Florida man bitten by shark also survives being bitten by alligator

There have been several shark sightings off the US East Coast this year

A fisherman who survived being bitten by an alligator has now also survived being bitten by a shark.

Justin Stuller told Fox News that he'd been bitten while swimming in the Florida Keys.

"My family was swimming behind me," Mr Stuller said. "I saw a fish that was not doing so well in the water so I went to tuck it off and as I tucked the fish off, came to the surface and out of nowhere [the shark] blindsided me, grabbed me by the leg, kind of pushed me over and swam away."

He said the attack left "one big bite" that required 24 stitches to patch.

Prior to his encounter with the shark, Mr Stuller also earned an injury after trying to kill an alligator.

The man said he was on a hunting trip with some friends when the alligator they were hunting decided to fight back.

"The two guys I was with kind of got tied up in the ropes we were using and as I was pulling the alligator, kind of trying to just do it myself and get it over with, the alligator decided he wasn't ready and took a big clamp on my leg, then a little bigger clamp on my leg and shot back into the water," Mr Stuller said.

He said despite the injury, they still managed to hunt the alligator.

There have been several shark sightings along the US East Coast shorelines this year, including an incident in which a 63-year-old woman was killed in an attack.

Last month, Julie Dimperio Holowach, a former New York City fashion executive, was killed in Maine while she was swimming with her daughter after a shark attacked her.

She was the first recorded shark attack fatality in the state's history.

Officials believe the shark attacked Ms Holowach because she was wearing a black wetsuit, which may have made her appear like a seal to the shark.

Prior to her attack, there had been several seal sightings in the region, which may have attracted the sharks in from open waters.

Toby Daly-Engel, a shark biologist with the Florida Tech Shark Conservation, appeared on "Fox and Friends" to discuss the shark attacks, and explained that such attacks were "incredibly rare" and that actual fatalities resulting from the attacks was rarer still.