Shark experts have identified potential species responsible for several recent, severe shark attacks on children in U.S. waters, often occurring just feet from shore. A team of marine biologists reviewed footage and evidence from four Florida incidents where children were attacked by unidentified sharks, with three of the victims losing limbs. The findings were presented during a Shark Week special on the Discovery Channel.
Marine biologist Tom Hird noted that sharks strike quickly, making identification challenging. The Florida Museum of Natural History's International Shark Attack File recorded 25 confirmed shark attacks in U.S. waters last year, with 15 involving unidentifiable species.
One case examined involved 10-year-old Jameson Reeder, who lost his right leg in August 2022 off the Florida Keys. While filming a turtle in shallow water, a shark attacked him from behind. Analysis of video footage from the incident revealed a tooth fragment, believed to be from the attacker. Experts suggested it could belong to a bull shark or a tiger shark due to its slightly irregular edge. A glimpse of a large tail fin indicated a shark at least ten feet long. Shark expert Rosie Moore and Kinga Philipps identified the attacker as a bull shark based on a telltale fin indent.
Bull sharks are considered ambush predators and are frequently implicated in shark attacks globally, with ten incidents attributed to them in 2026 alone, according to the Global Shark Attack File.
Another serious attack occurred in June 2024 when 15-year-old Lulu Gribbin was diving for sand dollars near Seacrest Beach, Florida. She lost her left hand and right leg in an attack that caused her to lose a significant amount of blood. While bystanders initially suspected a tiger shark due to increased sightings of the species in the area, experts pointed to multiple reports of bull shark activity near Seacrest Beach prior to Gribbin's attack. Evidence, including video footage of a bull shark attacking a boat hours before Gribbin was bitten, led experts to conclude a bull shark was responsible.
In June 2025, 9-year-old Leah Lendel had her right hand severed by a shark while in shallow water at Boca Grande, Florida. Her hand was successfully reattached. Eyewitnesses described the shark as paddle-board-shaped with a round head and estimated its length at seven to eight feet. These characteristics, along with its pursuit of the child in shallow, territorial waters, led experts to believe it was another bull shark attack.
In contrast, a different species is suspected in the September 2021 attack on 16-year-old Doyle Nielsen in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, known as the 'shark attack capital of the world.' Nielsen was surfing when a fast-moving shark bit his right arm, requiring nine stitches. Video analysis of the attack, which showed the shark leaping and twisting in the air, led Hird to identify the species as a spinner shark. Spinner sharks, which can grow up to eight feet, are known for their distinctive spinning leaps when hunting prey.
Experts emphasized the importance of sharks as apex predators crucial to maintaining the balance of ocean ecosystems, despite the dangers they pose to humans.