Shark Rips Off Fisherman's Head In Mexico, Experts Call It Rare Attack

A great white shark recently ripped off the head of a fisherman in Mexico, in an incident that made headlines across the world because of the unusual nature of the attack. Experts have now claimed that the man was likely a victim of "mistaken identity". The incident took place on January 5 in Tobari Bay along the Gulf of California off Mexico when Manuel Lopez was diving in the sea to collect mollusks wearing a scuba-like apparatus, according to Live Science.

"What happened is unfortunate, but we have to work, because that's what we live on," Jose Luis Reina, president of a local fishing cooperative in the area, told Mexican news outlet El Imparcial.

"There are many colleagues who avoid going out, but there are many others who run the risk," he said.

Two other fishermen, who were on a support boat when the attack happened, saw the shark "ripping off his head and biting both shoulders", according to the Live Science report.

Greg Skomal, a marine biologist at the University of Boston, told the outlet that he has never heard of such an attack.

"As rare as shark bites on humans can be, decapitation is even more rare," added Chris Lowe, the director of the Shark Lab at California State University in Long Beach.

The experts said that sharks rarely bite people and when they do, they typically grab the legs after mistaking it for prey, such as seal. But as soon as they realise it's a person, they leave him.

"If sharks are excited and hungry, they make rash decisions and bite what they consider a potential prey item," Gavin Naylor, a marine biologist at the University of Florida, said pointing to this being a case of mistaken identity.

The incident was the first shark attack of 2023, said Newsweek, adding that a diver was killed by a shark in the same region last year.

Great white sharks are most commonly seen in the Gulf of California between December and January, when pregnant females visit the area.