A Deadly Place to Swim!

The oceans were once considered the deadliest place to swim, but unbeknown to many swimmers lakes are also a deadly ground for sharks. The most notorious of all sharks is the Zambezi shark, better known as the Bull shark. Like the Great White and the Tiger shark, the Bull shark is one of the few sharks that will attack humans. Unlike the Great White or Tiger Shark, the Bull shark can tolerate fresh water.

Because the Bull shark survives in salt and fresh water, these sharks live in rivers and lakes around the world.

The Mississippi river is one of the main pathways the Bull sharks like to travel. They will travel the length of the river all the way up to Illinois. After Hurricane Katrina, many Bull sharks were seen in Lake Ponchartrain. Unlike most lakes in the United States, Lake Ponchartrain is a salt water lake. Even rarer than Lake Ponchartrain is Lake Michigan. Traveling through the Mississippi river and Illinois River, Bull sharks have even been spotted on the coast of Lake Michigan after taking the leg of a swimmer.

The encounter in Lake Michigan happened back in 1955, but more surprising is Lake Nicaragua. Fearbeneath.com posted that, in 1970, researchers believed the bull sharks were of different species. Researchers tagged the sharks in the lake, later finding the same sharks back in the ocean. It was finally discovered the bull sharks were jumping the rapids, much like the salmon.

Bull Sharks are dangerous to humans. Aggressive by nature, they usually can be found in high populated areas. Between 1670-2001, sharkattackphotos.com graphed that 754 attacks were just in the United States. The United States had 40% of the attacks, the highest number, with Florida having the most attacks at 474. ISAF reported that the Bull shark were involved in 158 attacks from 1580-2008.

What makes the Bull sharks the scariest of all sharks is they can survive in fresh water. Because they are found in varies lakes and rivers, it makes swimming in them just as dangerous as swimming in the ocean. Unlike many sharks, the Bull shark is not endangered. Even with hunting the savage creatures their numbers remain the same. Because of this, it makes it more frightening to consider how many of those deadly beast are hidden in the lakes and rivers of the United States? Is no place left to swim?