Bull shark attacks man from Deerfield Beach

[ScubaRich]

I'm not real knowledgeable about spear fishing, But what would he have done after it was speared? I have seen spear tips, are they even sharp enough to pierce the skin of a Bull shark?
This guy is just dumb.

 

[Orlando Eric]

ScubaRich-- Oh yeah. Spearshaft would penetrate your car door. They are plenty sharp also. I have cut into shark with a regular old knife it is not that tough.

 

[Thalassamania]

Despite what the linked article says:

While not considered particularly aggressive, bull sharks are the third most common in Florida and Caribbean waters - after nurse sharks and reef sharks - and have been blamed for numerous attacks.

I will tell you from first hand experience that Bull Sharks are beautiful animals who must be treated with great respect because they are thought to be territorial, can be quite aggressive, and are capable of doing significant damage.

 

[Bratface]

Duh, another stupid diver trick. What in the world would he want to spear it for? I agree with others, what was he planning on doing with it. Sounds like a he-man thing. Glad the shark didn't end up as a fatality. As for the diver, I'm glad he got out ok, but if he doesn't gain complete use of his hand...oh well.

 

[Wayfarer2]

What do they say "you can't cure stupid...."

I think the line is you cant fix stupid

The shark tried but was probably overwhelmed by the stupid oozing out of the divers body

 

[Thalassamania]

I believe its: "Ignorance is curable, but stupid's for life."

I think the lines stems from Richard Dawkins: "To claim equal time for creation science in biology classes is about as sensible as to claim equal time for the flat-earth theory in astronomy classes. Or, as someone has pointed out, you might as well claim equal time in sex education classes for the stork theory. It is absolutely safe to say that if you meet somebody who claims not to believe in evolution, that person is ignorant, stupid or insane (or wicked, but I’d rather not consider that). If that gives you offense, I’m sorry. You are probably not stupid, insane or wicked; and ignorance is no crime ..."

 

[stinggirl]

What an idiot!!

 

[The Chairman]

I don't know for sure, but it's almost a safe bet that he won't poke another shark (at least with the right hand), and that he will never see another shark without a jolt of atavistic fear.

 

[Thalassamania]

I don't know for sure, but it's almost a safe bet that he won't poke another shark (at least with the right hand), and that he will never see another shark without a jolt of atavistic fear.

It's been over thirty years, I was not injured, I've had a dozen or so "close" encounters and innumerable ones at longer range and I can not honestly say that I'm, "over it." I can't imagine what he'll feel.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

I wonder if many (any) of you people have experience spearfishing in the proximity of bullsharks. The appropriate response to a bullshark that stays with 30 feet of you for any amount of time is to leave the water. If that is impractical, the next thing you do is go after it and try to scare it away. If the shark calls your bluff and comes close enough to poke, you DEFINITELY want to poke it hard!

Sharks are extremely dense and tough and their skin is hard to puncture. Have any of you people cut up a large shark? They are covered with millions of modified TEETH!

A stiff poke in a non-critcal area (not the eyes or gills) will not harm the shark and will hopefully end the encounter in a safe manner for both the shark and the diver.

Yesterday I was scuba diving spearfishing in 120-135 ft and had a few HUGE bullsharks casually investigate us on a drift dive. One was so big, I thought it might be a tiger and I got a little closer to look for stripes. With 80 ft vis, and no fish shot, the sharks left us alone and I shot one small fish 5 minutes after seeing the sharks and kept it in a bag on my waist. No problems. They can however be very unpredictable.