# Sharks: How Far North? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 20, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818 "2007-09-20T01:06:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/1 "2007-09-20T01:06:17Z")
How far north do sharks swim along the US East Coast? In general, don’t they hate cold water? And, what about summer when water temps rise? Also, have sharks been found in the Chesapeake? If so, is this typical or are they lost? (Specifically, I am asking about sharks that can be trouble. Aren’t there sand sharks, for one, that aren’t much bother? Or, am I misinformed here?) - Jinx ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/2 "2007-09-20T01:27:37Z")
I don’t know the specifics of the US East Coast, but plenty of large and dangerous breeds of shark are cold water specialists. Great Whites for example. ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/3 "2007-09-20T01:54:38Z")
The ones I can find: _Carcharhinus longimanus_ - Oceanic Whitetip: can be found along the East Coast as far north as Maine. _Carcharodon carcharias_ - Great White: can be found even farther north along the coast, into Canada _Galeocerdo cuvier_ - Tiger Shark: also can be found all along the U.S. Eastern coast, but tends to prefer deeper water. _Isurus oxyrinchus_ - Shortfin Mako: as far north as the Gulf of Maine _Prionace glauca_ - Blue Shark: as far north as Newfoundland _Sphyrna lewini_ - Scalloped Hammerhead: as far north as New Jersey _Sphyrna mokarran_ - Great Hammerhead: Only as far as North Carolina _Sphyrna zygaena_ - Smooth Hammerhead: into Nova Scotia ---
**Author:** ![jimmmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/73ab20/32.png) [@jimmmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimmmy)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/4 "2007-09-20T01:59:40Z")
[QUOTE=Jinx] Also, have sharks been found in the Chesapeake? If so, is this typical or are they lost? - Jinx [/QUOTE] Yes. [Typical](http://www.thechesapeakebay.com/article/8/chesapeake-bay-sharks) for today both and [since before there was mankind](http://www.mgs.md.gov/esic/brochures/sharks.html). In 400 years of recorded history no Shark has ever attacked a human in the Chesapeake Bay. [QUOTE=Jinx] How far north do sharks swim along the US East Coast? In general, don’t they hate cold water? - Jinx [/QUOTE] Great Whites attacked off the East Coast as far North at least - off [Mass.](http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/sharks/innews/spotted2004.html) As of [2002](http://www.gameandfishmag.com/fishing/saltwater-fishing/gf_aa016302a/) on the Great Whites _Great whites are not common in U.S. waters, except for the northern west coast. California has recorded 79 great white attacks throughout history, while Oregon has 14 and Washington State has two. On the Atlantic coast, New Jersey has documented four, while Massachusetts, North Carolina and South Carolina have recorded just one each, although in late July 2001, what was suspected to be a 14-foot great white attacked a charter fishing boat off Cape Cod, Mass._ ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/5 "2007-09-20T02:03:16Z")
> **[Are There Any Arctic Sharks?](http://www.elasmo-research.org/education/topics/d_arctic.htm)** > > Put a description of the page here ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/6 "2007-09-20T02:09:00Z")
Some sharks will go all the way into the arctic. Most of the arctic sharks aren’t the really freaking dangerous JAWS type, though. The Greenland shark, for example, is big, but is usually described as being “sluggish” and not really “we need a bigger boat” material. Great whites don’t go completely into the arctic, but they go pretty far north and south. The wikipedia page for great whites has a map showing their range: > **[Great white shark](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_white_shark)** > > The great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans. It is the only known surviving species of its genus Carcharodon. The great white shark is notable for its size, with the largest preserved female specimen measuring 5.83 m (19.1 ft) in length and around 2,000 kg (4,410 lb) in weight at maturity. However, most are smal... (on the right side of the page) There’s a lot of sharks in the Chesapeake, but most of them are sharks like the sandbar shark. Sandbar sharks are big enough that they could probably put a hurtin on you if they wanted to (six or seven feet long), but they don’t generally chomp on people. People eating sharks, like bull sharks, aren’t completely unknown in the Chesapeake, but they aren’t exactly common there. This page has a map of shark attacks from 1670 to 2001 if you want to get an idea of where the people biters are hanging out. > **[sharkattackphotos.com](http://www.sharkattackphotos.com/Shark_Attack_Map.htm)** > > Shark Attack,Snake Bite Pictures,Stock Photo Pictures,自動車鈑金塗装,Sharks Photos,Sharks Teeth ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/7 "2007-09-20T03:38:46Z")
[http://www.njhm.com/matawanmaneater.htm](http://www.njhm.com/matawanmaneater.htm) Sometimes sharks attack in the strangest places. Marc ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/8 "2007-09-20T09:57:03Z")
There was a fatal shark attack in Buzzard’s Bay, Massachusetts in 1936. > **[List of fatal shark attacks in the United States](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal,_unprovoked_shark_attacks_in_the_United_States_by_decade)** > > This is a list of fatal shark attacks that occurred in United States territorial waters by decade in chronological order. > The badly injured youth was rushed to St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford. He died on the operating table that night while surgeons were amputating his left leg. > According to witness Martin Smith, Troy, along with a family friend, had been swimming out from the beach to meet the Black Cat, a catboat that had just picked up its mooring after a morning sail, when the shark att... (ETA) and a reported fatal Great White attack of a fisherman in his boat off Scituate in 1830 ( :dubious: ). ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/9 "2007-09-20T13:38:26Z")
The movie Jaws was set in Massachusetts so huge sharks pretty fare north are in the public conscienceness. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/10 "2007-09-20T14:26:17Z")
[QUOTE=MGibson] [http://www.njhm.com/matawanmaneater.htm](http://www.njhm.com/matawanmaneater.htm) Sometimes sharks attack in the strangest places. Marc [/QUOTE] Wow. That’s quite an incredible set of events described there. I’m just boggled by the responses to the shark attacks - “Look! a guy just got eaten alive by a shark! - let’s swim out there and have a look!” ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/11 "2007-09-20T14:27:26Z")
There are sharks in the North Atlantic all the way up into the Arctic - but most of them aren’t the dangerous ones you might worry about. Of about 350 species of sharks, there’s really only a few people ever worry about in terms of shark attacks; Bull sharks, white sharks, tiger sharks. Hammerhead, reef, mako, and some other sharks have been known to attack humans as well, but the first three are the big ones (not that even they attack humans all that often.) If you’re interested in shark attacks, the [International Shark Attack File](http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Sharks/ISAF/ISAF.htm) is a good page to explore. Oh yeah, and don’t forget about Land Sharks! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/12 "2007-09-20T16:04:42Z")
[QUOTE=Shagnasty] The movie Jaws was set in Massachusetts so huge sharks pretty fare north are in the public conscienceness. [/QUOTE] I believe it was set in New York. It was just filmed in Mass. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/13 "2007-09-20T16:30:12Z")
[QUOTE=tdn] I believe it was set in New York. It was just filmed in Mass. [/QUOTE] It’s set on the fictional “Amity Island”. There’s no direct mention of what state Amity is part of, though from several hints in the movie I’d say it’s in Mass - they want to get the Boston news wire to pick up the story of the first dead shark, one of the deputies points to all the license plates - Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey (implying they’re NOT in any of those states), when Brody is practicing his bad New England accent, his wife tells him he sounds like he’s from New York, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/14 "2007-09-20T16:42:50Z")
[QUOTE=jimmmy] In 400 years of recorded history no Shark has ever attacked a human in the Chesapeake Bay. [/QUOTE] As cold as that is, why the heck would any human ever be swimming in that Bay? ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/15 "2007-09-20T16:44:05Z")
I never would have guessed great whites are in the Mediterranean ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/16 "2007-09-20T16:48:58Z")
[QUOTE=muldoonthief] It’s set on the fictional “Amity Island”. There’s no direct mention of what state Amity is part of, though from several hints in the movie I’d say it’s in Mass - [/QUOTE] I thought they mentioned it was off of Long Island. But in it, someone mentions that you’re not considered an Islander unless your residency goes back at least 5 generations. That’s very Martha’s Vineyard, but maybe people say that on Nantucket and Block Island as well. Block Island is RI, but very close to NY. But it was definitely shot in Edgartown. In Jaws, Brody gets on the Chappy Ferry. In Jaws II, there is a very unambiguous shot of Edgartown Light. What’s funny is that a more recent movie, Stuck on You, took place on MV, but was shot in Rockport. Those are my two favorite places in the universe, and I know them well. I was not fooled. ---
**Author:** ![jimmmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/73ab20/32.png) [@jimmmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimmmy)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2007, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/17 "2007-09-21T00:47:30Z")
[QUOTE=t-bonham@scc.net] As cold as that is, why the heck would any human ever be swimming in that Bay? [/QUOTE] It is quite warm in the Summer ; June the [average temp is 72 degrees](http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/pr98/jun98/noaa98-r404.html) and July and August are warmer. ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2007, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sharks-how-far-north/419818/18 "2007-09-22T14:42:25Z")
In the book _Jaws_, the story is definitely set in New York (and I’m pretty sure on Long Island - not another island off Long Island). The movie might be more ambiguous.