A flood several years back in Australia displaced a handful of bull sharks to a lake in a golf course. These bull sharks thrived and even started breeding. Bull shark are able to live fresh and brackish water, but bull sharks living in lakes is something quite rare.
The sharks are beloved by the employees and golfers. “You can’t believe how close you are…just six feet away,” says club general manager Scott Wagstaff, “I’ve become a shark lover since working here.” Golfers often pause during games for a few minutes to see if they can spot the sharks before they head off to the next tee.
This warm welcome is unusual considering how sharks are usually treated by humans. Somewhere around 80 million or more sharks are caught every year, mostly for their fins. Their population has dropped over 90% in some places. Some hope that these bull sharks can convince people that sharks are worth conserving.
