The bull shark is an exception -- it often goes after larger prey. The sea's temperature is not constant or all that predictable. Great White Shark. There has never been a fatal attack from a lemon shark recorded in human history. As is the case with any large species of shark, you must house bull sharks in huge tanks with plenty of swimming space. Most species of sharks live in the oceans. That fact alone makes this one of the best known shark species. Why? The Global Shark Tracker map shows sharks swimming around the world – with live ‘pings’ informing you of their location! The bull shark typically possesses a massive body with a length of 7 to 12 feet. They will feed on just about anything, so getting them to eat is not difficult. The name "bull shark" comes from the shark's stocky shape (high body-width-to-length ratio), broad, flat snout, and aggressive, unpredictable behavior. View Larger Image Freshwater sharks like the bull shark live in lakes and rivers - but they would not survive a Canadian winter. Instead, pups are born live, just as with mammals, and already span two feet long at birth. Some sharks display behavioural thermoregulation, which refers to their choosing specific habitats or behaviours based solely on the water temperature. But bull sharks have special physiological adaptations that enable them to live in fresh water. Bull sharks mate during late summer and early autumn, often in freshwater or in the brackish water of river mouths. You’re very unlikely to encounter one during a trip to the beach. Because it swims where humans do -- close to shore. When you look at other species of sharks that are the same size you will see that this one is wider. This property becomes more pronounced as the bull shark ages. How Does The Bull Shark Thrive In Both Salt And Fresh Water? Including some of the fastest, rarest, largest and most highly migratory in the world! Bull shark facts Bull sharks usually live to 14-16 years. The two predators faced off just meters away from people fishing and children swimming. Bull sharks live in warm coastal waters in different areas of the world, including the Gulf of Mexico. Once in the lakes, these sharks are safe from any and all large predators, and they live it easy until it’s time for them to return to the sea. However, some of them are known to dwell in bodies of freshwater, like the bull shark which travels up to 4,000 Km up the Amazon River. Diet: Bull Sharks will eat almost anything including fish, other sharks and rays, turtles, birds, molluscs, crustaceans and dolphins. shares; Related Posts. The newly hatched sharks are birthed live. Known as the Carcharhinus Leucas in the scientific community, it has a stocky figure and a broad, flat snout. This is one of 43 shark species that can live in both seawater and freshwater. Females are even larger, reaching a length of 14 or more feet. A full grown male can be up to 11 or 12 feet in length and weigh well over 750 pounds. Adult life in fresh water is not ideal, as most of the shark's food lives in the sea. The size of your standard common shark, or elasmobranch, ranges from the four-foot-long spiny dogfish shark to the 40-foot whale shark -- and there are a lot of sizes in between. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/538474/facts-about-bull-sharks Bull Shark and Salt Water Croc". These are the animals that produce the largest and most dangerous incidents involving humans. LOCAL SHARKS At least 21 species live in British waters all year round. Bull sharks mainly eat bony fish and smaller sharks, including bull sharks. After gestating for 12 months, a bull shark may give birth to 1 to 13 live young. A bull shark's reproductive cycle begins at the end of the summer months when male and females start mating in shallow and low salinity river mouths. In some places, bull sharks in aquariums can live upwards of 20 or 25 years. They are viviparous, born live and free-swimming. Carcharhinus leucas, Bull shark, (Carcharhinidae) Carcharhinus limbatus, Blacktip shark, (Carcharhinidae) Carcharhinus longimanus, Oceanic whitetip shark, (Carcharhinidae) Carcharhinus melanopterus, Blacktip reef shark, (Carcharhinidae) !Carcharhinus obscurus, Dusky shark, (Carcharhinidae) Carcharhinus plumbeus, Sandbar shark, (Carcharhinidae) It commonly enters estuaries, bays, harbours, lagoons, and river mouths. Bull sharks are loners and only get together for mating purposes. Bull sharks average life span is about 27-28 years, but sometimes they live longer. None of these species are found in British waters. Bullhead sharks and bull sharks do not have much in common except the fact that they are sharks. Advertisement. Among the three species of shark that are known to most commonly attack humans, the bull shark gets the least amount of press. In Lake Nicaragua, there’ve been stories of sharks up to four feet long jumping up waterfalls like salmon do! In fact, we have over 40 species! Bull sharks do give live birth and can have as many as 13 baby bulls. But the average size of the bull sharks is usually 9 feet. The Bull shark likes to live in shallow coastal waters less than 100 feet deep (30 metres), but ranges from 3–450 feet deep (1–135 metres). 4. Contrary to popular belief, sharks do occur around the coasts of Britain. Females reach a length of 4 meters, males are smaller – their length does not exceed 2.5 m. The maximum documented weight of the caught bull shark was 316.5 kg.Body color is not striking – the gray back smoothly passing on the sides to the light belly. Despite the fact that they live in shallow waters, and grow up to 11 ft. long, they are not responsible for very many shark bites. But the bull shark aside, chances are if you're the big fish, you'll be safe from predators. What you may not know is the bull shark could actually be the most dangerous of them all. The young are about 70 cm (27.6 in) at birth. They feature grey color on the top and white on the belly so that they can blend into their surrounding both above and below them in the water. An example of this is rising to the top during the safer night hours to digest food faster using less energy. Only three sharks are considered to carry out unprovoked attacks on humans: the great white, tiger and bull. Advertisement . As opportunistic predators, they also eat terrestrial mammals, birds, turtles, crustaceans, echinoderms, and dolphins. Shark Image Gallery. I am not sure about bull sharks ever being spotted as far north as lake michigan however I wouldn't be surprised if they did. Females are typically larger than males, with an adult female bull shark measuring an average 7.9 ft long and weighing 290 lbs, whereas the slightly smaller adult male averages 7.4 ft and 210 lbs. Bull sharks are viviparous, and a female shark will have between four and 10 sharks per litter. Shark Image Gallery. Bull Sharks diving center, is located in Playa Del Carmen, one of the most prestigious places in the Riviera Maya, since is in the middle of everything. They have been found swimming hundreds and even thousands of miles into major rivers including the Mississippi river. Bull sharks are capable of living in both fresh water and salt water. Bull Shark Description. Where do White Sharks live? Tiger sharks have a cool nickname. However, bull sharks can live their entire lives in fresh water. While a bull shark is a large predator that grows up to 11 feet (3.5 m) or more, the bullhead shark is much smaller, usually getting no longer than about 5 feet (1.5 m). Bull sharks can leave the saltwater and move into freshwater by going through a complicated biological process. Advertisement The gestation period for bull sharks is 12 months, after which they give birth in fresh water because the pups are born with a low tolerance for salinity. When they do bite, it is because they’ve mistaken a human for food (like trying to grab a fish that a diver has caught), or something startled the shark. The mother bull sharks give birth in the mouth of the rivers and the shark pups head inland to the lakes. Costa Rica is known to have schools of bull sharks living in various areas, and can be seen by divers who like to live on the wild side. The Bull Shark – They’re everywhere you wouldn’t expect them to be! They can weigh anywhere from 90 – 230 kg. The average life span is 15 years but female bull sharks tend to live longer than male; Can survive in both fresh water and salty water. One thing is for sure; sharks migrate to find new sources of food and they can travel up to hundreds of miles to do that. They are a requiem shark; a class of warm water shark that bear live young. They can thrive in freshwater bodies, brackish water, or salt water. The Bull Shark is one of the big three that we’re concerned about in relation to shark attacks on humans, along with the White Shark and the Tiger Sharks. | SHARK WEEK - Duration: 0 ... All I Really Want to Do (Live on The Cher Show, 1975) - … Therefore, you will find the majority of younger bull sharks in freshwater while the older bulls frequent saltwater areas. Bull sharks have large, round, stocky bodies. Size: Adults can range from 2 to 3.5 metres in length and up to 230kg in weight. Unlike most sharks, bull sharks don’t lay eggs or rear their young. We are a CERTIFIED PADI DIVING CENTER S-24747, that loves to share our passion, always based on the highest safety standards, but never forgetting that diving is a lot of fun!! Lakes and rivers probably don’t come to mind when you think of sharks. The average female pregnancy cycle - gestation - runs for a time span of 10 to 12 months before she can bear the live young, and then typically producing a litter of three to ten pups. Along with their great length, bull sharks are extremely heavy. All the sharks listed have been tagged by OCEARCH, a non-profit research organisation set up by PhD students, looking to learn more about sharks and how to protect them. Behavior of the Bull Shark . Photo Source: Wikipedia.com ; This banner is an affiliate link to diving tours sold by LiveAboard.com. It is the only known shark species which is found in freshwater, and can spend long periods of time in such environments. This special adaptation allows them to ‘regulate’ themselves and live successfully in a broad range of water salinity. The size of a Bull Shark is very large with them being about 7.5 feet long to 11 feet long and weighing around 200 to 300 pounds. These sharks are usually solitary, but they sometimes feed as a group.