Bull Shark

The bull shark is a stocky, aggressive shark found in warm coastal waters worldwide, notable among sharks for its exceptional tolerance of fresh water, which allows it to swim far up rivers and live for extended periods in lakes and estuaries far from the open ocean. It has a robust grey body, a blunt rounded snout and no distinctive markings, and it feeds on a broad range of prey including fish, other sharks, rays, turtles and marine mammals, using a powerful bite among the strongest of any shark relative to its size. Because it frequents shallow, murky coastal waters and rivers that overlap heavily with human activity, the bull shark is considered one of the species most often involved in attacks on humans, despite such incidents remaining rare. It gives birth to live young in river mouths and estuaries that serve as nursery habitat, sheltering pups from larger predators before they move to open water. Overfishing and habitat degradation of coastal nurseries have led to population declines, and the species is classified as vulnerable.