Sharks prefer attacking their prey from behind and can tell when a human has his back to the mammal.
A line from Santana's "Black Magic Woman" holds so true for sharks. "Don't Turn Your Back On Me" is probably what every shark is telling its prey, or not!
The mammal prefers attacking its prey from behind and can tell when a human has its back turned towards the sea creature, according to a new press statement released by researchers from the University of West Florida.
The findings of the study reveal that sharks are very good at sensing body orientation, giving them the edge in blind siding their prey, a hunting technique they prefer while looking for food.
All predators have the innate ability to correctly perceive the body size, form and movements of its prey and the same holds true for sharks. Erich Ritter of the Shark Research Institute and Raid Amin of the University of West Florida conducted this study to better understand the hunting approach sharks adopted to successfully catch their prey. They conducted a test to gauge whether the mammal adopted its hunting technique based on measurable preference like body orientation when approaching a person or they chose a certain swim pattern when close to a human being.
In one experiment, a diver in full scuba gear was positioned on the sea floor kneeling, looking forward. In another, two divers kneeled back-to-back to eliminate the blind area. To ensure the safety of the divers, researchers used reef shark frequently encountered by divers in the Bahamas for the experiment.
They observed that in both cases, sharks preferred to swim toward the subject outside the person's field of vision, confirming that sharks can identify human body orientation. However, further studies need to be conducted to understand the mechanisms used and factors affecting the nearest distance of approach.
"Our discovery that a shark can differentiate between the field of vision and non-field of vision of a human being, or comprehend human body orientation, raises intriguing questions not only about shark behavior, but also about the mental capacity of sharks," said Ritter.
"The more research is conducted on how sharks sense and interpret humans, the better we will understand how to cope with them in their habitat," added Amin.
The same hunting technique is also adopted by tigers and pumas that prefer attacking animals from behind. However, no studies have been conducted yet to determine whether they are also sensitive to body orientation.
