Louisiana's Channel Nine TV is reporting that Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has found sharks in inland waters of the Atchafalaya Basin Swamp. According to the article:
"(Mike Walker with Wildlife and Fisheries) has pictures of bull sharks that were caught among the inland waters in Louisiana. He says sharks have likely been around these parts for decades. However, they're noticing them more because they now take huge samples of species in different waterways in Louisiana and that's turning up sharks. It's no surprise for long time Atchafalaya swamp tour guide Curtis Allemond. "Oh, I used to catch 'em up on the river when the river's low, yeah (laughs)," he said when asked if he had ever seen any sharks in the swamp."
Finding sharks in fresh water is not a new thing. The book Twelve Days of Terror: A Definitive Investigation of the 1916 New Jersey Shark Attacks by Richard G. Fernicola looks at a series of shark attacks in New Jersey in 1916 (sometimes seen as the basis for the book and movie JAWS) and tries to determine what species of shark was responsible. Some of these attacks occurred in brackish water. The author felt that bull sharks were responsible for these attacks.
Mr. Walker notes that the bull shark is a very aggressive shark and is responsible for the majority of shark attacks on people. He joins the alligator and the snake as a reason to stay out of the swamp!!
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