# In Florida, Shark jumps YOU **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 27, 2011, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046 "2011-06-27T18:13:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/1 "2011-06-27T18:13:21Z")
Wonderful video I saw last night, but there doesn’t seem to be a thread on it: > **[WATCH: Shark Jumps Over Surfer](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/shark-jumps-over-surfer-video_n_885179)** > > WATCH: Shark Jumps Over Surfer ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/2 "2011-06-27T18:41:59Z")
Last time I was in Florida, we saw rays jumping several feet out of the water. Not over anyone’s head though, I’m not that cool to witness such a thing. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/3 "2011-06-27T18:53:26Z")
But he wasn’t wearing a leather jacket … ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/4 "2011-06-27T19:35:15Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > But he wasn’t wearing a leather jacket … The surfer, or the shark? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/5 "2011-06-27T19:40:10Z")
I have to wonder if the surfers got out of the water after that. ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/6 "2011-06-27T20:01:04Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > I have to wonder if the surfers got out of the water after that. nah. i wouldn’t have. spinner sharks aren’t dangerous. in fact, most sharks aren’t. they have an undeserved rep for violence – thank you steven spielberg and jaws – and for eating everything with two legs. they \*\*\*really \*\*\*don’t do that, guys. as a scubadiver i’ve been facemask to nose with both black and silver-tipped reef sharks and the dive master once found himself in the same situation with a scalloped-edge hammerhead. nada. they’re more interested in being somewhere else in a hurry than sampling you for a snack. now, that said, the ones that DO scare me even more than a great white are bull sharks. they’re born in a bad mood i think – hellacious levels of testosterone in their systems – and those are definitely the shark to avoid. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/7 "2011-06-27T20:09:13Z")
Like, I am totally cool, because I know sharks got a bad rep. Like, I know we can’'t just pick on sharks because one ate that dude Quint in some old time movie. Besides, we totally I.D.‘ed that shark as a 4’ spinner. We were just like, “Whoa, little Spinner, watch my board, little dude.” When your surfing, and a shark jumps a wave and flails a bit, even in the chaos of breakers and all that, we totally knew it was a non-aggressive species. Totally. ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/8 "2011-06-27T20:16:57Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Like, I am totally cool, because I know sharks got a bad rep. Like, I know we can’'t just pick on sharks because one ate that dude Quint in some old time movie. > > Besides, we totally I.D.‘ed that shark as a 4’ spinner. We were just like, “Whoa, little Spinner, watch my board, little dude.” > > When your surfing, and a shark jumps a wave and flails a bit, even in the chaos of breakers and all that, we totally knew it was a non-aggressive species. Totally. if you’re gonna be in the water, dude, you’d better spend a little time learning about them first. you’re in their territory, my friend. they hold all the cards. always. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/9 "2011-06-27T20:18:15Z")
> [@Scubaqueen](#): > > nah. i wouldn’t have. spinner sharks aren’t dangerous. in fact, most sharks aren’t. I should probably learn more about them. But a few years ago I was snorkelling in an area where a great white was known to have been. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/10 "2011-06-28T02:09:30Z")
> [@Scubaqueen](#): > > if you’re gonna be in the water, dude, you’d better spend a little time learning about them first. you’re in their territory, my friend. they hold all the cards. always. Yeah, thanks for the lesson. I have salt water in me veins. Check out your post. Surfers are doing fast I.D.'s of shark species all the time. I totally believe that. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/11 "2011-06-28T02:29:00Z")
> [@Scubaqueen](#): > > as a scubadiver i’ve been facemask to nose with both black and silver-tipped reef sharks and the dive master once found himself in the same situation with a scalloped-edge hammerhead. nada. they’re more interested in being somewhere else in a hurry than sampling you for a snack. My dive buddy when I took up diving had two Very large semi circular scars. One on his right shoulder and one on his thigh. They were from a 12’ (or so) hammerhead. Did I mention that they were VERY large scars? Sorry but I didn’t care for sharks long before Jaws. ---
**Author:** ![Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a9a28c/32.png) [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oslo_Ostragoth)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/12 "2011-06-28T05:09:07Z")
I once caught a thirty-pound barracuda. He had lots of nasty sharp teeth. I recommend staying out of oceans everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/13 "2011-06-28T11:45:18Z")
Yes, everyone lining the beaches: Know your sharks! ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/14 "2011-06-28T11:47:27Z")
> [@Scubaqueen](#): > > if you’re gonna be in the water, dude, you’d better spend a little time learning about them first. you’re in their territory, my friend. they hold all the cards. always. I don’t know why your posts in this thread riled me up, but I am pretty sure in the man vs. shark battle, man is pretty much ahead – probably by at least a few hundred thousand. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/15 "2011-06-28T13:06:40Z")
> [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](#): > > I once caught a thirty-pound barracuda. He had lots of nasty sharp teeth. I recommend staying out of oceans everywhere. Death awaits us all, eh? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/16 "2011-06-28T14:44:31Z")
> [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](#): > > I once caught a thirty-pound barracuda. He had lots of nasty sharp teeth. I recommend staying out of oceans everywhere. When I was a kid, I was swimming at a beach in Puerto Rico. The beach was surrounded by a ring of boulders that was intended to keep things like sharks out, but there were gaps between the rocks, and relatively small things could get in. I was a good way out, under a raft that was put there for swimmers, and the water was crystal clear. So I had no problem seeing the barracuda. I knew it was a barracuda because it looked as if it had requisitioned twice its normal share of teeth, and was determined to fit them al in its mouth, nonetheless. As a result, a lot of the teeth were evidently jammede in there at weird and cockeyed angles, some of them perpendicular to the way they ought to be. It looked painful, and it occurred to me that one way to relieve the pain would be to chew on something, and I was the only thing handy. I made it to the surface in record time, and scrambled onto the raft, where stayed for quite a while. When I finally came down and swam to shore, I mentioned it to the lifeguard, who told me that they got such bargain-basement barracuda in there all the time. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/17 "2011-06-28T15:18:14Z")
Speaking of jumping sharks, I saw this wiki entry on the Bull shark (bolding mine): > [@](#): > > Initially, scientists thought the sharks in Lake Nicaragua belonged to an endemic species, the Lake Nicaragua shark (_Carcharhinus nicaraguensis_). In 1961, following specimens comparisons, taxonomists synonymized them. **They can jump along the rapids of the San Juan River (which connects Lake Nicaragua and the Caribbean Sea), almost like salmon.** Bull sharks tagged inside the lake have later been caught in the open ocean (and vice versa), with some taking as little as 7–11 days to complete the journey. The wiki article also mentioned that Bull sharks were seen in the streets of Brisbane during floods this year. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-florida-shark-jumps-you/587046/18 "2011-06-28T16:59:30Z")
I was thinking that sharks are not a problem for me because the beaches where I go don’t really have any. In 4 weeks I’m on vacation in one of those areas. Then I remembered the first time I was there. Just outside of a restaurant we were in was hanging a specimen that was at least 8 feet long. Then I realized that this year we’re going on Shark Week, where people from all over the world show up to catch sharks and form long lines at restaurants.