A study suggests that wrapping a surfboard in very bright lights — like aquatic Christmas trees — could make the surfer less interesting to great white sharks.

Fixing LED strip lights to the bottom of surfboards could deter attacks by great white sharks, Australian scientists say. A study conducted in Mossel Bay, South Africa involved towing seal-shaped boards fitted with different configurations of lights behind a boat to see which attracted the most attention.

An Australian study indicates that a simple, relatively inexpensive light-based solution could reduce shark attacks on surfers.

Researchers found that striped LED lights on seal decoys deterred great white shark attacks by breaking up the decoy’s silhouette. This counterillumination approach could be applied to surfboards, providing a non-invasive shark deterrent.

New research has found that using lights on the bottom side of a surfboard or kayak could put great white sharks off

Experiments show that illuminating the underside of a decoy seal reduces attacks by great white sharks, revealing a possible strategy to protect surfers and swimmers

They are responsible for the majority of all shark attacks, and researchers were hoping to figure out why, and use it against them. The results of that study were published in the journal Current Biology.

Reports of shark attacks on surfers appear in the media quite regularly. Researchers have decided to tackle the issue. Scientists from Macquarie University in New South Wales have developed a simple but effective way to deter predators.

New LED camouflage can deter shark attacks, scientists say - Sharks less likely to interact as LED lights get brighter