Sharks Caught On Video Swimming Up To Florida Tourists

Tourists were surprised by several sharks swimming in shallow water off the coast of Florida Monday.

Beachgoers on Florida’s Okaloosa Island got some unexpected visitors Monday while swimming off the coast. Several sharks appeared in the shallow water that afternoon — and one tourist caught it all on video.

Stephanie Stevens Adcock was visiting from Texarkana, Arkansas and was on the beach with her family at around 3 p.m. local time Monday when she said seven sharks appeared in the shallows. The sharks were all between five to seven feet long and she said it looked as though two of them were fighting.

Read: Shark Attacks Mother Of 3, Bites Off Arm While Snorkeling In Bahamas

Adcock posted a video of the sharks on Facebook Tuesday, showing three of the seven sharks. People on the beach can be seen in the footage wading towards the sharks to get a closer look. By Wednesday afternoon, the video had 2.8 million views.

“My son’s friend was snorkeling way out there and we were yelling for him to come in,” Adcock told the Northwest Florida Daily News Tuesday. “Everyone else had made it out of the water and he was unaware of what was going on! My husband ran out there to help him.”

Adcock said the sharks were about two feet from the shore and stayed there for around 10 minutes. She called the situation “amazing to witness.” It wasn’t clear what kind of sharks they were, though some guessed they were either reef sharks or bull sharks.

Sharks are not an uncommon sight in Florida. Of the 81 unprovoked shark attacks throughout the United States in 2016, 32 occurred in the Sunshine State, according to the International Shark Attack File. But shark sightings have become more common in other areas in recent years as well. Experts studying Cape Cod said the vacation hot spot expected to see up to 150 great white sharks roaming the waters this summer.

“They have multiplied in numbers exponentially since I became chief,” Orleans fire chief Anthony Pike told the Boston Herald Monday. “Great white sharks comprise about 30 percent of my daily work right now and I never, ever thought that would be a thing.”

Southern California has seen an uptick as well in recent days and experts agree the increased sightings are a good sign.

Read: Great White Shark Numbers Increasing Off Cape Cod Coast

“I attribute a lot of that to better conservation,” marine biologist Dr. Chris Lowe told CBS News in May. “We protected white sharks 20 years ago in California. Their food source has come back and in many ways, our coastal oceans are getting healthier.”

Experts say that most shark attacks are a case of “mistaken identity,” where a shark misidentifies a human as prey. Increased shark and human contact means a greater likelihood of such cases. To prevent that, swimmers are advised not to swim near seals, to stay out of the water when sharks are hunting at dusk and avoid wearing glittering objects that could be mistaken for fish scales.

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