Sharks strike fear into the hearts of many.
That's even though the odds of being attacked by a shark are actually incredibly low. "More people are killed by things like flowerpots, lawn mowers, toaster ovens, deer, cows, and dogs each year. More people are bitten by other people than by sharks," marine biologist and shark advocate David Shiffman told told Smithsonian.
Still, sharks are hardly cuddly friends.
The Florida Museum of Natural History compiled a list of the shark species that have attacked humans the most, according to records that date back to 1580. A lot of attacks go unreported, they caution, and it's difficult for victims to calmly observe and identify a shark that is in the middle of attacking them.
With those caveats in mind, we've put together a slideshow of the 14 most dangerous sharks on their list. Sharks might have more to fear from you than vice-versa, but still — you probably don't want to encounter any one of these guys in the middle of the ocean.
Tied for 12th with 10 attacks on record are the shortfin mako shark...
...the misleadingly whimsically-named lemon shark...
and the white-pawed oceanic whitetip shark.
11. Blacktip reef sharks have attacked 11 times on record.
10. The blue shark has been recorded attacking humans 13 times, which pales in comparison to the 10-20 million killed by humans each year for food and sport.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History
9. Bronze whaler sharks are responsible for 15 attacks on humans since 1580.
8. And spinner sharks have attacked 16 times on record.
7. Despite their extra-weaponized look, hammerhead sharks have attacked humans only 17 times.
6. The wobbegong shark family, AKA the bottom-feeding bite-y rugs of the sea, have been responsible for 28 attacks.
5. Sand tiger sharks are responsible for 29 attacks on humans, though none have been fatal, since the species is generally slow-moving and calm.
4. The blacktip shark has also been responsible for 29 recorded attacks, and only one attack was fatal.
3. After these relatively peaceful shark species comes the aggressive bull shark, responsible for 100 attacks on humans. Their willingness to eat anything and ability to enter fresh water systems probably isn't helping either.
2. The striped tiger shark is similarly aggressive and has attacked humans a recorded 111 times. It's also completely indiscriminate when it comes to food, even eating garbage.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History
1. Unsurprisingly, the king of the sharks and frequent guest star of nightmares, the great white shark is the most dangerous, with a recorded 314 unprovoked attacks on humans.
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