FOSSILGUY.COM

Fast Facts about Sharks

This is a Whitetip Reef Shark that was cruising around while snorkeling in Tonga.

No Bones:
Sharks don't have bones! Instead, they have Cartilage.
Cartilage is firm but more flexible than bone. It is found in your nose and ears.
Fish that are made of Cartilage are called "chondrichthyes." This class of fish include Sharks, Skates, Rays, and Chimaeras.

Many Types of Sharks:
Sharks and Rays belong to the Elasmobranchii subclass.
This subclass contains 8 extant (living) orders, which contains over 600 species.
Over 400 of those species are sharks! Of the 400 species of sharks, how many can you name?

Sharks are Ancient:
Sharks first appear around 450 million years ago in the Ordovician time period.
Some of the very first shark fossils come from the Harding sandstone in Colorado.
The first sharks may not have had teeth or even jaws!
Here is an article about Shark Evolution.

The Largest Shark:
The largest shark is the Whale Shark. Whale sharks can reach lengths over 40 feet!
Don't worry, they are filter feeders, which means they eat mainly plankton, tiny fish, jellyfish, and shrimp.

The Largest Prehistoric Shark:
The largest prehistoric shark is called the Megalodon. Megalodon was like a GIANT Great White shark.
It could probably reach sizes over 60 feet in length, and ate whales
Luckily it wen't extinct around 2.5 million years ago!
Here is an article all about the Megalodon Shark

Teeth:
Sharks are unique in that they have rows of replacement teeth growing behind each tooth. When one falls out, another one simply replaces it.
A shark can go through 10,000 to 20,000 teeth in its lifetime!

Habitat:
Sharks have adapted to a wide range of conditions. Some live in tropical waters, others live in arctic waters. Some live near-shore, while others live in the open ocean. Some prefer very deep water, others prefer shallow water.
Some sharks, like the Bull shark and the River shark can even tolerate freshwater!

Size:
Sharks also come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.
Most sharks are under 3 feet in length.
However, some sharks are quite large. The Basking shark can reach lengths of over 30 feet, while the Whale shark can reach lengths of over 40 feet!

Sense of Smell:
The Great White shark can smell a single drop of blood in an olympic sized pool!

Conservation Status: Although the total numbers of sharks are unclear, many sharks are threatened by overfishing and shark finning.
According to the IUCN, 25% of all shark and ray species are threatened with extinction.
110 species are listed as threatened and another 95 species are listed as near threatened.

Shark Attack... Not.

Althought the media wants you think otherwise, shark attacks are rare! Humans are not a food source for sharks, even the Great White. Consider the following:
On average there are less than 100 shark attacks per year. Of those, less than 10 are fatal.
When at the beach, your chances of being attacked by a shark are a mere 1 in 11.5 million.
To give you a perspective, here are some other averages:

In the United States:
There is less than 1 fatal shark attack each year
Vending machines kill 2 people per year
Snakes kill 5 people per year
Icicles kill 15 people per year
Horses kill 20 people per year
Cows kill 20 people per year
Lightning kills 49 people per year
Deer kill 130 people per year
700 people accidentally drown each year
Texting while driving kills 3,000 people per year
Global Averages
Sharks kill 10 people per year Jellyfish kill 30 people per year
Champagne corks kill 24 people per year
Coconuts kill 150 people per year
Elephants kill 500 people per year
Hippos kill 3,000 people per year
Snakes kill around 40,000 people per year!