What Is The Fascination With Bull Sharks?
Most people associate sharks with the ocean. But Bull Sharks are amazing creatures in that they can thrive in saltwater, river systems and lakes. And their diet is not limited to other fish in the ocean. They have also dined out on cats, dogs, cattle and not to mention the odd human. And their hunting and feeding territory is not limited to the ocean or freshwaer ways that are close to the ocean. 4000 kilometres inland on the Mississippi River in Illonois a bull shark was captured!
With higher than average levels of testosterone the bull shark is an agressive fish. This is one of the reasons why they say the bulls shark is responsible for more fatalities than any other shark. That and the fact they can thrive in freshwater and like shallow warm waters. This opens up the number of prey they can feed on.
What is the largest Bull Shark ever caught?
In 2018 a fisherman in Cairns using a rod and reel landed a 347kg Bull Shark and is recognised by the International Game Fish Association as the largest landed by hand. The longest recordded bull shark is female that measured exactly 4.0 metres of 13 feet 1 inch. The average sized bull shark is around 3.4 metres.
What other names does a bull shark have?
Apart from the scientific name Carcharhinus leucas bull sharks are also known as the Zambezi shark, Lake Nicaragua shark, Ganges River shark, Fitzroy Creek whaler,van Rooyen's shark and Swan River whaler. The name bull is derived from the sharks stocky build.
Do Bull Sharks Prefer Warmer Water?
The simple answer is yes. They like tropical shallow shorelines in high population areas. Research discovered that when water temperatures rose above 23.2 degrees the number of catches increased. In the winter months bulls sharks will head to warmenr waters.
Bull Sharks Are Tagged
In the pursuit of marine science a large number of bull sharks are tagged for research purposes. Recently in Sydney a large bull shark was captured in shallow waters and returned to deeper waters. This was the second time this particular shark was caught.
