I'M LUKE TIPPLE, AND THIS IS YOUR "DAILY BITE."

ON THIS EPISODE, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WHEN SHARKS ATTACK

AND HOW ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE HUMANS TASTE.

IN THE SUMMER OF 1975, "JAWS" HIT THE THEATERS

AND TERRIFIED BEACHGOERS FOR GENERATIONS.

THE FEAR OF "JAWS" STRUCK SO DEEP

THAT THE NUMBER OF LARGE SHARKS ON THE ATLANTIC COAST

FELL BY 50% AS HUMANS CLAIMED THE OCEANS FOR THEMSELVES.

AND NOW SOCIAL MEDIA IS STOKING THE SAME FEAR.

EVERY SUMMER, REPORTS OF SHARK SIGHTINGS FLOOD OUR SCREENS,

BUT THE REALITY IS, SHARK ATTACKS ARE WAY DOWN.

LAST YEAR, ONLY 66 UNPROVOKED SHARK ATTACKS WERE REPORTED --

THAT'S COMPARED TO AN AVERAGE OF 84,

AND ONLY 4 OF THOSE WERE FATAL.

LITERALLY, MILLIONS OF PEOPLE

WADE INTO THE OCEAN EVERY SINGLE DAY,

AND MOST OF THOSE DAYS PASS WITHOUT INCIDENT.

THE OCEAN ISN'T WITHOUT ITS DANGERS,

BUT SHARKS ARE PRETTY CLOSE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE LIST.

SCUBA DIVING KILLS AN AVERAGE OF 200 PEOPLE EVERY YEAR.

RIP CURRENTS CAUSE AN AVERAGE OF 46 DEATHS,

AND THAT ACCOUNTS FOR 80% OF LIFEGUARD RESCUES.

DID YOU KNOW THAT SAILING IS ALSO PRETTY DANGEROUS?

IT CLAIMS AN AVERAGE OF 27 LIVES EVERY YEAR.

WITH ALL OF THIS FUN OUTDOORS,

WE SHOULD PROBABLY BE LOOKING UP MORE OFTEN.

THE SUN CAUSES THOUSANDS OF DEATHS EVERY YEAR FROM MELANOMA,

CAUSED BY U.V. EXPOSURE.

IN FACT, HUMANS POSE A MUCH HIGHER RISK TO SHARKS.

WHILE THERE ARE AN AVERAGE OF 6 HUMAN DEATHS

CAUSED BY SHARKS EVERY YEAR,

WE MANAGE TO TAKE OUT 100 MILLION SHARKS EACH YEAR.

NOW, THAT'S OVER 11,000 SHARKS AN HOUR.

EVEN SINCE YOU STARTED WATCHING THIS VIDEO,

OVER 200 SHARKS HAVE DIED.

NOW, SHARKS ARE CURIOUS CREATURES.

THEY HAVE BIG, POINTY TEETH IN LIEU OF HANDS,

AND THEY CAN CAUSE INJURIES TO US FLESHY FOLKS

WHEN THEY JUST COME UP TO INVESTIGATE.

SHARK-ATTACK SURVIVOR AND CONSERVATION ADVOCATE

PAUL DE GELDER IS HERE TO RECOUNT HIS TALE

AND WHAT HE'S DOING TO CHANGE THE CONVERSATION

ABOUT HOW WE SHARE THE OCEAN.

IN 2009, I WAS WORKING AS A NAVY CLEARANCE DIVER,

AND I WAS SWIMMING ON THE SURFACE

DOING A COUNTERTERRORISM EXERCISE FOR THE NAVY.

I WAS ONLY IN THE WATER FOR ABOUT FOUR MINUTES,

AND A BULL SHARK CAME UP FROM UNDERNEATH ME

AND GRABBED ME BY MY RIGHT HAMSTRING

AND MY RIGHT HAND IN THE SAME BITE.

I TRIED TO FIGHT IT OFF,

BUT I DISCOVERED THERE WAS VERY LITTLE I COULD DO.

AND BECAUSE OF MY WET SUIT MAKING ME POSITIVELY BUOYANT,

I POPPED TO THE SURFACE AND REALIZED THAT I WASN'T DEAD

AND I SAW MY SAFETY BOAT WITH MY TEAMMATES IN IT,

SO I STARTED SWIMMING TOWARDS IT,

AND I WAS SWIMMING BACK TO THE BOAT

THROUGH A POOL OF MY OWN BLOOD.

THE GUYS IN THE SAFETY BOAT GUNNED IT OVER TOWARDS ME.

THEY GOT TO ME BEFORE THE SHARK COULD COME BACK

OR ANOTHER SHARK INTERCEDED.

THEY KEPT ME ALIVE LONG ENOUGH FOR THE PARAMEDICS TO TURN UP

AND GET ME INTO EMERGENCY SURGERY.

I ENDED UP IN HOSPITAL FOR NINE WEEKS.

THE SHARK HAD REMOVED MY ENTIRE HAMSTRING AND MOST OF THE NERVE,

SO NOT ONLY COULD I NOT FEEL MY LEG --

I COULDN'T MOVE IT, EITHER.

AND SO THE SURGEON CAME IN AND BROKE IT DOWN FOR ME

AND EXPLAINED THAT I COULD KEEP IT,

BUT IT WOULD BE FUNDAMENTALLY USELESS FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE.

SO I DECIDED THEN AND THERE TO HAVE THE LEG TAKEN OFF,

WHICH WAS A VERY SCARY DECISION,

BUT COMING THAT CLOSE TO DEATH --

IT TAUGHT ME THAT DEATH IS NOT SOMETHING TO BE AFRAID OF,

BUT GOING TO YOUR DEATHBED WITH REGRETS -- THAT'S WORTH FEAR.

I ENDED UP GETTING OUT OF HOSPITAL AFTER NINE WEEKS

AND GOING STRAIGHT INTO A TRAINING REGIME

THAT I PLANNED OUT MYSELF.

I WENT BACK INTO THE OCEAN

TO TRY AND SURF ON ONE LEG AFTER THREE MONTHS,

AND THEN I WENT BACK TO FULL-TIME SERVICE

WITH THE NAVY DIVERS AFTER SIX MONTHS.

I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO FILM WITH "60 MINUTES"

IN FIJI THE YEAR AFTER THE SHARK ATTACK,

AND THEY TOOK ME OUT THERE TO FACE THE ANIMAL

THAT NEARLY KILLED ME AND CHANGED MY LIFE.

AND, SO, I DOVE WITH THE BULL SHARKS.

THERE WAS ABOUT 30 BULL SHARKS.

AND RIGHT AT THE END, NOT ONLY DID I DIVE WITH THEM --

I ENDED UP HAND-FEEDING ONE.

AND THAT CHANGED MY WHOLE PERSPECTIVE ON SHARKS.

I REALIZED THAT THEY WEREN'T THIS MALICIOUS,

MAN-EATING MONSTER

THAT THE MEDIA MIGHT PORTRAY THEM AS --

THEY'RE JUST SHARKS IN THE OCEAN DOING SHARKY STUFF.

AND THAT'S WHY WE NEED TO PROTECT THEM,

PROTECT THEIR ENVIRONMENT,

HELP CONSERVATION EFFORTS TO SAVE THESE AMAZING ANIMALS

BECAUSE THEY ARE BEING SLAUGHTERED

IN THE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS.

IT HELPS TO PROTECT THE SHARKS TO PROTECT US.

NOW, ALL OF THIS ISN'T TO SAY THAT WE SHOULDN'T BE PREPARED

IN THE EVENT OF A SHARK ENCOUNTER.

SO, HERE'S FIVE WAYS TO KEEP YOURSELF SAFE.

ONE -- TRY NOT TO SWIM IN MURKY WATER,

PARTICULARLY ABOUND RIVER MOUTHS AND ESTUARIES,

BECAUSE SHARKS LIKE TO HUNT THERE.

TWO -- SIMILARLY, SWIMMING AT DAWN AND DUSK --

THAT COMES WITH A HIGHER RISK, SO TRY NOT TO DO IT.

THREE -- BE AWARE OF ANNUAL BAIT RUNS AND MIGRATION EVENTS.

EVERY YEAR ON THE EAST COAST, PEOPLE ARE BIT BECAUSE THEY SWIM

RIGHT INTO THE MIDDLE OF A FEEDING EVENT,

AND THAT COULD HAVE EASILY BEEN AVOIDED

BY SPEAKING TO A LIFEGUARD OR BEING AWARE OF THE SEASON.

FOUR -- IF YOU'RE DIVING OR SNORKELING

AND YOU GET TO SEE A SHARK, YOU'RE PRETTY LUCKY,

BUT MAINTAIN EYE CONTACT AND SWIM TOWARDS IT

IF IT LOOKS TOO INTERESTED IN YOU.

YOU SEE, PREY FLEES, AND PREDATORS APPROACH.

AND, FIVE -- IF YOU ARE UNLUCKY ENOUGH TO BE ATTACKED,

GO FOR THE EYES AND SNOUT.

THEY'RE VERY SENSITIVE, AND, OFTEN, A FEW GOOD HITS

WILL DETER THE SHARK FROM CONTINUING ITS ATTACK.

STICK WITH US ALL SHARK WEEK LONG,

AS WE CONTINUE TO BRING YOU THE MOST JAW-DROPPING

DISCOVERIES IN SHARK.

IN THE NEXT EPISODE OF THE "DAILY BITE,"

SHARK SUPERPOWERS.