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Contact: Kim Holland, 236-7410 fax: 236-7443	Air Date: June 11, 1998

UH Research Studies Tiger Sharks pt. 1 Few things will frighten a surfer like the thought of a shark lurking below. But University of Hawaii Marine Biologist Kim Holland says compared to other water hazards, sharks pose only a small risk to public safety. Holland says there are lots of sharks in the waters off Hawaii and lots of surfers. If it was normal for sharks to feed on humans, there'd be dozens of shark attacks each week. The fear of sharks is fed by a library of information on the mysterious creatures, most of which is a blend of popular assumptions and misconceptions. Very little hard data exists to explain their behavior. That makes it hard for public officials to know how to respond to the few shark attacks that happen. Holland has been trying to alleviate this problem by studying Hawaii's most common ocean assailants, tiger sharks. Listen to tomorrow's University Report to learn about his findings, I'm Tracy Orillo Donovan.

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