The shocking weather created by typhoons and cyclones can have a terrible impact on a community. Homes can be blown away, usually quiet roads and streets turn into raging rivers, and power supplies are knocked out, sometimes for days. No-one ever knows what to expect when they emerge from their safe hiding places once the storm has passed. This was certainly the case in a town called Ayr in Queensland, Australia after Tropical Cyclone Debbie had ripped through it.
Apart from the fallen buildings and flooding, the local residents came in for a special shock. One thing they found which they least expected was a dead bull shark lying in the middle of a road that had been cut off by flooding. It was not long before local residents were gathering around and taking selfies with it. Some even pulled teeth from the shark as souvenirs! The question on everyone’s lips was, ‘What was a dead bull shark doing there?’
Bull sharks are often found in waters around Ayr. They are an unusual species of shark because they are able to live in both salt and fresh water. This means they are able to swim in the sea, then travel up rivers. Bull sharks have large noses, and the females are larger than the males. The average female can weigh up to 130 kilos and measure 2.4 metres in length.
They do not usually swim deeper than 30 metres, and are usually found in warm, shallow waters along the coast, and in rivers and lakes. Sometimes these waters can pass close to communities where people live. It appears that this particular shark had been swimming close to a river bank and been forced onto land by the flooding. There, it became trapped and died.
The police and emergency services were very quick to issue warnings to the local residents. “Don’t go into the water!” There was concern that other bull sharks may have been forced into the floodwater and could be a danger to anyone in it.
Bull sharks are known to be very aggressive towards humans. In fact, they can be more aggressive than tiger sharks and even the great white. There can be no doubt that had this particular shark – which the locals called ‘Bruce’ – been alive when it was discovered, there is no way anyone would have tried to steal its teeth!
Tagging sharks in the Brisbane River. Why?
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