The gestation period lasts 10 to 11 months. The mating scars on the females’ body indicate that during the process, the male bites his mate. Mating occurs in late spring and the summer. Some individuals can mature when reaching eight years of age. The bull shark is viviparous, and the age to reach sexual maturity depends on the geographic region in which it is located but usually the age is ten years old for males and 10.9 years old for females. If they find a suitable prey, they swim directly toward it reaching speeds of up to 19 kilometers per hour it hits the victim, and then sink their sharp teeth into the flesh. It hunts only in murky waters and compensates its limited sense of sight with a keen sense of smell. It dwells in waters ranging from 150 to 30 meters deep of oceans, seas, bays and harbors and even ventures into lakes and rivers. It is one of the few species of sharks prepared to inhabit saltwater and freshwater, in the latter for a long time. In the Indian Ocean, it is present in waters ranging from South Africa to Kenya and from India and Vietnam to Australia. In the Atlantic Ocean, it is located from the United States to Brazil and from Morocco to Angola. DISTRIBUTION AND HABITATīull shark distribution is along the coastal waters of tropical and subtropical seas around the world. There is sexual dimorphism: the female is larger than the male, as the male commonly has a length of 2.13 meters and weighs 90-95 kilograms, while the female reaches a length of 2.3-3.4 meters and weighs 129-230 kilograms. The color of its skin is light gray, and its belly is white. Instead, its movable jaws contain several triangular teeth that measure about 3 inches long. Their eyes are quite small, which gives a clue about their limited visual sense and their preference for waters near the coasts where the prey are abundant. The reason why it is called “bull shark” refers to the short, sturdy form of its body. It has two dorsal fins with a triangular shape, of which the second is visibly smaller but the tips of both are dark in young specimens. It has a blunt snout, rounded and wide but not very long. The reason why it is called “bull shark” refers to the short, sturdy form of its body that resembles a bull, and perhaps it is also due to its hostile behavior. It is a member of the order Carcharhiniformes, Carcharhinidae, and Carcharhinus. Besides, its aggressiveness and its ability to live in saltwater as well as freshwater, add further concern. Many people consider the bull shark one of the most dangerous sharks in the world since this species has many attacks on humans registered, and according to the Internation Shark Attack File, it is the third species with most attacks on humans, only after the great white shark and the tiger shark. It should not be confused with the sand tiger shark ( Carcharhinus taurus), which is also called bull shark in other languages. The bull shark is also known as the zambezi shark.
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