Woman Attacked by a Juvenile White Shark in California
On Friday, a woman was attacked by a juvenile white shark in Del Mar, California. The 50-year-old woman, Lyn Jutronich, was swimming with a male companion past the surf line when the incident happened. The juvenile shark bit the woman on her leg around ten in the morning.
The juvenile great white shark bit Lyn, shook its head, and let her go. According to the swimmer, it was like a dog jerking its head. Jutronich informed her swimming partner David that she was bit and that they had to go back to shore. The pair kept calm and swam back to the shore, where Jutronich got help.
Once at the shore, they informed the lifeguard about the incident. After assessing her leg, she was told that she would be okay and that no artery was punctured. Jutronich was relieved to hear the news, as she was taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla to recover.
Lifeguard Chief Jon Elderbrock said it is rare to see a juvenile white shark in the area. He also praised the pair for swimming and sticking together while in the water. According to Jutronich, she swims in the area and does a one-mile lap at least 2-3 times a week. She is an avid swimmer but will wait to recover before going back into the water. She is left with shark teeth wounds on her leg, the biggest being 8 centimeters long and 2-3 centimeters deep.
A 2021 study in Australia shows that juvenile white sharks are responsible for most great white attacks. They are either fully color blind or have limited color perception. This makes it hard for them to differentiate between seals, humans, and walruses. Let’s be glad that we don’t taste as good as seals.
