Just When You Thought Idaho Was Safe from Sharks

White-water rafting does have its hazards, but I’ve never heard it carries any risk of being exposed to shark attack. Advance token to Salmon River, Idaho, hundreds of miles from the ocean… and dig this…

Shark Discovered In Landlocked Idaho, Raising Questions

Don’t fall out of the raft!

I know, I know–they’re sayin’ it’s a hoax, somebody planted the shark there, it’s a salmon shark (genus Lamna), related to the great white shark. Lamna sharks do not enter fresh water. So what’s it doing in Idaho?

The Roman historian Livy would have had a field day with this. Big on omens, portents, and signs, old Livy was–calf born with three eyes, farmer’s plow turns up stone head, baby quotes Homer in Greek: he loved writing up the portents of the year. Because he thought they were a means God uses to get our attention.

Hey–shark turns up in Joe’s Marina on Barnegat Bay, New Jersey… so what? Happens every day. But when a shark turns up in the middle of Idaho–mama mia, that’s a portent!

Or a highly labor-intensive prank. Take your pick. (I’m with Livy.)

7 comments on “Just When You Thought Idaho Was Safe from Sharks

  1. Whiners! I have six sharks right now, in my yard, in the desert, but I’m not complaining about it. 🙂

  2. That’s nothing, during the last few nights, I saw polar bears swimming in our canal. It seems they only come out after dark.

    1. I knew that Michael. They were out in my back yard taking a coffee break, about noon today, and I overheard them talking about it. 🙂

Leave a Reply