Shark bite-resistant wetsuits could reduce the severity of puncture wounds and blood loss caused by shark bites, an Australian study has found.
Researchers from Flinders University and the New South Wales primary industries department tested the level of protection provided by four modern “bite-resistant” wetsuit materials compared with standard neoprene, to bites from wild white and tiger sharks.
The results, published in Wildlife Research, show that while internal and crushing injuries could still occur, bite-resistant materials did reduce the severity of damage.
Study co-author Prof Charlie Huveneers, who leads the Southern Shark Ecology Group at Flinders University, said while bite-resistant materials don’t eliminate all risk, “they can reduce blood loss and trauma from major lacerations and punctures, potentially saving lives”.
Although rare, shark bites can have devastating consequences, such as the recent death of surfer Mercury Psillakis, near Dee Why beach in Sydney.
In the last 10 years, an average of 20 people have been injured and 2.8 people killed in shark incidents annually, according to the Australian Shark Incident Database. Severe injuries and fatalities often occur due to haemorrhaging and blood loss due to injuries and lacerations to major arteries, or limb or tissue loss.
The wetsuit materials tested included two already used in commercially available wetsuits, and two materials in development. The designs often incorporate strong, but lightweight materials such as Kevlar or fibres used in sailing rope.
“A lot of the teeth on white sharks and tiger sharks … have these really sharp, pointed edges and serrated edges, and that’s where a lot of the damage from bites occurs,” said Flinders University co-author Dr Tom Clarke. “The material itself stops the tooth from puncturing through the material.”
“There’s still likely to be some crushing injuries and internal injuries that may occur if a bite does happen,” he said.
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The materials were tested in the wild – with white sharks in South Australia’s Spencer Gulf and tiger sharks off Norfolk Island, Queensland.
Researchers attracted sharks using burley and a tethered bait of locally sourced fish. Once a shark attempted to consume the bait, it was removed and replaced by a “bite package” – a board padded in foam and covered by wetsuit material – which was tethered to the vessel for recovery. The foam inside – ethylene and vinyl acetate – is commonly used in surgical training, and was chosen to closely resemble the density and texture of human tissue and flesh.
Bite damage from 84 white shark bites and 68 tiger shark bites was measured and categorised by severity – superficial, slight, substantial or critical.
The four materials tested – Aqua Armour, Shark Stop, ActionTX-S and Brewster – all reduced the amount of substantial and critical damage compared with standard wetsuit material.
“All bite-resistant materials decreased the area of bites that had critical damage, which is associated with larger punctures and lacerations,” Clarke said.
While governments have tended to focus on area-based shark management – from lethal measures like shark nets, to non-lethal options like drone surveillance and Smart drumlines – researchers say there is growing interest in the potential to add personal protections, like shark deterrents, education and bite-resistant wetsuits, as part of the prevention toolkit.
The conservation psychologist Dr Brianna Le Busque, from the University of South Australia, researches attitudes to sharks among surfers and the public.
Le Busque, who was not involved in the study, said while these measures weren’t a perfect solution, devices like shark shields (worn around the ankle), bite-resistant wetsuits and risk-based education, could be beneficial in giving people back a sense of control, in addition to broader government approaches.
“We know that when it comes to fear of sharks, lack of control is a really big factor in people being really afraid. And so by giving people these evidence-based mitigation strategies, that they can actually take control of, is really important, because it gives them that empowerment as well.”
