'Cocaine Sharks' on Discovery Channel: Are sharks feeding on drugs dumped off Florida coast?

First cocaine bear, now cocaine sharks?

1985 brought us "Cocaine Bear," a Georgia bruin found to have died of a drug overdose after ingesting cocaine dumped from a plane by an ex-narcotics officer turned drug smuggler. Elizabeth Banks directed a 2023 dark comedy/survival thriller loosely based on the events.

On July 26, a Discovery Channel Shark Week episode, "Cocaine Sharks," looks into decades-old rumors of sharks coming into contact with cocaine jettisoned into the waters off Florida's coast.

Cocaine is known to turn up around Florida shores and waters.

• In 2021, a beachgoer in Boca Raton found a 70-pound package of cocaine bricks.
• Brevard County sheriff's deputies retrieved a 50-pound block south of Melbourne Beach in 2017.
• A one-kilogram block was washed ashore on Paradise Beach by waves stirred up by Hurricane Dorian in 2019.
• A package containing cocaine was found by a Treasure Coast spearfisher in 2020.

Sharks, too, are aplenty in Florida. In fact, the Sunshine State is the shark bite capital of the world.

Here's what we know about the show "Cocaine Sharks" and the unrelated "Cocaine Shark" movie.

What is Discovery Channel's Shark Week documentary 'Cocaine Sharks' about?

"Cocaine Sharks" on Discovery Channel examines whether sharks off Florida's coast ingest any of the cocaine dumped into the ocean and what, if any, effect it has on the predators, according to LiveScience.

Marine biologist Tom "The Blowfish" Hird told LiveScience he and University of Florida environmental scientist Tracy Fanara conducted experiments, including dropping packages that look similar to cocaine bales next to dummy swans into the water, to find out. The sharks reportedly swam right up to the bales and took bites.

Do sharks eat cocaine dumped into the ocean?

Hird said what they found doesn't necessarily show sharks ingest cocaine – more and repeated experiments and tests are necessary – but he hopes the show will lead to additional research, according to LiveScience.

When and where can you watch Discovery Channel's Shark Week show 'Cocaine Sharks'?

The episode airs on the Discovery Channel at 10 p.m. Wednesday, July 26, 2023. Shark Week is available to stream on Discovery+ and Max.

Florida shark bites:Florida is the shark bite capital of the world, but attacks are down in 2023

Shark Week 2023 with Jason Momoa:What channel and how to stream on Max, Discovery Plus

Is 'Cocaine Shark' movie based on a true story?

Yes, there's a "Cocaine Shark" movie. Unlike "Cocaine Bear", the 2023 sci-fi/horror movie "Cocaine Shark" is not based on a true story.

The movie's IMDB description reads: A mafia drug lord has unleashed a new, highly addictive stimulant on the streets called HT25, derived from sharks held captive in a secret lab, and which causes monstrous side effects. After an explosion and leak at the lab, an army of mutated, bloodthirsty sharks and other creatures are set loose on the world as a small band of people try to stop the carnage.

What is the movie 'Cocaine Shark' rated?

"Cocaine Shark" is unrated and available for streaming on tubi.