies and gentlemen, good citizens everywhere, please listen to reason: The shark has been framed. Reading at times like a defense attorney’s argument to a jury, a new study takes a lawyer’s approach to refuting the shark’s reputation as a bloodthirsty stalker of humans. There’s no basis for believing that sharks have a taste for human flesh, the study argues. Human swimmers, often dressed in black wet suits and looking like seals, are mistaken for sharks’ usual prey. Uninformed characterizations of shark bites by early scientists date back to the 1700s, according to the study, and media, public officials and others are parroting them. Some sightings are misrepresented as bites, the study says. The study offers a simple solution: Stop using “shark attack” as a knee-jerk term for every encounter. Stop describing animals that rarely kill humans as “man-eaters.” And stop demonizing them with human motives, with names such as “rogue shark,” as if it shares traits with serial killers. 
By Darryl Fears / more

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