The Dorsal Fin

In the second instance (in less than a week span) of a dead shark being found in an unusual location, the Gaston Gazette is reporting that a shark carcass was found in the drain of at a car wash in Charlotte, North Carolina after the area received as much as 6 inches of rain on Friday over the time period of a few hours. While the thought that the flooding could have washed the shark inland might seem like a reasonable explanation, it should be noted that Charlotte is well over 100 miles from the North Carolina coast.

To check the full story along with a photo of the shark, you can head over to the Gaston Gazette.

Lucy Mangum, the 6-year-old girl who was bitten by a shark off Ocracoke Island last week, appeared with her mother and father (Jordan and Craig Mangum) on The Early Show this morning. According to CBS News, Lucy is getting ready to leave the hospital after sustaining injuries to her foot and calf. Injuries to Lucy’s Achilles tendon are expected to take 6 to 8 weeks to recover, according to the report.

While 6-year-old Lucy didn’t seem particularly eager to talk to The Early Show anchor, her mother said that she expects her daughter to return to the water after her injuries are healed. She also noted that Lucy “loves the beach.” Here’s to a full and speedy recovery for Lucy!

Mike Gerken recently added the above video to his EvolutionUnderwater, which features footage of what the video description identifies as multiple Caribbean reef sharks (Carcharhinus perezi) at the wreck of the “Papoose” about 30 miles off the coast of Morehead City, NC. While the wrecks in this area are well-known for their sand tiger shark (Carcharias taurus) populations, it is considered rare for Caribbean reef sharks to be as far north as the waters off of North Carolina.

Kudos to Mike for capturing this encounter on video. For more information check out Mike’s Evolution Underwater website and Evolution Underwater blog

ABC News recently ran the above featured, inspired by recent shark attacks on children in North Carolina waters. While the feature covers several topics, I think the most worthwhile aspect of this report is the advice that parents should always accompany their children and be aware of risks of swimming in the ocean.

While the feature brings up the often used statistic that one is more likely to be struck by lightning than to be attacked by a shark, it fails to mention some of the other potential risks of swimming in the ocean. In particular, the ABC report does not even bring up the risk of drowning. In the past month alone, North Carolina beaches have unfortunately been the sites of multiple drownings.

Having visited North Carolina beaches on a fairly regular basis for many years of my life, I appreciate what NC beaches have to offer. However, there are inherent risks involved in swimming in the ocean, and when children are a part of the equation some of these risks become even greater. While it is important that beach goers are aware that sharks (as well as other predatory fish and potentially dangerous ocean life) are in the water, people should also be aware of the other potential dangers.

In the cases of the two recent North Carolina shark attacks, reports seem to indicate that there was proper parental supervision in both incidents. While even the most watchful parents can’t always prevent an unseen event such as a shark attack, proper supervision can certainly help to cut down some of the other risks involved with a day at the beach.

Update: ABC News is reporting that the girl involved in the shark attack off of Ocracoke Island is in “good condition.” ABC News also reports that he parents said she is in good spirits and commented that she liked dolphins “way better” than sharks.

WVEC.com (ABC 13) is reporting that a 6-year-old girl was bitten by a shark off of Ocracoke Island in North Carolina’s Outer Banks around 5pm, yesterday. The victim was bitten in the lower leg around the knee and foot area, according to an interview with Kenny Balance of the National Park Service. The victim was listed in critical condition as of this morning, according to Balance.

The girl was in shallow water with her father when the attack occurred, according to the report. Balance also noted that the victim had just turned 6 (initial reports listed her as being 5).