They are there and so when you visit or live there you should know this. So, my point of view is to snorkel in more protected places that aren't very deep usually over 10 or 15 feet deep. Sharks that are big enough to succeed in attacking a human usually won't want to be in water that is less than 20 feet deep for a variety of reasons. (Of course there are always exceptions but this is generally true. My rule is that I like to get out of the water if I'm swimming with sharks that are bigger than I am (and I'm 6 foot 5 inches tall. Things smaller than you in the ocean too tend to be afraid of you too. But never corner anything or make it feel threatened because if you do almost anything might attack you. Also, parrotfish eat coral so they can just as easily bite off a finger if you make them feel threatened. Also, don't feed the fish frozen peas and stuff like that because that is how tourists lose fingers when 100 tropical fish show up for a feeding frenzy. So, these are some of the things to know.
Also, if a really big shark comes along you are usually safer on the bottom than on the surface because their favorite food is seals (Sea Lions) which is exactly what a surfboard looks like to them looking up from underneath up at the surface. However, if you see a great white shark and you are not in a good boat you might want to haul out of the water onto the beach.
So, if you are surfing or snorkeling be sure to be looking around for a shark fin part of the time, especially if you are in Hawaii where there are lots of Great White Sharks (the Same with Australia on the Great Barrier Reef). But, if you understand their habits you usually can be okay doing all sorts of things as long as you realize what risks you are taking at the time.
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