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'Cocaine sharks' off Florida may be feasting on dumped bales of drugs
livescience ^

Posted on 07/20/2023 6:24:08 PM PDT by algore

For decades, huge bundles of cocaine have washed up on Florida beaches, having been smuggled from South and Central America. Hauls are often dumped at sea (both to give to smugglers and evade law enforcement), and currents and tides push them to shore.

In June, the U.S. Coast Guard seized over 14,100 pounds (6,400 kilograms) of cocaine in the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, with an estimated value of $186 million.

With so much cocaine entering the waters, Tom "The Blowfish" Hird wanted to find out whether the thousands of sharks off Florida were ingesting the dumped narcotics, and — if so — whether the drugs were having any impact on them.

In "Cocaine Sharks," which is part of Discovery's Shark Week, Hird and University of Florida environmental scientist Tracy Fanara carry out a series of experiments to find out.

"The deeper story here is the way that chemicals, pharmaceuticals and illicit drugs are entering our waterways — entering our oceans —

Hird and Fanara set their sights on the Florida Keys, where fishers tell stories of sharks consuming drugs that have been funneled into the region on ocean currents. In the show, they dive with sharks to look for any unusual behaviors and begin to see sharks acting in unexpected ways.

To investigate further, Hird and Fanara design three experiments to see how sharks react to bales of "cocaine" dropped in the water. They create packages similar in size and appearance to real cocaine bales. In the first, they set these pseudo-bales next to dummy swans to see what the sharks go to.

To their surprise, the sharks head straight for the bales, taking bites from them. One shark even grabs a bale and swims off with it.

(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...


TOPICS: Heated Discussion
KEYWORDS: cocaine; cocainesharks; donatedonaldtrump; donatefreerepublic; donatetrump; drugs; lost; minnow; shark
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There once was a privileged shark who thought he was an Apex Hunter...
1 posted on 07/20/2023 6:24:08 PM PDT by algore
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To: algore

Bttt


2 posted on 07/20/2023 6:27:33 PM PDT by ConservativeMan55 (In America, we don't do pin pricks. But sometimes we elect them.)
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To: algore

Ya mean they’re all jacked up? Just great.


3 posted on 07/20/2023 6:27:48 PM PDT by Libloather (Why do climate change hoax deniers live in mansions on the beach?)
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To: algore

No way Hunter will let the sharks beat him to it.


4 posted on 07/20/2023 6:29:06 PM PDT by ryderann
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To: algore

Great, and we can’t get Sam Jackson due to the strike.
He was already killed by a shark in one movie, but it wasn’t owed up…


5 posted on 07/20/2023 6:29:09 PM PDT by EEGator
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To: algore

Coked up sharks.

What could go wrong?


6 posted on 07/20/2023 6:30:00 PM PDT by Allegra (Stop the Zeepers from Censoring FReepers)
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To: algore
" 'Cocaine sharks' off Florida may be feasting on dumped bales of drugs"

"Feasting?" Highly unlikely. Sharks have sensors that detect the electricity of living things. They're not likely to mistake a bale of coke for something to be eaten.

7 posted on 07/20/2023 6:30:33 PM PDT by threefinger
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To: algore

Oh, a spin off from ‘Cocaine Bear’. Come on dizzknee, toss in some trans sharks and it’ll crush the box office.


8 posted on 07/20/2023 6:31:35 PM PDT by rktman (Destroy America from within? Check! WTH? Enlisted USN 1967 to end up with this💩? 🚫💉)
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To: algore

we have the sequel for the movie cocaine bear. hire everyone that survived the movie cocaine bear involved in the movie


9 posted on 07/20/2023 6:33:16 PM PDT by PCPOET7 (`)
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To: algore
When these coked-up sharks appear on land, that’s when I’ll be worried.


10 posted on 07/20/2023 6:34:37 PM PDT by Leaning Right (The steal is real.)
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To: algore

Poor sharks. They have no clue what the heck is happening to them. Are they capable of enjoying drugs?


11 posted on 07/20/2023 6:35:16 PM PDT by Veto! (FJB Sucks Rocks)
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To: algore

Now the White House will say that sharks came to the White House and left the coke behind


12 posted on 07/20/2023 6:35:33 PM PDT by Sarah Barracuda
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To: algore

Were gonna need a bigger bale.


13 posted on 07/20/2023 6:37:14 PM PDT by nickcarraway
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To: algore

“””’Cocaine sharks’ off Florida may be feasting on dumped bales of drugs”””

So now Tennesseans are at risk from shark attacks.


14 posted on 07/20/2023 6:37:16 PM PDT by ansel12 ((NATO warrior under Reagan, and RA under Nixon, bemoaning the pro-Russians from Vietnam to Ukraine.))
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To: Leaning Right

No sharks, just land dolphins…


15 posted on 07/20/2023 6:40:56 PM PDT by EEGator
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To: algore

Hunter Evil:

“You know, I have one simple request, and that is to have COCAINE sharks with frickin’ laser beams attached to their heads!”


16 posted on 07/20/2023 6:43:02 PM PDT by FlyingEagle
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To: algore

I can’t wait for the movie!

Can the main killer shark be named “Hunter”? And the cocaine shark-killer bada$$ needs to be constantly stating, “I’m just ‘biden’ my time”.


17 posted on 07/20/2023 6:44:28 PM PDT by CFW (old and retired)
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To: algore

Winner


18 posted on 07/20/2023 6:49:42 PM PDT by al baby (Sarcasm )
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To: CFW

I like it, I’m in.


19 posted on 07/20/2023 6:49:50 PM PDT by EEGator
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To: threefinger

I agree. This is politics from the left to soften the fact that sharks do kill people. It goes right after how sharks don’t attack people normally and only do it by mistake thinking humans are seals.

Recent attacks have shown otherwise. They don’t bite, release, and leave.
They stick around and finish the meal.

The left doesn’t want anyone killing sharks again.


20 posted on 07/20/2023 6:50:29 PM PDT by MarMema
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