Large(12 Foot) Bull Shark at Blue Mountain Beach Today

[ItzKatzTime]

Around 5-ish....lifeguards whistle everyone out of the water as a 12 foot Bull Shark was swimming back and forth in between the two sandbars. One of the lifeguards had to go after a man snorkeling for sand dollars who did not hear the whistle. His wife was frantic on the beach and everyone else too. Two red flags immediately went up.

I don't know this life guard's name, but he deserves an award for jumping on his rescue board and going out past the shark and bringing this man in. He had to get off his board and help the man on and then jump on himself and paddle in. He said as they were coming through waist to chest high water the shark swam right under the board.....saying that he was face to face with it.

The shark swam around a while then took off straight back into the deep. Apparently this is how he entered....straight on, not coming down the beach. If you were there maybe you can add to this.

Thank heavens no one was hurt.

 

[Valerie L]

Around 5-ish....lifeguards whistle everyone out of the water as a 12 foot Bull Shark was swimming back and forth in between the two sandbars. One of the lifeguards had to go after a man snorkeling for sand dollars who did not hear the whistle. His wife was frantic on the beach and everyone else too. Two red flags immediately went up.

I don't know this life guard's name, but he deserves an award for jumping on his rescue board and going out past the shark and bringing this man in. He had to get off his board and help the man on and then jump on himself and paddle in. He said as they were coming through waist to chest high water the shark swam right under the board.....saying that he was face to face with it.

The shark swam around a while then took off straight back into the deep. Apparently this is how he entered....straight on, not coming down the beach. If you were there maybe you can add to this.

Thank heavens no one was hurt.

Gives me the heebie jeebies reading this! That's one reason not to go out in the water with heavy june grass and not purchase tinted goggles!

 

[jack fish]

Gives me the heebie jeebies reading this! That's one reason not to go out in the water with heavy june grass and not purchase tinted goggles!

kind of exciting.

 

[Gidget]

THANKS! (I think lol) Bravo to brave lifeguard indeed!

The bull shark, Carcharhinus leucas, also known as the whaler shark, Zambezi shark or unofficially known as Zambi in Africa and Nicaragua shark in Nicaragua, is a shark common worldwide in warm, shallow waters along coasts and in rivers. The bull shark is well known for its unpredictable, often aggressive behavior. Many scientists agree that since bull sharks often dwell in shallow waters, they may be more dangerous to humans than any other species of shark,and that they, tiger sharks and great white sharks are the three shark species most likely to attack humans.

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[mikecat adjuster]

That's a fear I have when snorkeling out there. One thing is interesting though. I had been seeing nurse sharks more times than not when I went out, but the last 10 or 12 times I've been out I haven't seen a single one.

It makes me think that something has changed, whether it is the tides, the water temperature (it has felt colder), or if the migratory habits of the nurse shark has brought it to another depth/area.

But thankfully I've not had the heart stopping sight of a big bull shark to this point. Not that there can be an answer to this, but I wonder what the ratio of sight-to-bite encounters would be with bull sharks and swimmers. I have to think that they come in andf see swimmers many times with no consequence, but I also know that attacks do occur.

I wonder if the shark would have come near the snorkeler if it would have had lunch or not. Regardless, good work by the lifeguard.

 

[Geo]

I had an up close and personal in the Gulf with a 5-6 foot bull about a year and a half ago. Long story short- If he wanted me he could've had me. I don't think they are interested in us.

 

[Smiling JOe]

Probably true, Geo, but I liken it to going down the buffet line at a meat and three every day for lunch, and one day, deciding to taste a new dish.

 

[Geo]

Good point...

 

[fishheadspin]

saw 3 large sharks laying on the bottom at the color change. they laid motionless while i sat over them fighting a king mackeral. i figured they had to have been nurse sharks. Also we had a 4 foot blacktip swim within 10 feet of the beach this morning. I laughed my butt off when i heard a lady in a condo say it was near 10 foot long! ha ha

 

[Matt J]

We do get nurse sharks here on a regular basis. We actually get a lot of different sea life here that you don't normally hear about.

Whale Shark Spotted Off Panama City Beach Coast

Most people didn't hear about it since it was spotted on July 4th. Here's the video:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkTwmcg2kIc"]YouTube - Panama City SCUBA Diving with a Whale Shark[/ame]

Finally since they filmed it here's the plug:

Panama City Dive Charters - Scuba diving charters, specializing in wreck and spearfishing dives off Panama City and Panama City Beach, Florida.