Sharks in Hong Kong

There are 17 shark species in the waters of Hong Kong. However, most of them are at risk due to overfishing and indiscriminate killings out of fear.

Sharks around Hong Kong include the whale shark, the milk shark, and the slender bamboo shark.

Sharks in Hong Kong

List of the Different Types of Sharks in Hong Kong

Species Maximum Size Aggressiveness
Blacktip Reef Shark 3-4 feet Moderately aggressive (if provoked)
Blacktip Shark 5-8 feet Moderately aggressive
Bull Shark 7-12 feet Highly aggressive
Gray Reef Shark 4-5 feet Highly aggressive
Great Hammerhead Shark 15-20 feet Highly aggressive
Grey Sharpnose Shark 2.3-2.9 feet Not aggressive
Hardnose Shark 3.5-3.6 feet Not aggressive
Milk Shark 3.6-3.7 feet Not aggressive
Scalloped Hammerhead Shark 9-12 feet Moderately aggressive
Silky Shark 7-10 feet Highly aggressive
Slender Bamboo Shark 2.1-2.2 feet Not aggressive
Spadenose Shark 2-2.4 feet Not aggressive
Spot-tail Shark 5-5.3 feet Not aggressive
Tiger Shark 10-14 feet Highly aggressive
Whale Shark 18-32 feet Not aggressive
White Spotted Bamboo Shark 2-3 feet Not aggressive
Whitecheek Shark 3.2-3.3 feet Not aggressive

FAQs

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Notably, between 1991 and 1995, there were seven shark attacks on humans. This led to a “Great Shark Hunt”, where people would go out in boats with chickens on both sides to attract sharks towards them to kill them. However, there haven’t been any fatal attacks on Hong Kong beaches in over 25 years.

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As shark finning is sadly a common practice in Hong Kong, over two-thirds of the sharks sold nowadays face extinction. Shark finning is becoming less popular, though.

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Yes, there are places where you can go swimming with whale sharks in Hong Kong.

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There haven’t been any reports of great white sharks swimming in Hong Kong waters.

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