This is more likely to happen when deliberately fishing for sharks. Some shark species such as makos have been recorded mouthing outboard motors after following a chum trail. Lemon sharks are also quite well known for biting boats towards the end of a fight. While these two interactions occur less often when the focus is finfish, the consequences of a shark damaging a vessel are far greater as the vessel becomes smaller (i.e. kayaks, inflatable vessels). Numerous studies have shown that sharks can hear, and respond to low frequency sounds like those generated by boat engines, and are actively attracted to pulsed sounds below 0.8kHz (Nelson and Gruber 1963; Nelson 1967; Myrberg et al. 1969, 1972; Nelson and Johnson 1972; Corwin 1981; Myrberg 2001; Chapuis 2017). This would be best minimised by reducing the numbers of ways sharks might be attracted to the vessel e.g. Avoid berleying heavily; avoid hanging fish over the side of the vessel; if a fish is bled or cleaned alongside the vessel, make sure to move off; avoid fishing in areas known for shark depredation.
