HOOPERSISLAND, Md. - Larry "Boo" Powley says his Monday morning was a little bit more eventful than he had planned. After a 300-pound bull shark got caught in his fishing net, he says his phone has been ringing non-stop.
"It's not the first one I've caught, I've caught some a few years ago. But being the water is this fresh to see one come up, but the bull shark he can go in fresh water too. And he was right huge," Powley said.
Powley said bull sharks are a little unpredictable so there's a sense of fear when his crew sees one every now and again.
"It's just unusual to see them, but kind of scary when you do. Especially when we've got to handle him to get him out of there. And he's so aggressive so the crew is really weary of them because they're really mean," Powley said.
Powley said this shark in particular was very weak after fighting to escape the nets he had set up in the Chesapeake Bay. But Powley said sharks are not very profitable with the labor required to bring it back to shore, so he let it back into the bay. Powley said seeing a bull shark means the bay's health may be improving.
"I don't know if he come back or not. But I hope he did because that's the only predator the cownose skates got. And that's the worst, destructive animal you've got in the Chesapeake Bay because they uproot the grass, he eats all the soft crabs, the little crabs," Powley said.
While it might have been scary and shocking for Powley, it did make for a good social media post. After sharing his picture with a friend, Powley's photo with the shark has already gotten over 5,000 shares and 640 comments on
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Facebook.
