MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Sharks next to Brazilian top beaches.

The catch of ten sharks in waters close to Buzios, one of Brazil's renowned international sea resorts, has caused deep concern among Rio do Janerio authorities.

Five were fished with longlines last Friday and another five the following day in the island of Ancora, six miles away from paradise Buzios.

Since French actress Brigitte Bardot made the seaside hit the world's press headlines in the fifties, Buzios has become quiet fashionable among Latinamerican tourists and Rio do Janerio's residents who prefer to flee from overcrowded Copacabana and Leblon beaches.

To make things worse the ten "flat head" sharks are the same specie which has caused panic in Pernambuco state beaches. In the northeast of Brazil, Pernambuco has suffered six shark attacks so far this year, totalling 46 since 1992, according to official reports.

The 46 attacks caused 14 deaths and 32 amputations making Pernambuco second only to Florida as one of the places more liable to suffer shark attacks.

The ten caught near Buzios are almost two meters long and weigh 200 kilos each.

Biologist Paulo de Tarso said that the flat head shark is an aggressive species particularly in areas with swimmers however "the ten sharks were caught six miles from the actual beach".