Is nature turning on us? A dramatic video of a Hawaiian fisherman’s encounter with a shark is a powerful reminder of the threat wild creatures pose to humans.
Attack! Tiger shark rams terrified kayaker
Is nature turning on us? A dramatic video of a Hawaiian fisherman's encounter with a shark is a powerful reminder of the threat wild creatures pose to humans.
Everything seems calm as Scott Haraguchi's kayak bobs up and down off the island of Oahu. But suddenly - wham! An enormous tiger sharkA solitary, aggressive shark found in warm seas. crashes against the small vessel. As Haraguchi cries out in alarm, it disappears as quickly as it came.
That was last Friday. The video of the incident has since become one of the most watched on the BBC's website.
Just one day earlier, 13-year-old Ella Reed survived a shark attack in Florida.
The shark "was about as big as me," she says, "and I looked down and it was biting my stomach. And that was when I just freaked out and did everything I could to get it off me."
Ella punched the shark, but it came back and bit her on the leg: "It wouldn't leave me alone, so I had to use my arm and use my hand too, so it got my arm and my finger."
Luckily Ella was able to escape onto the beach. In hospital she was given 19 stitches.
Around the world, two people have been killed by sharks this year. One was in Mexico and the other in Australia.
Sharks are not the only creatures that have claimed lives recently. In January, a woman and child were killed by a polar bear in an Alaskan village. Last month a runner was killed by a brown bear in Italy.
According to a new report,1 attacks by wild animals have increased steadily since 1950. A major reason is humans encroachingIntruding on or slowly advancing towards. on areas where animals used to roam undisturbed.
One ecologist, Professor Briana Abrahms of Washington University, says climate change is partly to blame. As the ice in the Arctic melts, polar bears are more likely to come into contact with humans. In Africa, droughts have led to increased attacks by lions on cattle.
Another ecologist, Christopher Schell, says these patterns pose a vital question: "How do we create spaces that allow for both wildlife and humans to coexist?"
<h5 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="question"><strong>Is nature turning on us?</strong></h5>
Yes: Humans have been ruining the lives of other creatures by hunting them and destroying the places where they live. No wonder they are biting back.
No: You are more likely to be killed by a champagne cork or falling coconut than an animal attack. The simple fact is that with 8 billion humans crowding the planet, some friction is inevitable.
Or... Humans have become too relaxed about animals. Because we are brought up on cute pictures of them in story books, and so used to seeing them on videos, we forget the danger they pose in real life.
Tiger shark - A solitary, aggressive shark found in warm seas.
Encroaching - Intruding on or slowly advancing towards.
Attack! Tiger shark rams terrified kayaker

Glossary
Tiger shark - A solitary, aggressive shark found in warm seas.
Encroaching - Intruding on or slowly advancing towards.