Do Barracudas Attack Swimmers Wearing Shiny Objects?
The myth that wearing anything shiny, like jewelry, while swimming tropical seas might precipitate attacks by great barracuda, Sphyraena barracuda, was tested at San Salvador, the Bahamas, in January 2007. Shiny and dull objects, moving and motionless, were displayed by hanging them from a pole 8 ft from the observer. While many barracudas investigated the objects, none attacked them. One of two hypotheses may explain the result: 1) shiny objects do not stimulate barracuda attacks, or 2) the barracudas were deterred from attacking because the observer was so close to the objects.
