Which museum maintains the International Shark Attack File?

The museum that maintains the International Shark Attack File is the Florida Museum of Natural History.

The file is a long-running scientific database documenting shark attacks and related circumstances worldwide. It is housed at the Florida Museum of Natural History at the University of Florida, where researchers preserve, expand, and analyze records rather than simply compiling sensational news reports. Case files can include information such as medical findings, photographs, witness accounts, and details about the person’s activity in the water.

The project began in June 1958, when the U.S. Office of Naval Research formed a Shark Research Panel to investigate shark attacks and improve understanding of risks to Navy personnel. Its custodianship later moved through the Mote Marine Laboratory and the University of Rhode Island before reaching the Florida museum in the 1980s.

A common mix-up is to confuse the file’s Florida home with institutions that study natural history or marine animals elsewhere. The Australian Museum, London’s Natural History Museum, and the Smithsonian may conduct relevant research, but they are not the institution named in this question.