The Truth About the Six-Foot Shark Caught in Red River

A couple weeks ago, from July 7-13, Discovery Channel celebrated their annual "Shark Week" and again this year, millions of Americans tuned in.

Get our free mobile app

This year's celebration was wildly successful and according to thefutoncritic.com firmly ranked the network #1 in primetime in key demographics for the week.

With our obvious attraction to these magnificent creatures, it reminded me of the time a guy caught a 6 foot long, 135 pound shark in Red River.  Yes, our Red River!

It certainly wasn't a great white, but this bull shark was a lot more than Richard Durret had ever dreamed of.

It was September of 2004, when Durret was fishing just outside Simmesport, Louisiana, near the junction of the Atchafalaya River and the Red River and close to where those waters meet the Mississippi River. As he began to drag up his catfish net, he found he'd caught something he'd never seen before.

The 35 year old Durret stated, "I've been fishing since I was 10 years old, and I've caught some strange fish, but nothing like this."

According to freepublic.com

Finding a shark in the Red River is unusual, Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries biologist Ricky Moses said Wednesday, but it has happened before. Bull sharks have been known to swim into fresh water areas. "They can't survive in that environment for a long time," Moses said, "but they can stay in fresh water for a little while."

According to nationalgeographic.com, the bull shark can exceed 11 feet in length and weigh up to 500 pounds.  And they add,

Among the most likely sharks to attack humans, bull sharks favor shallow coastal waters—the same places humans prefer to swim.  Because of these characteristics, many experts consider bull sharks to be the most dangerous sharks in the world.

Now you're probably wondering just where Simmesport is located.  It's really close to Marksville, just southeast of Alexandria. Less than three hours from Shreveport!

Considering that the shark was already over three hours from the Gulf, it makes you wonder if it's possible they might come even further north.

Nah, one would never come all the way to Shreveport....would it?