‘It’s part of nature’: What you should know about shark that bit Hilton Head lifeguard
The shark that bit a lifeguard off Hilton Head Tuesday morning likely was a blacktip, according to Lowcountry shark expert Chip Michalove.
The lifeguard was bitten near the Barrington Arms Villas complex at Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort while doing a routine check for currents around 11:45 a.m., Shore Beach Services operations manager Mike Wagner said.
“[He’s] currently okay,” Wagner said.
The lifeguard had “multiple lacerations” as a result of the bite but was stable while first responders worked to transport him, according to Hilton Head Island Fire and Rescue spokesperson Joheida Fister. The lifeguard was taken to a hospital in Savannah with non-life-threatening injuries.
The beach was closed for about an hour and a half, Wagner said.
This isn’t the first report of a shark bite this summer. Wyatt Bowman, a 26-year-old swimmer, was bitten in May off Hilton Head’s Burkes Beach. Bowman told The Island Packet at the time that the shark was about five feet long.
Bowman had a 3-inch gash close to his Achilles tendon, but he was expected to make a full recovery.
What does the expert say?
Chip Michalove, Hilton Head’s “shark whisperer” and boat captain with Outcast Sport Fishing, said that the lifeguard and swimmer’s injuries are consistent with that of blacktip sharks.
“I’ve yet to see anybody lose an entire limb that is consistent with a blacktip bite,” Michalove said. “If people were losing arms and legs, then it is a possibility it could be a bull, but it sounds to me like these attacks have been tissue wounds.”
Blacktips come closer to shore, according to Michalove, because they are following schools of menhaden that migrate to shallow waters as the water temperatures rise.
“Those blacktips go ripping through these schools of menhaden,” Michalove said. “They’re competitive. They are somewhat aggressive, and, when they’re in numbers like they are this time of year, it’s every man for themselves ... Unfortunately, they mistake a person, a foot, a hand, a leg, for a possible meal.”
Michalove said these sharks typically hunt menhaden in 20-30 feet of water, and it is harder for them to see as they get closer to shore.
“When you’re only in 2-5 feet of water, that water is kind of murky,” he said. “They bite first and ask questions later.”
Michalove said his best advice to swimmers is to pay attention to bird activity and shrimp boats pulling nets nearby.
“When you see pelicans dive-bombing, I’d steer clear of the water,” Michalove said. “Pelicans are going after menhaden.”
The chances of being bitten off Beaufort County’s beaches are minimal.
“It’s a part of nature,” Michalove said. “If you play with the beehive, you’re going to get stung on occasion, and fortunately for our area it isn’t fatal.”
This story was originally published August 4, 2021 at 2:41 PM.
