Murky water and migratory bait led to a shark bite Saturday morning in New Smyrna Beach, but the bather only suffered minor injuries, officials said.
The 10-year-old girl from Orlando was in waist-deep water when she felt something on her right ankle, Volusia County Beach Patrol Capt. Jack Driskell said.
"She had six or seven little puncture wounds, but she was already playing in the sand by the time we left," Driskell said, adding her parents were advised to take her to Bert Fish Medical Center as a precaution.
The bite was unusual in that it happened on the south end of the beach -- near 20th Street -- and not by the jetty, the captain said.
"The water is starting to warm up and it was murky, so the bait is migrating," Driskell said. "We didn't have a lot of rescues today, but the possibility of rip currents is there (and will be today) and that's the bigger risk."