1955
Shark in Lake MIhttp://www.neatorama.com/2008/08/30/shark-found-in-lake-michigan/
Is it possible for sharks to reside in Lake Michigan? After Hurricane Katrina, many bull sharks were sighted in Lake Pontchartrain. Bull sharks have occasionally gone up the Mississippi River as far upstream as Alton, Illinois, even further north. They have also been found in the Potomac River in Maryland as well.
Can Bull Sharks survive in fresh water? Bull sharks in freshwater possess several organs with which to maintain appropriate salt and water balance; these are the rectal gland, kidneys, liver and gills. All elasmobranchs have a rectal gland which functions in the excretion of excess salts accumulated as a consequence of living in seawater. Bull sharks in freshwater environments decrease the salt-excretory activity of the rectal gland, thereby conserving sodium and chloride. The kidneys produce large amounts of dilute urine, but also play an important role in the active re-absorption of solutes into the blood. The gills of bull sharks are likely to be involved in the uptake of sodium and chloride from the surrounding fresh water, whereas urea is produced in the liver as required with changes in environmental salinity.
I believe it's possible for sharks to find their way into Lake Michigan. I believe the chances of someone getting attacked by a Bull Shark are very unlikely, but it's good to be aware that it isn't impossible for bull sharks to find their way into Lake Michigan. I also do not want to be the one that happens to get my leg ripped off or lose my life because I wasn't aware. Like the saying 'what you don't know can't hurt you', well same as knowing and avoiding whatever it may be. From the Lake Michigan shark story from 1955, someone made a great point that during that time the story may not have been made aware to the public due to the fact that it may affect the tourism for Lake Michigan. Many people visit and/or live on Lake Michigan and the chances of someone getting attacked by a bull shark are again very unlikely. I believe it's possible for the sharks to find their way into the lake, the lake certainly is large enough to hold such a large creature. Again, it's good to be aware, true or not, I would rather at least have some kind of knowledge of the possibility of a shark in the lake I love to swim in, than to not know, and be attacked or eaten and have no one believe my story, if in fact, Bull Sharks really reside in Lake Michigan.
Do you think bull sharks live in the depths of Lake Michigan? Do you have any thoughts regarding the possibility of them finding a way into the lake?
Let me know your thoughts.
Bull Shark (not Lake MI)