When you think of Rhodes, what comes to mind is likely great weather, beautiful beaches and clear waters of the Aegean Sea. But do you dare think further? What dwells in those waters? Should you worry about sharks when lounging on a beach in Rhodes? Let’s cover that today.
Are there sharks in Rhodes?
Yes, of course there are. The Aegean Sea, so where Rhodes is, is a marginal sea of the larger Mediterranean Sea. In that sea, over 40 shark species are present. Same goes for the waters around Rhodes.
The majority of these species, however, are not dangerous to humans whatsoever. Nearly all sharks live peacefully in the depths of the sea, feeding on smaller fish and plankton. As much as this is a thing that we have to unlearn from pop culture, we’re just not that interesting for the sharks. Those which do appear near the surface often end up in fishnets – fish oil has to come from somewhere, you know. The International Fund for Animal Welfare suggests that we kill about 100 000 000 sharks a year total.
And how many people do sharks kill?
Do sharks attack people in Rhodes?
In the last 180 years, there have been around 15-18 recorded shark attacks in Greece (depending on the source: planetdeadly, Christos Taklis’ study, sharkutopia), not all of which were fatal. Please, remember, that this is for a country which gets about 30 millions of tourists every year. Most of these happened around Corfu, so on the other side of Greece. As such, the actual likelihood of a shark attack is microscopic. Many victims of shark attacks are also divers and swimmers further away from the coast than an average tourist.
As such, if you’d just like to spend a nice relaxing day on the beach, don’t fret – sharks are probably relaxing at home too. Be mindful of sea urchins and jellyfish, though, as these have an actually realistic chance of being on a beach in Rhodes. Otherwise, Rhodes is a very safe place.
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