Do bull sharks live in schools?

Question

I REALLY want to know.

Answer 1

only when mating otherwise hunt alone!!!

Answer 2

The bull shark is a solitary hunter. Most sharks are, with the exception of the scalloped hammerhead, gray reef sharks, and several other exceptions where sharks are commonly seen in schools. The short-fin mako and blue sharks sometimes work in tandum. The blue sharks has the best senses of sharks to detect prey, and the mako is very fast.

Answer 3

BULL SHARK

Order - Carcharhiniformes

Family - Carcharhinidae

Genus - Carcharhinus

Species - leucas

Taxonomy

The bull shark was first described by Valenciennes in Muller & Henle (1839) as Carcharias (Prionodon) leucas, and later changed to the currently valid name Carcharhinus leucas. The genus name Carcharhinus is derived from the Greek "karcharos" = sharpen and "rhinos" = nose. It has also appeared in the literature as Carcharias (Prionodon) zambezensis, Carcharhinus zambezensis, Prionodon platyodon, Squalus platyodon, Squalus obtusus, Eulamia nicaraguensis, Carcharias azureus, Carcharias spenceri, Galeolamna (Bogimba) bogimba, Galeolamna greyi mckaili, and Carcharhinus vanrooyeni.

Common Names

The bull shark gets its name from its stout appearance and pugnacious reputation. The French know the shark as requin bouledogue, and the Spanish as tiburon sarda. It is known by many different common names throughout its range including Zambezi shark, Van Rooyen's shark (Africa); Ganges shark (India); Nicaragua shark (Central America); freshwater whaler, estuary whaler, and Swan River whaler (Australia); shovelnose shark, square-nose shark, river shark, slipway grey shark, ground shark, and cub shark.

Geographical Distribution

Bull sharks occur in tropical to subtropical coastal waters worldwide as well as in numerous river systems and some freshwater lakes. They have been reported 3700 km (2220 mi) up the Amazon River in Peru, and over 3000 km (1800 mi) up the Mississippi River in Illinois. A population in Lake Nicaragua (Central America) was once thought to be landlocked, but they gain access to the ocean through rivers and estuaries. In the western Atlantic bull sharks migrate north along the coast of the U.S. during summer, swimming as far north as Massachusetts, and then return to tropical climates when the coastal waters cool.

The bull shark prefers to live in shallow coastal waters less than 100 feet deep (30 m), but ranges from 3-450 feet deep (1-150 m). It commonly enters estuaries, bays, harbors, lagoons, and river mouths. It is the only shark species that readily occurs in freshwater, and apparently can spend long periods of time in such environs. It is not likely that the bull shark's entire life cycle occurs within a freshwater system, however. There is evidence that they can breed in freshwater, but not as regularly as they do in estuarine and marine habitats. Juvenile bull sharks enter low salinity estuaries and lagoons as readily as adults do, and use these shallow areas as nursery grounds. They can also tolerate hypersaline water as high as 53 parts per thousand.

Reproduction

Age of maturation of bull sharks varies according to geographic location. One study in the southern Gulf of Mexico found that the age of maturity was 10 years (6.85 feet (204 cm) total length, TL) for females and 9-10 years (6.23-6.56 feet (190-200 cm) TL) for males. Another study in the northern Gulf of Mexico determined the age of maturity to be 6.89 feet (210cm) TL /14-15 years for males and ~7.38 feet (~225 cm) TL/18years for females.

One to 13 pups are nourished internally by the mother for 10-11 months, and they then give birth to live, free-swimming young. In the Gulf of Mexico mating occurs during summer months, and the pups are born the following April-June. Mating and birthing occurs year-round in the warmest parts of the bull shark's range. Females often bear mating scars on their dorsum. Coastal lagoons, river mouths, and other low-salinity estuaries are common nursery habitats.

Predators

Adult bull sharks are unlikely to have any natural predators. Young bull sharks, however, can fall prey to large tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier), sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus), and other bull sharks. A crocodile in South Africa was also reported to have consumed a bull shark.

· Parasites

Parasites of the bull shark include Pandarus sinuatus and Perissopus dentatus. These copepods parasitize the body surface of this shark.