Well warmer weather is here and it’s time to gear up for fishing swimming and water recreation. That being said, I’ll be honest right off the bat, this is a serious “what if” discussion. However, it’s one that does carry some weight; at least the story seems to be a real occurrence in some capacity, if not, a significant urban legend. Now I have written on this topic before as the United States most shark infested river is the Mississippi. And yes, this is always in regard to the only shark that handles freshwater, the bull shark. It also happens to be the most aggressive shark alive today.
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Let me first note that yes, a 100-pound bull shark was caught near Alton, Illinois in the 1930’s, and it’s a rare case for sure. However, mounting evidence suggests the Mississippi River has essentially become a sort of “nursery” for bull sharks, at least near the gulf. That means pregnant females swim upriver and deliver their brood in an ideal environment, where there are less predators and a significant food source. Again, most documented cases show up in the southern states and lower tributaries of Louisiana, Mississippi, and in Florida, where saltwater meets fresh, known as brackish waters.
I have been a fan of Jeremy Wade for many years and one of his most interesting episodes of River Monsters, involves him catching bull sharks out of a fresh water source, usually juveniles in that case, similar to the hundred-pounder caught in Alton.
Now I’ve spent much of my life fishing and swimming in and round the Mississippi River. More recently my family has had travels near the great lakes, which led me to a story (or an urban legend) about a shark attack that occurred in Chicago on Lake Michigan. So, could a bull shark make the great lakes their home? The answer is a possible yes, but mostly, a big fat no. Let me explain.
The Ballast Theory
Some of the more sensational but still possible explanations of Great Lake sharks involves cargo ships. The idea is that a bull shark could hitch a ride from warm southern waters to the Great Lakes inside a ship’s ballast tanks. Ships take in ballast water in one region and discharge it in another to maintain stability. This is a well-documented pathway for invasive species like zebra mussels or Asian carp (food sources for the shark being transported).
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