Your right it's not normal but we do have trouble with them at certain times of the year. We've only caught a couple in the past. Usually when they show up they take a lot of fish and have been known to tear up hoop nets. We fish not far from where you are but are close to East Cote Blance Bay. As low as the river is right now it's not suprising they come up the river. I'm no shark expert, what type of shark do you think it is?

Thats cool ! Hope you didn't throw that away ... That is some really good eating . Easy to clean to cut it in steaks like it is and peel the meat out of the skin and throw it on the grill or fry it .

Bull Shark. Actually pretty common in freshwater rivers. They've found them as far north as St. Louis, Missouri.

In response to Choupic-Man:

The shark was not legal to keep.

Shark season is CLOSED in all Louisiana waters from April 1 through June 30 each year.

Also, if it was a Bull Shark (likely) the minimum size allowed is 54' fork length. That one does not appear large enough.

Cool catch anyway Rickey!

Well Drew, you're the one who is wrong on this.

Bull sharks can and do adapt to fresh water. I don't think it's a mistatement to use the word common to refer to these occurrences.

Try this word if you want more proof--GOOGLE (lol)

No sense in arguing with you, you know what you know.

Ummmmm thats no Surprise there are alot them around in Brackish/Freshwater alot them in Florida and have seen b4 on west Bank of Lake P near Manchac

live in freshwater. There are hundreds of documented accounts of sightings and catching in freshwater (thousands of miles up the Amazon river, hundreds of miles up the Mississippi, etc... Just google it if you want to argue or go here http://www.sharksavers.org/en/education/shark-biology-behavior/385-how-bull-sharks-can-live-in-fresh-water-through-clever-osmoregulation.html

Nice catch on a jug line.

Well Ricky just forget what I said in my first post . Hope you threw that back ! Its been a while since I've caught shark , I know it was late summer on the beach near Fourchon .
I do have some buddy's that have caught them on jugs in lake Maurepas . And have read somewhere that commercial fishermen catch them all the time up around simmesport in hoop nets and what not . So whether they are common or not they are delicious when in season of course .
Congrats on your catch !

Have a friend that has caught flounder in the intercoastal at Bayou Sorrel north of Pigeon. I've asked WL@F about saltwater fish living in fresh water. They said likely there is a wedge of saltwater under the freshwater and when the rivers get low, (like this time of year), it is not out of the norm for this to happen. This is due to saltwater being heavier than freshwater. But to say it is common to catch saltwater fish (sharks) in freshwater. Can you put a number on common? Also, was the shark really caught in salt or freshwater?

Not to dispute anyones opinion, but this looks to be a blacktip, not only because of the fins but couple other features as well. I will admit that I may be wrong as we can not see the entire body for the telltale markings. Blacktip reef sharks are also known to venture into freshwater environments but are not nearly as tolerable as bulls.

In Bayou Bardeaux, which connects the eastern sides of Lake Cataouatche and Lake Salvador, two bullsharks were caught in July of 2007 and ten were caught in July of 2008. The sharks were all 30 - 40 inches. During that time Lake Cataouatche was 75% covered in submerged vegetation and the area was full of mullet.
In the same 2 year study of the Lake Cataouatche area 40,000 fish were caught of which 18,000 could also be found along the beaches of the gulf.

We did not keep the shark. I have no idea what type of shark it is and I personally have never even caught one on a rod and reel. But I still think that it was cool, to see it up close. My Dad tells me that when he was a kid, here in Morgan City, sharks were much more common in the river than they are now.

From the Anglers Guide to Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico:

Found Gulfwide in nearshore waters, coastal lakes, bays and inlets and freshwater rivers. Bull sharks have been recorded as far up the Mississippi River as Illinois and 2000 miles up the Amazon River. In Gulf of Mexico rivers, they only infrequently move more than 100 miles upriver.

Bull sharks are extremely common in low-salinity water.

Well, I saw a Red Snapper in False River before.

What was the jug line baited with?

Bull sharks are the only shark that have a special gland and adapted kidneys that stores salt in their body , other sharks can't make the trip into freshwater as once the salt is depleted from their body they will die ------------ from as many as I have caught in fresh and brackish water I'd say they are common in fresh water

I catch flounder and small drum in Six Mile lake in the lower basin often in late summer while catfishing.

Some of the people on this site are worse than children when it comes to arguing for no reason. If you think this applies to you, you are probably 100% correct.

Manvswild

Flounder off the dock in Lake Verret

I caught this guy in Lake Verret. This is my second flounder that I've caught in the lake. I think though it's not too often you catch these fish in freshwater, it is a lot more common than people tend to think.

Rickey, if you don't mind me asking where exactly did you catch it?

Well drew did you and the field reporter guy ever determine if catching a shark in fresh water was common or uncommon ? Or who was right or wrong ? Cause I have about 4 more hours until my weekend starts and could really use the entertainment !! Lol thanks

Yeah, you're right, it is semantics. What I should have said is, of all sharks, Bull Sharks are the most commonly seen in freshwater. Heck, they even move into freshwater systems to give birth in some areas. Is it as common as catching a bass? No. But just because a field reporter said it was a surprise doesn't mean it doesn't happen. I mean, really, how many people do you think go out on the Mississippi River and say 'hey, lets go shark fishing today'? Come on, man.

Just because they aren't caught, doesn't mean they aren't common there. And just because you don't see a fin, doesn't mean they aren't common there. Anywhere you get a strong concentration of fishermen near coastal environments, but still in freshwater, there is a possibility that a bull shark is around. Doesn't mean it's dangerous either, just looking for an easy meal.

I caught 10 of them last summer on trout lines in missippi river in STFrancisville and around angola and they attack more often than any other sharks

...ThIs ThReAd WaS BeTteR ThAn PoRkEy PiG AnD BuGgS BuNnY.,.LoL !!! ChEeRs

Drew,

YOu ever watch river monsters? Man traveled the world and everywhere he fished for sharks in freshwater, he caught sharks. Caught bull sharks in freshwater in Australia, Africa, Florida, etc.

Think they aren't caught more often because they aren't targeted. There aren't many caught where he caught them. But when he went out there and specifically targeted them he caught several.

I've fished saltwater a good bit and I've never caught a shark. Guess that means they aren't common in saltwater either.

Used to catch half eaten catfish on jugs and trotlines and used to always blame it on otters. Never hooked a shark, but never hooked an otter either. Could have been sharks all along.

But I think its fair to say their common in freshwater if he fished three different freshwater tributaries and caught bull sharks in all three.

I've fished the Wax all my life and have never caught a shark. I know people that go there and fish with catfish filets and catch them regularly. Maybe it was only certain times of the year and maybe the water was more brackish.

Bottom line is I was fishing same waters and catching catfish exclusively, I wasn't targeting sharks. These people targeted sharks and caught sharks. Bet if more people actually targeted them, you may be surprised.

I'm not going to say their common, or that they're uncommon. But I don't believe anybody has enough info to come out and obnoxiously tell someone else they are wrong.

I've caught one, my dad has, many of my friends have. I'd call that common. Thanks for the useless, purely argumentative statement though drewb. You are very helpful!!

I freedive oil rigs in 200ft of water, where sharks are abundant, so their presence doesn't bother me. Please let me know if 'abundant' is the wrong word, what you think of everyone's word choice is really all I care about.

Deerhunter....Your post is completely correct. drewb is playing a word game to justify his previous incorrect statements. Ironic, a boy playing word games, who has no word. It is about time for one of the AdmRabbits great comments.

I've caught several young bull sharks 3-4 miles upstream in Bayou Lacombe. In areas where there is NO salt and in most cases only a couple feet of water (3 or less). I've also heard of bulls being reported in the Tchefuncta River as far north as I-12. To say it is or is not common is a relative statement, that largely depends on the conditions surrounding it. Ricky said it was uncommon to catch one on a jug line in his area, where as to say they are uncommon in fresh water as a whole is a completely separate thing. Just because you are not looking for them does not mean they are not there. Hell In all my years of fishing salt-water I've caught LOTS of sharks, but i'd venture to say 95% of them i caught while actually targeting them. In that sense, you could argue that it is uncommon to catch them in salt water as well, if not specifically targeting them. (of course this excludes Breton Island, my fellow island fishers know what i mean)

my $.02

i will settle this right now!!! all you guys out there, don't you know yet, drew-b is always right in his own little mine!! most definetly, he loves to play the word game and create controversy!!!!! he loves to get under peoples skin!! i sense a little insecurity!!!

if it gets even more common, i sure won't let my great-grand kids go swimming in shark infested waters!!! by the way, what is a loon and what is an old loon? is there a big difference between the two? i sure hope you weren't on the internet on company time!!! ps, i don't have any great-grand kids!!!

That's pretty neat. Any size to them?

I have to agree with wdietz... Red snapper can also be 'common' in freshwater... I had 1 jump in my airboat while riding in the Atchafalaya basin!!! Man, I'm sure glad it did!!! I had an 'abundance' of fun that day!!!

drewb....you calling someone out for using the word 'mine' as opposed to 'mind'. You just posted a comment on another thread where YOU spelled lady's underclothing as 'lingery' as opposed to the correct spelling of L-I-N-G-E-R-I-E. As to the issues in this thread, let be give you examples:
Common:
Admiral Rabbit making great comments;
Drewb making an argument that is baseless;
Drewb being wrong;
Drewb getting mad when corrected;

Uncommon:
Drewb paying off the bets he loses.

Even has grow men you can still tell who the spoiled little brats where growing up that nobody like that allways thinks they are right and know everthing, and everyone else in stupid. Bet both of you was born with a silver spoon in you mouth's and a honest days work would kill both of you.

I'm gonna have to say its getting more and more common to catch these in places where they have not been caught before. Especially this time of year cause what I've been told they come inland this time of year to lay eggs. My buddies caught 5 last week behind Clovely in the lake fishing for reds and specks.

I hit it right on the nose. Daddy was rich, and wanted his little man to do some hard work. So he pulled a few strings got you on a boat, and you had to work a hole summer poor thing. You deffintly know what hard works all about. Yes your good to not much of a education but high then 5 grade.