Shark Attacks in Scotland

The Global Shark Attack File records 8 shark attacks in Scotland between 1864 and 2012. Of those, 0 were fatal (0.0%). The species most often involved is the basking shark.

Total recorded

Fatal

Fatality rate

0.0%

Global avg 21.1%

Years covered

1864–2012

Recorded incidents by year

Peak 3 (1937)Avg 1.3

186420092012

6 years of data, 1864–2012

Shark attacks in Scotland per year, 1864–2012
Year	Attacks
1864	1
1937	3
2008	1
2009	1
2011	1
2012	1

Species most often involved in Scotland

Species	Recorded incidents
Basking shark	4
Angel shark	1
Porbeagle shark	1
8' to	1
3' shark	1

Counts based on the species field in the Global Shark Attack File. Species identification in incident reports is not always reliable.

Activities most associated with incidents

Fishing2
Diving1
Shark fishing1
Surfing1
Pleasure boating1

Recent recorded incidents in Scotland

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many shark attacks have been recorded in Scotland?

The Global Shark Attack File records 8 shark attacks in Scotland, of which 0 were fatal.

What is the shark attack fatality rate in Scotland?

0.0% of recorded shark attacks in Scotland are fatal, compared with a global average of 21.1%.

Which shark species are most often involved in attacks in Scotland?

Based on incident records, the species most frequently identified in Scotland attacks are Basking shark, Angel shark, Porbeagle shark.

What activities are most associated with shark attacks in Scotland?

Fishing accounts for the largest share of recorded incidents in Scotland, with 2 cases logged.

Where does this shark attack data come from?

All figures are derived from the Global Shark Attack File (GSAF), a non-profit database of shark-human incident records. Shark Data Lab cleans, geocodes, and aggregates the GSAF dataset for analysis.