Surfer bitten by a 2 meter shark in Galapagos Islands

Shark incident in Galapagos Island

Last Tuesday Diego Intriago, a surfer of 29 years, was bitten by a shark, which would measure about two meters, while practicing the sport near the shore of Playa Brava beach, in Tortuga Bay, Santa Cruz, Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands.

The shark bite left a substantial superficial wound, reported the Directorate of the Galapagos National Park (GNP), the director of Ecosystems, Danny Rueda, said the size of the shark is deducted by the wound which is of 40 cm with the type of the jaw that left Intriago marked in his left calf. Currently the surfer is out of danger, according to hospital reports of Puerto Ayora.

Rueda added that on the site that there are two species: shark and the black fin shark also known as the Galapagos shark. According to the wound it would be the latter that bit Intriago. Afterwards he said they are monitoring the area to identify the species that currently persists in the area.

The hypothesis holding the GNP, is that the shark and the surfer crossed each other on the shore and the lack of visibility on the site, along with the sand and the foam of the crashing waves, caused the animal to act on instinct and bit Intriago, because that is the way they defend.

Rueda said that under no circumstances it could be qualified as an attack, because these species are not aggressive to humans.