U.S. Shark Injuries vs. Bite Injuries in NYC

A Comparison with the Number of Biting Injuries Occurring Annually in New York City

Biting Injury 1981 1984 1985 1986 1987
Dog bites human 12,656 10,593 9,809 8,870 8,064
Human bites human * 1,589 1,591 1,572 1,587
Cat bites human 826 * 879 * 802
Wild rat bites human 60 * 311 * 291
Squirrel bites human 81 * * * 95
Hamster bites human 52 * * * *
Rabbit bites human 37 * * * *
Raccoon bites human 18 * * * 11
Horse bites human 18 * * * *
Gerbil bites human 17 * 12 * *
Lab rat bites human 15 * 9 * *
Monkey bites human 11 * * * *
Snake bites human 8 * 4 * *
Bat bites human 7 * 4 * *
Ferret bites human 5 * 5 * 7
Guinea pig bites human 5 * * * *
Parrots bite human 5 * 6 * *
Blue Jay bites human 2 * * * *
Spider bites human * * 2 * *
Skunk bites human 1 * * * 3
Parakeet bites human 1 * * * *
Opossum bites human 1 * * * *
Sea lion bites human 1 * * * *
Lion bites human 1 * * * *
Ocelot bites human 1 * * * *
Lion fish stabs human 1 * * * *
Shark injuries in U.S.A. 12 14 12 6 13

* Information not available.

Source of New York City biting injury data: New York City Health Department statistics quoted by U.P.I. (1982), A.P. (1986) and Newsday (1988)

Source of shark attack data: International Shark Attack File, 3 February 1998.