Bull Shark Identification Guide

Key identification features

• Stout, heavy-bodied build that looks noticeably wider than most other requiem sharks of similar length
• Very short, blunt, rounded snout, shorter than the width of the mouth
• Plain gray upperside fading to white underneath, with no bars, spots, or fin markings
• Large, broad first dorsal fin with no ridge of skin connecting it to the second dorsal
• Small eyes relative to head size
• Robust body reaching up to 3.5 m, more common around 2-2.5 m

Common look-alikes

• Tiger shark: shows vertical bars (especially when young) and has a ridge between the dorsal fins that bull sharks lack
• Sandbar shark: has a taller, more triangular first dorsal fin and a ridge between the dorsals, plus a more slender body
• Lemon shark: yellowish tint, more pointed snout, and a first dorsal fin set further back than in a bull shark

Where you'll see one

Bull sharks inhabit warm coastal waters worldwide and are unusual among sharks for their tolerance of low salinity, regularly traveling far up rivers and into freshwater lakes well beyond the reach of the tide.