The Bull Shark

Meet the world's deadliest shark - the bull shark. The bull shark is known for its aggressive behavior and is even known to attack humans because it swims in shallow water where humans swim. However, this doesn't happen very often. Last year, there were only five recorded shark attacks - two by great white sharks and three by bull sharks. Bull sharks are found worldwide in warm, shallow waters along coasts and in rivers. The deepest water bull sharks swim in is less than 65 feet deep. 

The name bull shark comes from the shark's stocky shape, broad, flat snout, and unpredictable behavior. Bull sharks have small eyes because they often live in shallow, muddy water where eyesight is not that useful for hunting prey. However, studies have confirmed that bull sharks can see different colors of mesh netting underwater and tend to stay away from nets of bright colors. They grow to be 6.5 to 10 feet long. 

Bull sharks eat a large variety of animals, from fish and sea turtles, to birds, dolphins and whales. Bull sharks are known for bumping their prey before attacking. They swim rather slowly, but are agile and quick when chasing prey. Bull sharks are known by different names, such as the Zambezi River shark or the Nicaragua shark.

The bull shark belongs to the species of requiem sharks, along with blue sharks, lemon sharks, tiger sharks and reef sharks. Bull sharks living in the Amazon give the Amazon rainforest a bigger number of species of animals than most rainforests. Predators of bull sharks include saltwater and Nile crocodiles, some larger shark species, and humans. Their conservation status is vulnerable. 

Cool Fact: Bull sharks can live in both salt and fresh water and can travel far up rivers. They have even been known to travel up the Mississippi River as far as Illinois - about 700 miles from the ocean!