What Bull Shark Teeth Reveal About Their Powerful Bite and Diet

Bull sharks (Carcharhinus Leucas) are one of the ocean’s most fearsome creatures. Although some animals may prey on bull sharks, such as crocodiles, killer whales, and the occasional great white shark, bull sharks do not have many natural predators. Their stocky frame and extremely powerful bite make bull sharks an apex predator you do not want to mess with.

When it comes to sharks, bull sharks are certainly unique in their ability to switch habitats and thrive in different spots. Their teeth serve this purpose by helping bull sharks to hunt and eat nearly anything. If you’re ever lucky enough to see a bull shark in the ocean (hopefully from a boat!) or find a bull shark tooth on your local beach, here’s what you should know about this shark’s incredible teeth.

A Brief Overview of Bull Sharks

Bull sharks get their name from their short, stout, “bull-like” snout and appearance. These solitary sharks do not spend much time around other sharks outside of mating season.

Appearance-wise, bull sharks have gray-blue skin (fun fact: shark skin is actually made up of dermal denticles that are similar to teeth) and can grow up to eleven feet in length for females, or seven for males. Adult bull sharks usually weigh between 200 to 500 pounds.

Bull sharks are exceptionally unique because of their environmental versatility. Unlike most sharks, bull sharks are not restricted to ocean water.

Kayleigh Grant, a diver who runs Kaimana Ocean Safari and Kaimana Expeditions, has been diving with sharks for years. She explains, “Bull sharks are impressive. They’re known for their adaptability and can survive in both salt and freshwater environments, which is rare for sharks. Bull sharks are also one of the few species known to frequent river systems.”

Bull sharks have previously been seen in the Amazon River, Mississippi River, Brisbane River, Zambezi River, and Lake Nicaragua. This is due to special glands and kidney functions that help maintain salt levels even when swimming in fresh, non-ocean water.

Will Bull Sharks Bite Humans?

Since bull sharks are more likely to swim in shallow, coastal water, they are also more likely to encounter humans. Bull sharks are considered one of the top three shark species most frequently involved in attacks on humans, along with great white sharks and tiger sharks. “Bull sharks are territorial and really keep me on my toes when I’m diving,” Grant says.

She also reminds people that shark attacks are rare. You shouldn’t be afraid to swim just based on the potential of encountering sharks, saying, “One of the biggest misconceptions is that sharks are mindless killers constantly on the hunt for humans. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Sharks are highly evolved, intelligent animals that play a vital role in maintaining the health of marine ecosystems. The vast majority of shark species are not dangerous to humans. Even the few that can be very rarely are.”

She acknowledges that while tiger and bull sharks are involved in biting humans, it’s unfair and inaccurate to label these sharks as aggressive. Since bull sharks “often hunt in murky, shallow water where visibility is low,” they may not even realize that they are biting a human until it happens. As Grant shares, “They’re just doing what apex predators do—explore and survive. Most human-shark interactions end without incident, and most are provoked, meaning we as humans put ourselves in a situation to be bitten by diving or fishing.”

The Basics of Bull Shark Teeth

Hopefully, you’ll never be bitten by a bull shark, and that bite will be left to the fish. Still, seeing the unique shape and characteristics of these teeth gives you a much stronger understanding of how bull shark teeth have adapted to their hunting strategy and diet.

How Many Teeth Do Bull Sharks Have?

Bull sharks have fifty rows of teeth, each with about seven teeth, culminating in a total of 350 teeth per shark. Altogether, bull sharks may have and/or lose a total of 35,000 teeth in their lifetime.

This is because bull sharks constantly replace their teeth, “a process known as polyphyodonty,” says Grant. “They have multiple rows of teeth in their jaws, and as one tooth is lost or worn down, another moves forward to replace it. It’s like a conveyor belt system. This process is shared across most shark species, but the rate and shape of replacement teeth can vary depending on diet and age. What a cool skill!”

What are Bull Shark Teeth Made Of?

Each bull shark tooth contains dentin (humans also have dentin below our enamel!) covered by hard enameloid that makes the tooth durable and difficult to break. Bull shark teeth, especially fossilized teeth, are also characterized by a dense root at the point where the tooth connects to the jaw. The root showcases how strong the bull shark’s bite is. In fact, the bull shark’s bite is one of the strongest of any shark at 1,300 pounds per square inch.

What Do Bull Shark Teeth Look Like?

Like many shark teeth, bull shark teeth tend to be lighter in color while still in the shark’s mouth. “Shades of white to cream,” Grant explains. Once the tooth falls out of the shark’s mouth, it may change in color to black or brown based on the sediment in the area, mineralization, and how long it is before someone finds the tooth.

In terms of shape, bull shark teeth are somewhat triangular. They also may be shorter than other shark teeth, coming in at around 1-1.5 inches. When asked to compare bull shark teeth to another shark, Grant says, “Bull shark teeth are shorter and stouter than tiger shark teeth, built more for grabbing and tearing than slicing.”

Jesse Anderson, a fossil enthusiast known as The Tooth Detective who leads shark tooth finding tours at North Carolina’s Wrightsville Beach, agrees, sharing, “Both tiger shark teeth and bull shark teeth are serrated, but bull shark teeth have a much more distinctive point to them.”

Interestingly, these teeth differ depending on whether they come from the top or bottom of the shark’s mouth. Although both sets of teeth curve inwards, which Anderson says acts “as the perfect trap to hold prey,” the top and bottom teeth serve different purposes:

• Bottom jaw: Broad base with thinner, narrower teeth; more needle-like; less prominent serrations; perfect for holding fish or other prey in place

• Top jaw: Broad and triangular; more prominent serrations; best for tearing flesh from what they’ve captured into smaller, bite-size pieces

A Bull Shark Eats a Varied Diet

Some sharks have specialized diets and will mostly, if not only, pursue certain prey. For example, hammerhead sharks are known to eat a diet heavy in stingrays. Whale sharks are filter feeders that eat mostly plankton and fish eggs. However, bull sharks are not very selective when it comes to their meals. Bull sharks are opportunistic feeders. In simpler terms, they will eat whatever is available to them. Their teeth are strong and serrated, allowing bull sharks to catch prey that other sharks or marine predators might avoid. Bull sharks are known to eat:

• Many different fish, including smaller sharks

• Dolphins

• Rays or skate fish

• Sea turtles

• Sea birds

• Squid and other cephalopods

Occasionally, bull sharks will also eat mammals like seals and are even known to kill and eat other bull sharks. Having such a diverse diet has played a major role in why these sharks have become adapted to living in both saltwater and freshwater environments.

A Final Note for Fossil Hunters

Beachcombing has become an increasingly popular hobby. People love searching to see what they can find, from sea glass to shark teeth. If you’re a shark tooth hunter curious about where to find fossilized bull shark teeth or why these fossilized teeth are so interesting, check out the information below.

How Old are Fossilized Bull Shark Teeth?

Many fossilized bull shark teeth are found in Miocene-Pliocene deposits and tend to be around four to eight million years old. If you find a fossilized bull shark tooth on the beach, you are quite literally holding a piece of our world’s history.

Where Can You Find Fossilized Bull Shark Teeth?

You are most likely to find fossilized bull shark teeth in certain areas of the United States. These include:

• Calvert Cliffs State Park in Maryland

• Various spots along the North Carolina coastline

• Aurora Fossil Museum in Aurora, North Carolina

• Venice, Florida

• Casperson Beach in Florida

• Yorktown Formation in Virginia

If you’re not located in the United States, don’t worry. You can still find bull shark tooth fossils! Check out the Bahia Ingelsa Formation in Chile. You can also find bull shark tooth fossils at the Cacuaco-Luanda Formations in Angola or in Eocene deposits near Khouribga, Morocco.

Fossilized Bull Shark Teeth Teach Us More About Bull Sharks

Scientific knowledge around bull sharks and their teeth only continues to grow. That’s part of why finding fossilized teeth can be so important. Studying these fossils helps scientists and researchers better understand how these sharks evolved and adapted, as well as how the environment changed.

A March 2025 study published in Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, and Palaeoecology even found that checking certain isotopes in fossilized shark teeth was effective at dating fossil formations! So, even though you now know a lot about bull shark teeth, make sure to keep your eye on fossilized shark tooth research. You never know what new information will come out next!

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