Bull Sharks May Commonly Occur In The Intracoastal & Connected Waterbodies

[RickI]

This may not be news to some on here but I thought it worth mentioning for the rest of us. Other than the odd published attack, I wasn't aware of bull sharks being in the Intracoastal and connected water bodies with much frequency. I thought perhaps around inlets at tide changes. It looks like I was wrong. I was speaking to a local fishing charter boat Captain who told me that catches of bull sharks close to shore and inlets go up in June and July. He also indicated he was aware of breeding activity in the Intracoastal by Deerfield Island Park ("Capone's Island"). Reading through the literature, it looks like Intracoastal breeding and occurrence of young bull sharks may be fairly common.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bull_shark

"Bull sharks mate during late summer and early autumn,[8] often in the brackish water of river mouths. After gestating for 12 months, a bull shark may give birth to four to ten live young.[8] They are viviparous; they are born live and free-swimming. The young are about 70 cm (27.6 in) at birth and take 10 years to reach maturity. Coastal lagoons, river mouths, and other low-salinity estuaries are common nursery habitats.[3]"

A baby bull near the Blue Heron bridge, from the missing tail section it looks like it has already been attacked by other sharks. Palm Beach dive spots | Palm Beach Illustrated

"Bull sharks have an unusual migratory pattern in comparison to other sharks. They are found in rivers all over the world. They have the ability to go from seawater and freshwater. They give birth in the freshwater of rivers. The young bull sharks are free from predators while they grow up in the river before they go out to the sea in order to find mates.[43]" (Continued at the Wikipedia account.)

We were recently talking about bull sharks in Lake Nicaragua. Apparently, they were caught way up in the Mississippi River in Illinois in the 1930's. This was 1750 miles up the river from the Gulf of Mexico. Today there are dams blocking access, unless they can jump them like the rapids on the way to Lake Nicaragua. Now that would be a sight.

These guys caught a five foot bull the next day also in Illinois.
Sharks In Illinois - In-Fisherman


A paper on a 30 year study of bull shark occurrence in the Indian River Lagoon.
Seasonal Distribution and Habitat Associations of Bull Sharks in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida: A 30-Year Synthesis - ResearchGate

National Geographic has an article about the occurrence of bull sharks in fresh water:
Bull Shark Threat: They Swim Where We Swim

Apparently there is a half dozen bulls adding "teeth" to the water hazard at a Brisbane, Australia golf course pond.
http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2011/...lian-golf-course-believed-to-be-worlds-first/


So what? Going through old news accounts there are cases of the odd attack in the Intracoastal Waterway.

Most will recall the attack on the 22 year old woman in the ICW of Ft. Laudedale last year.
http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/20...ional-shark-attack-file-intracoastal-waterway

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=95960
http://bit.ly/1hvHlcD
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/story...ntracoastal-wonderwood-bridge-shark/11028449/

Attacks in the ICW are rare as they are in the ocean. Still, it is good to be aware of the possibility as previously I didn't even realize bulls were in the Intracoastal and connected brackish water bodies with much frequency. I spent a couple of decades in the ICW doing boat hulls, light salvage and related work with no encounters. A commercial diver I knew years back had one nuzzle him under a ship once in Port Everglades. Who knows, it might even make for some nice photo ops if you can catch one on a high tide near a cut.

.

 

[Steve_C]

There have been several instances of shark attacks in NC shallow waters this year attributed as most likely due to Bulls, at least for the more serious ones. They were in June and July and not too far from inlets.

 

[sportxlh]

RickI: timely post for me. I was paddleboarding with my daughter in Tequesta in the ICW on Saturday. I suck at paddleboarding and found myself falling off the rental board every time a boat went by or when my daughter decided to have fun and push me off. I've read about bulls in the ICW and far up rivers, so I had visions of a bull trying to nibble (or bite) my toes as I got back on the board on each occasion. Of course my kid just laughed at me each time I got dunked.

 

[RickI]

I did a solo nighttime paddle back from Hillsboro Inlet to past Boca Inlet a few nights back. I went by Capone's Island, the Hillsboro Canal and what other few mangrove areas are left in these parts. I didn't fall in, there was little boat traffic and yet I usually wouldn't think much about it if I did. Lots of people are paddling in the ICW these days, it is just something to keep in mind.

 

[makologic]

I used to keep my boat pretty far up the loxahatchee in tequesta by the Island Way Bridge. Its pretty brackish and brown. Every time we cleaned fish at the docks, there were several big bull sharks that would have a feast. I was surprised the first time I saw them that they would get that far up the river, but they were there year round. They also caught huge cubera snapper up there too....

 

[Chugwhump]

I am currently involved with a construction project at the west side of the intracoastal at Cypress Creek Road and Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale.
I have seen two Bull Sharks since January just cruising by.
And a bunch of Manatees.
Kids on wave runners.
And the occasional kayaker.
And a fair population of waterskiers/tubers.
I used to swim in the Fort Lauderdale canals when I was a kid.
I never saw a shark.
But we always wanted to.
Chug
They are out there.

 

[Trigger-F]

Tampabay: Man's death thought to be a shark attack

I think this was due to a Bull shark in the intracoastal waterway.

 

[RickI]

That was a bad one, the man was swimming in 2000 when he was attacked.. There was another involving a girl nine years later in the same area struck on her leg while on a raft. Neighbors heed warning, day after shark attack | TBO.com and The Tampa Tribune

We have a lot of estuary area in Florida with all the barrier islands which the bulls seem to favor at times. I had a friend paddle from Marco Island to Key Largo. He said Florida Bay was loaded with small (and some large sharks). It is where they hang out, us too in the more populated areas.

Tampabay: Man's death thought to be a shark attack

I think this was due to a Bull shark in the intracoastal waterway.

 

[Trigger-F]

Funny thing is, I live by the Intracoastal and hang out by the water a lot, however, I've never seen any sharks roaming up and down(could be because the water is not clear). But either way... that guy who died was swimming in the intracoastal which is not a good idea.

Btw, do you usually encounter any sharks other than nurse-sharks around the Dropoff or roughly 500 yards out from the beach? Seems like with the nuisance/ red hairy algae blooms, some of the sea-life may be moving to deeper waters (??). The reef looked a little yucky last weekend.

 

[RickI]

Nurse sharks are very common on the inner reefs, free swimming sharks far less so as a rule off the Greater Ft. Lauderdale area. I rarely have seen any free swimmers UW around the first or second reefs from the early 1970's to the present day. Heading north to Deerfield to Delray Beach you might see hundreds of blacktips during the northward migration in the early spring. Ironically, despite growing up on the reefs and spending tons of time there off Ft. Lauderdale, I never even realized such a migration even existed. They pass through that area but I never saw large masses like I have encountered further north near shore. You can see free swimming sharks around the third reef more commonly year round. Also, the further north you go, typically the more commonly you may see sharks across the shelf. Despite not seeing free swimming sharks, I believe they are still there quite a bit of the time even off Ft. Lauderdale. I never see these sharks from the surface while kitesurfing but the camera on the kite does on occasion, IF the water is shallow and clear enough. Otherwise, they remain unseen. Given the poor viz. typically in inland water, I would say they are even harder to see and more rarely sighted as a result.

They may swim a short intercept but then usually seem to lose interest and fall off my track.

p.s. - has nothing to do with bull sharks but it looks like a nice 12 ft. hammerhead was chasing a ray west of Peanut Island in the Intracoastal today perhaps a 1/2 mile south of Blue Heron. With luck, some of the trolls may see a nice one on Blue Heron Bridge.

Video --- https://www.facebook.com/reelintensefishingcharter/videos/920781494626615

Funny thing is, I live by the Intracoastal and hang out by the water a lot, however, I've never seen any sharks roaming up and down(could be because the water is not clear). But either way... that guy who died was swimming in the intracoastal which is not a good idea.

Btw, do you usually encounter any sharks other than nurse-sharks around the Dropoff or roughly 500 yards out from the beach? Seems like with the nuisance/ red hairy algae blooms, some of the sea-life may be moving to deeper waters (??). The reef looked a little yucky last weekend.