Sharks, Mosquitos, Oh dear!(Florida)
 

OK... I am planning a trip to Miami Keys and Everglades but reading these horror stories in the news is making me nervous about being in the water.Would these incidents stop you from snorkeling etc.?

Short answer: No. <BR>I think you need to be more concerned about the traffic, especially around Miami. <BR>Have fun, and don't fret.

Stay out of the water, take squitter repellant and drink heavily and you should be fine...

I dunno, JT....I realize this isn't rational, BUT, when we exit our marina into Boca Ciega Bay, I can see the house where the guy jumped off his dock last fall and was killed by the bull shark. I won't swim at anchor now...too deep, can't see down, blah blah blah. I just can't make myself get in. Now....St Pete Beach, less than a mile off, fine. Wish I could throw it off, but....and yes, I realize that little boy in the Panhandle was in knee deep water. Wish I could get over the Boca Ciega thing...my husband says it's crazy (but I notice he hasn't gone in there either since that event). <BR> <BR>Intellectually I know you're right, but..but..and I love the water, taught swimming, life guarded the whole shebang.

Gail, take your chances against the skeeters or sharks, but at all costs, avoid those Florida voters!

A story on the insect repellant. We had a wasp nest under construction on the boat this weekend, and lacking insecticide to spray it with, my husband grabbed the repellant and sprayed the nest, thinking it might drive them out and away. Well, it took the paint right off that spot of the deck and the varnish off the teak!! So...how good can this be on our skin?? <BR> <BR>Hey, I'm not trying to discourage tourism, but this just leaves the "drink heavily" from the above post.

Oh yeah, I feel much better now!!!Actually I think we will skip Miami and head south. At least traffic statistics will be on my side (avoiding the mess of Miami).I totally agree with Olive. It is not rational, but...dont'care to leave an arm behind.Don't get me wrong I went on the shark feeding excursion in Tahiti and petted a Manta Ray, but this seems a bit different.G

"Dateline" did a test of squeeter repellants a while back, you know where they spray the victims arm and make him stick it in a tank of hungry buggers. Skin so Soft worked better than Off and some of the other name brands insect repellants.

Of the 79 shark attacks worldwide during the past year, more than 30 happened in Florida. That's too high for me! A news article said avoid dusk which is the sharks' feeding time and avoid murky water. Interestingly, more attacks happened in shallow water than to surfers, divers, and snorkelers. Still, it makes me VERY nervous about Florida waters, statistically speaking.

I was at St. Pete Beach a couple of months ago, and my daughter had some kind of shark swim right past her in fairly clear water about knee deep, between her and the shore. I was standing there at the edge of the water and didn't see it until it was right in front of me. It was about 3-4 feet long, and no more than 12-15 feet from shore. <BR> <BR>Now that was a weird feeling, I gotta tell ya....he just swam on by and went on his way. <BR> <BR>I got in the water cause it was so hot that day, but I didn't stay long!

Statistically speaking, if Florida's motor vehicle fatality rate was about that of the rest of the US, there were about 2300 motor vehicle fatalities in Florida last year. That means you're about 78 times more likely to DIE in a car accident in Florida than even be ATTACKED by a shark. Your death won't make CNN, but you'll STILL be dead. <BR> <BR>If you're reluctant to swim in Florida due to the chance of shark attacks, then you MUST be MORE reluctant to be in a motor vehicle there.

Not to go off on a tangent, BUT....this is, in my mind, akin to the argument that it's so much safer to fly than to drive. And, statistically, this is true. <BR> <BR>BUT, I do not want to die in a plane crash. I do not want to plummet several miles for several minutes, knowing that I am going to crash and burn at the end of all that. I would much rather die in a car crash that I do not see coming. Therefore, the "horror" factor of the air crash more than outweighs the lower probability of it actually happening, at least in my mind. <BR> <BR>I think this may be the same way some people feel about being eaten by a shark. Sorry to digress :-)

Paul: <BR>How much more time do you think is spent in automobiles is Florida versus in murkey waters? More than 78 times as much in cars I would think. If anything those statistics make it sound even more dangerous. <BR>I did have a friend killed once by a shark in California.

If you ever attend a lecture by George Burgess, Director of the International Shark Attack File, you'll never go back in the water. Dr. Burgess is an internationally known expert on Shark attacks and is based at the U of FL. His organization has records dating back to the first known attack and keeps them current throughout the world. Look him up--he's an interesting guy. <BR> <BR>I stopped swimming in the Gulf of Mexico three years ago after I saw a Hammerhead amongst the swimmers at Bradenton Beach. I was on the shore with my kids and thought I was seeing things as it causually zigzagged around unsuspecting swimmers. Knowing not to shout and cause a panic (lots of splashing will make them attack), I just stood there and watched it finally swim away. The lifeguard's response - - oh yeah, I've seen a couple out there today. I'll hoist the flag if I see another one(a certain color, red or yellow I think, means dangerous marine life in the area). Gee thanks. <BR> <BR>Also, my sister's husband is a commercial photographer. He was shooting for a speed boat company, out of a helicopter along the Sarasota coast. He said it was incredible to see the number of sharks swimming near people. <BR> <BR>THose three things did it for me.

Why aren't there more netted-lagoons like the kind the Ihilani Resort & Spa on Oahu has?

Gail, since you specifically mentioned Miami/Florida Keys area, I would suggest you do as Sal suggested and get an email to George Burgess (you can find the email on the web I'm sure by searching on his name and the keywords "shark attack") and ask him how many of Florida's high number of shark attacks occur in the South Florida area. To save you some time, I'll tell you the number is very low; most of the attacks happen in Volusia County or over on the Panhandle, and while southwest Florida hadn't had a fatality for many years before the incident Olive descibes, that area has long been known to shark experts as a shark hotspot (check inot the history of Mote Marine Aquarium to find out why it is there). So, go to the Keys! If it makes you feel a little safer, avoid swimming in murky water (you can almost always find clear water somewhere). <BR> Now, to skeeters. Actually, contrary to what Ginny said, I saw what I think was the same program that tested various repellants- they found that ONLY those that contain DEET really seem to be completely effective- and Skin-so-soft does not contain DEET, and did not work very well. I can personally verify this as I worked in the Everglades for 2 years and tried the Avon stuff after my skin started to feel irritated from repeated applications of OFF. Just one day of getting bit despite being smeared with skin-so-soft sent me running back to DEET-containing repellants (OFF and Cutter brands). Learned the best trick was to buy light-weight long sleeved clothing and spraying the clothes instead of skin. Anyway Gail, it also depends on what time of year you intend to visit the 'glades, and also if you intend to be there overnight. Winter time there are far less (to no) bugs.

Having mucked around the rain forest of Guatemala, Costa Rica and Belize, I too can attest to the fact that ONLY products with DEET work against mosquitoes and other annoying bugs. there was some concern a few years about the safety to humans of DEET, but recent studies have shown that DEET is safe (of course, I wouldn't drink it). As to sharks, they ARE there. If you go up in a small plane or helicopter and fly low over the shoreline, you would surprised at HOW MANY sharks there are within 50-100 feet of the shore. Most are (relatively) harmless sand sharks, who are dining on whiting which swim in close to shore. (I'm speaking of Florida now; in California, you have great whites swimming in close to get to the sea lions and otters.) Most, if not all, sharks DO NOT want to take on a human as a meal. We're just too darn big, plus we probably smell of too much DEET. But accidents do happen. The odds are YOU WON'T EVEN see a shark, much less be bothered by one. (But I'll tell you this, seeing a shark in the wild is an awesome thing.) Have fun in Florida.

Thanks for the name Sal, and that lifeguard story is rather disconcerting, isn't it! If anyone is interested, this website from the Int'l Shark Attack files charts unprovoked shark attacks in FL from 1882-2000. <BR>http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Sharks...tack/mapFL.htm There are other maps for other areas of this country and the world. <BR> <BR>As Larry said, Volusia County (east coast) leads the pack, followed by Brevard and Palm Beach. The west coast, though we had the most recent fatality, has a lower rate of attacks. <BR>

Sharks like the East Coast because that's where the deep water is (which is where they normally call home). The West Coast has shallower water, which extends pretty far out. <BR>Plus, the East Coast has Ron-Jon's.

While wading the Boca Ciega Pass side of the pier at the tip of Pass-A-Grille Beach(south of St Pete Beach) several weeks ago, I was cautious. Someone had said 2 days earlier folks on the pier spotted a shark and got everyone out of the water. <BR> <BR>In knee deep water I was speaking to a woman who was between me and the deep water. A huge dark form approached 3 ft behind her, raised it's head, and blew....a manatee. We were frozen and watched it slowly move along the pass.