Man instantly surrounded by sharks after stepping off cruise boat

While on a live-aboard dive boat in the Galapagos Islands, one of the passengers couldn’t resist slipping over the edge to enjoy a swim in the clear, blue ocean. He was wearing a mask and snorkel, along with fins and he took his GoPro with him. He didn’t expect to be met immediately by a dozen or more very interested sharks. Sharks from a distance are a beautiful sight. Even close up, a shark or two on a swim can be welcome and fascinating. But a group of sharks surrounding a swimmer will test the nerves of even the most committed aquatic nature lover. Holding his camera between himself and the sharks, as much to provide a sense of reassurance as it was for capturing the footage, this swimmer found that they had no fear of him at all. They casually swam up to his camera and looked right into his face. They swam under him and all around, passing and then circling back to have a closer inspection.Show more

The slow, lazy swimming of the sharks is a sign of mild curiosity, not aggression and these sharks did not seem to regard the swimmer as food. Silky sharks have been known to be aggressive to divers on occasion and swimmers are well advised to leave the water if their behavior suggests that they are hungry or agitated. They will often approach strange creatures because full grown sharks like these have very few predators and nothing to fear. Silky sharks grow to a length of more than 8 feet and reach a weight of 400 pounds. They eat tuna, mackerel, and other large fish. Their hearing is extremely acute and they use it to locate other large marine animals that are feeding so that they can also locate the food source.

Like many shark species, their numbers are declining due to fishing and illegal harvesting for shark fins. Pollution and habitat destruction have also contributed to their decline.