Sharks are often portrayed in pop culture as deadly man-eaters, but the truth is that most shark species pose little threat to humans. Of the over 500 known shark species, only a handful have been implicated in a significant number of fatal unprovoked attacks on people. Even the most notorious shark species like great white, tiger and bull sharks are responsible for an extremely small percentage of human deaths worldwide. So which shark species has the lowest human death toll? Let’s take a closer look at the statistics on shark attacks and fatalities to find out.
Understanding shark attack data
Before diving into the shark species with the least human fatalities, it’s important to understand where shark attack data comes from and what it does (and doesn’t) tell us. Several organizations track and compile global shark attack statistics each year, including the International Shark Attack File (ISAF), the Global Shark Attack File (GSAF) and the Shark Research Institute. While they may differ slightly in their methodologies, these databases provide the most comprehensive picture available of global shark-human interactions.
According to the ISAF, there were a total of 64 confirmed unprovoked shark attacks worldwide in 2021. Unprovoked means the shark wasn’t provoked – attacks on divers in cages or on speared fish don’t count. Out of the 64 attacks, 9 were fatal. To put this in perspective, the global human population is nearly 8 billion. Your chances of being killed by a shark in any given year are less than 1 in a million.
It’s also worth noting that many suspected shark “attacks” are actually cases of mistaken identity. Other marine animals like dolphins, tuna and barracudas are sometimes responsbile for bite incidents blamed on sharks. And the vast majority of shark bites on humans are exploratory – not predatory. Sharks have extremely sharp teeth but very poor eyesight. They often bite objects to figure out what they are.
Sharks with no confirmed human fatalities
Now that we understand the limitations of the data, which shark species can we say have definitively killed zero humans? While the list of sharks never implicated in a human fatality is long, these three species stand out for having no confirmed unprovoked bites of any kind on record:
- Whale shark
- Basking shark
- Megamouth shark
Whale shark
The massive whale shark is the largest known fish species in the world, reaching lengths over 40 feet and weighing up to 47,000 pounds. Despite its size, the whale shark is a gentle giant that feeds on tiny plankton and small fish by filtering water through its enormous mouth. Whale sharks frequently encounter divers and snorkelers, but there are no documented cases of them ever biting or attacking people. Their immense size and docile nature makes them a prime ecotourism attraction.
Basking shark
The basking shark is the second largest fish after the whale shark, reaching lengths up to 33 feet. Like whale sharks, basking sharks are passive plankton feeders with small teeth and big mouths. They commonly ignore divers andboat traffic, focused on lazily skimming zooplankton near the water’s surface. No human injuries or fatalities caused by basking sharks have ever been verified.
Megamouth shark
First discovered in 1976, the elusive megamouth shark is one of the rarest and most mysterious sharks alive today. It’s distinctive for its large rubbery lips that give it a gaping mega-mouth for filter feeding on plankton and jellyfish. Only around 60 megamouth shark sightings have ever been confirmed. There are no documented cases of them interacting with humans, let alone biting or attacking someone.
Sharks with no known human fatalities
Beyond those three placid shark giants, there are a number of other shark species that, to the best of our knowledge, have never been implicated in a human fatality. Again, while some non-fatal bites may have occurred, the following sharks have no confirmed human deaths on record:
- Nurse shark
- Spiny dogfish
- Angel shark
- Grey reef shark
- Blacktip reef shark
Nurse shark
Despite having a mouth full of sharp teeth capable of crushing hard-shelled prey like clams and sea urchins, nurse sharks pose virtually no danger to people. They are sluggish bottom dwellers that spend most of their time resting on the sea floor. Attacks and bites from nurse sharks are extremely rare – no human fatalities have been verified.
Spiny dogfish
Spiny dogfish are small, slender sharks with defensive spines on their fins. They spend most of their time on the ocean bottom in deep water, feeding on crabs, lobsters, fish and jellyfish. Spiny dogfish migrations sometimes take them near swimming beaches, but their presence is not a cause for concern – there are no records of them attacking, biting or killing people.
Angel shark
Despite having a fearsome name, angel sharks are not considered dangerous to humans. They have flattened bodies that allow them to camouflage against the seafloor and ambush unsuspecting prey as it swims by. But they do not act as apex predators toward larger animals. No human fatalities from angel sharks are known to have occurred.
Grey reef shark
Grey reef sharks are medium-sized predators that live in tropical coral reef habitats. They have streamlined bodies and a repertoire of impressive predatory behaviors for hunting fish and octopus. Despite their frequent proximity to people in places like the Red Sea, grey reef sharks do not consider humans prey. There are no verified reports of them killing human beings.
Blacktip reef shark
Blacktip reef sharks are small, slender requiem sharks found in shallow tropical waters. They are extremely common and comfortable around coral reefs busy with human recreation. But despite frequently encountering humans, they are not aggressive and have never been confirmed to fatally attack people.
The sharks responsible for most human fatalities
While many sharks have zero or very few human kills attributed to them, a few notorious species are responsible for the vast majority of shark attack fatalities around the world. Here are the sharks that have killed the most humans on record:
- Great white shark – 373 documented fatalities
- Tiger shark – 111 documented fatalities
- Bull shark – 111 documented fatalities
- Shortfin mako shark – 31 documented fatalities
- Oceanic whitetip shark – 17 documented fatalities
| Shark | Confirmed Fatalities |
|---|---|
| Great white shark | 373 |
| Tiger shark | 111 |
| Bull shark | 111 |
| Shortfin mako shark | 31 |
| Oceanic whitetip shark | 17 |
It’s immediately apparent from the data that great white, tiger and bull sharks are by far the most dangerous shark species to humans worldwide. However, considering there are over 500 shark species and 8 billion people on the planet, even these sharks only very rarely bite people, let alone kill them. Your chances of getting attacked by any species of shark are extremely low.
Great white shark
The notorious great white shark is probably the first species that comes to mind when most people think “deadly man-eating shark.” Great whites can reach lengths over 20 feet and weigh up to 5,000 pounds. They have a global distribution in cool coastal waters and feed on fish, seals and sea lions. Over 350 confirmed human fatalities have been attributed to great whites – more than any other shark by a wide margin.
Tiger shark
The tiger shark is an apex predator found in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. They average 10-14 feet long and weigh 850-1,400 pounds. Tiger sharks have extremely broad diets and are known to eat virtually anything, including fish, turtles, birds and dolphins. They are responsible for an estimated 111 human fatalities, most involving spearfishermen and swimmers in areas like Hawaii.
Bull shark
Bull sharks live in warm coastal waters and rivers around the world. They are large, stoutly built sharks reaching lengths over 11 feet and 500 pounds. Bull sharks are territorial and have numerous adaptations that make them excellent ambush predators in murky, shallow water. The bull shark is ranked number two behind the great white for confirmed human fatalities with 111 documented deaths.
Why do some sharks attack humans while others don’t?
What makes a few shark species more dangerous to humans than others? There are a few key reasons why certain sharks account for most attacks:
- Large size and immense jaw power
- Opportunistic diets including mammals
- Swimming patterns that overlap with human recreation
- Confusing humans for prey like seals or sea lions
The shark species most frequently implicated in bites and fatal attacks (like great whites, tigers and bulls) all possess these traits to some degree. Meanwhile, the least dangerous sharks are tiny, feed only on small fish and invertebrates, or simply live in habitats with little human activity.
Are sharks that don’t attack humans less evolved?
Absolutely not. There is no scientific evidence that sharks that do not interact with humans are primitive or inferior. All living shark species have evolved impressive adaptations for survival over millions of years in the ocean. The fact that some sharks do not pose a risk to people is not a sign of evolutionary deficiency – if anything, it shows refined habitat preferences and prey choices that limit contact with humans.
The real risk sharks pose to humans
While only a handful of shark species have ever been confirmed to kill humans, the broader risk sharks pose to the average person comes not from getting bitten, but from overfishing. According to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, over 30% of open-ocean shark and ray species are threatened with extinction primarily due to overfishing. Removing these predators from marine food chains causes devastating ecosystem effects with consequences for human societies that rely on the ocean.
In general, humans pose a much greater threat to shark survival than sharks do to human safety. Most sharks play important roles in their marine environments, and none should be thoughtlessly demonized as “man-eaters.” Although a small number of shark bites and fatalities occur each year, humans kill around 100 million sharks annually through overfishing, finning and bycatch. The real shark attack we need to worry about is humankind’s attack on worldwide shark populations.
Conclusion
While pop culture paints all sharks as deadly predators, the reality is most shark species pose little threat to human safety. The whale, basking and megamouth sharks have no documented bites or attacks on people ever. Many other sharks like nurse, spiny dogfish, angel and grey reef have zero confirmed human fatalities to date. A few species – great white, tiger and bull – are responsible for most attacks, but even they rarely kill people compared to total human population size. Although the threat of getting bit by a shark understandably captures public fascination, humans pose a much greater extinction risk to sharks through overfishing and ecosystem destruction.