A tourist went viral for his reckless actions after an Instagram video circulated where he was seen swimming around the Tahitian waters in the presence of sharks. He wasn’t just casually doing his own thing; he was offering feedings by hand. It’s no surprise that he later got bitten on the arm by the hungry sea creatures.
The man was out on the lagoon with a travel group and the boat stopped to take in the sight of black-tipped reef sharks. Most of the tourists stayed on the boat, while this man decided to take a closer look at the sharks. He was determined to greet the apex predators with some food and was quickly outnumbered as seven sharks and a ray gathered around him.
In the video, the man was seen in chest-high water holding onto food in one hand. The clip fasts forward to him back on the boat with a hand injury. The feeding hand faced a bloody predicament as he had to wrap a towel around his right arm to contain the blood flow.
The assurance from people can be the starting point for future trust issues. The caption read: “Friendly shark they said…. 3 minutes later.”
It’s safe to assume that the man is probably scarred from the violent encounter. The shark bite cut the man’s arm “down to the bone twice.”
There was very little sympathy for the tourist in the comments section; people slammed the man’s stupidity for his careless move. “This man tried to hand feed some sharks and then was surprised he got bit. Sir. You could have just swam and been fine. Why did you bring food in? What spirit possessed you?” one viewer wrote.
Another person shamed the bold swimmer as the “most stupid person in the planet.”
Shark researcher Daryl McPhee explained hand feeding sharks is risky behavior yet it’s very common. “Unsurprisingly, it often leads to the person being bitten, often severely,” he said. “This has occurred in Egypt, Australia, the U.S., just to name a couple of countries.
“The decision to try and hand feed a shark is dangerous, and sharks can learn to associate people with an easy meal. Sharks are not companion animals. I am not sure too many people want to hand feed a wild bear, but hand feeding sharks seems to be a different story.”
If tourists wish to return home without any stitches, it’s best to avoid replicating this man’s behavior.
“Tourists are best advised to avoid it and certainly check their travel insurance as it may be null and void in the event of a bite occurring that could have been avoided,” he added.