Do sharks crave human blood?

A man in Magsingal, Ilocos Sur, had his arm severed after he was allegedly bitten by a shark.

On “24 Oras” Friday, Ruben Unabia said that when he caught a blue marlin, he didn’t notice that a shark was approaching. The shark suddenly attacked him and bit his arm.

Authorities, however, were not buying his story, while experts said sharks were not attracted to human blood.

As reported on #KuyaKimAnoNa, an experiment conducted by engineer and YouTuber Mark Rober showed that sharks preferred fish over humans.

In the experiment, he placed both human and fish blood in the water to see where the sharks would go. The test revealed that the sharks went near the human blood only eight times while they approached the fish blood 134 times.

Marine biologist Dr. AA Yaptinchay also said sharks could detect scents such as the blood of a dying fish, while other species had specific preys and knew what these smelled like.

“Hindi naman nasa diet ng pating ang tao,” said Yaptinchay. “Hindi niya actively hahanapin ang tao para kainin ito or i-attack.”

But while sharks rarely attack humans, these instances happen because sharks are color blind and mistake humans for seals, which are part of their diet, as explained by Kuya Kim.

Meanwhile, the local police doubted Ruben’s arm was bitten off by a shark.

PNP Magsingal police executive MSgt. Archie Anipot said there were holes on the boat used and burns were seen on Ruben’s right side, while his left arm had wounds that looked like these were caused by explosions.

However, Ruben insists on his version of the story. “Walang ibang ano sir, pating talaga ’yung kumagat.” – RC, GMA News