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Each one of the different types of sharks is an amazing and unique creature.
They are theultimate predator; apex hunters and eating machines.
Their entire existence is based on hunting and eating.
vianatgeo
(Its a lifestyle I could get accustomed to myself.)
Sharks arebeautiful animals, and they deserve our respect, love, and adoration.
How Many Species of Sharks Are There?
There are currently around 500 different types of sharks that have been classified.
These different shark species are classified as belonging to 8 different orders.
It is also the shallowest, with an average depth of just over one thousand meters.
However, it is still home to eight different shark species.
Yet, it is also one of the most interesting andintriguing sharkson the planet.
Greenland Shark A Gentle Giant
The Greenland shark is a remarkable animal.
Indeed,scientists have discovered Greenland sharks live to be around 400 years old.
The Greenland shark is an evolutionary marvel, a docile shark that is sluggish and slow-growing in all aspects.
Their laidback approach to life goes a long way to explaining their longevity.
It is believed that they grow at a rate of just 1cm a year.
This places them in the same sizing category as the fearsome great white.
With a diet that consists mainly of carrion, they are also known to feast on salmon and seals.
Their technique for catching such speedy creatures is just one of the many mysteries surrounding this unique creature.
Salmon Shark Cousin to the King
Another shark that calls the Arctic Ocean its home is the Salmon shark.
The shark also has the somewhatunique ability to regulate its body temperature.
However, should you happen to spot one, we suggest steering clear, just in case.
Shark Breeds of the Atlantic Ocean (North and South)
Ah, the Atlantic Ocean.
One hundred six million square kilometers of shark-infested goodness.
There has never been a live sighting of a whale sharks birth.
There are fishing restrictions in place to protect this beautiful creature.
However, their numbers are still declining year on year.
Without question, hammerheads are the most distinctive punch in of sharks, given their namesake-shaped head.
Besides looking cool, their unique head acts as a form of hydrodynamic bow plane.
This means the shark can turn on a dime, giving it extreme maneuverability.
A herd fish, some species shrug off the solitary image of most sharks and swim in schools.
In some of the larger species, these groups can be segregated by sex.
Their diet consists mainly of squid and crustaceans.
However, some larger species of hammerhead are known to eat stingrays.
There are numerous examples of mature hammerheads being found with stingray barbs embedded into their bodies.
Mako Shark Speed Demon
Themako shark is the fastest throw in of sharkand an apex predator thanks to it.
A fully mature mako shark can grow up to 3.8 meters in length.
What this means is that they are adept hunters in colder waters.
This means they have no natural predators.
Did You Know Three Facts About the Mako Shark
6.
Goblin Shark The Ugly One
Earlier in this post, I said that sharks were beautiful and majestic creatures.
Well, the goblin shark is the exception that proves the rule.
This is one ugly ass shark!
Theres no gentle way to say it.
Theirlong snout, thick, ungainly jaws, and misshapen teethmake them an easy shark species to identify.
Very little else is known about these secretive sharks.
The goblin shark is so strange looking to even go beyond the so ugly its cute classification.
Yet, it is precisely its horrifying appearance that makes it such a fascinating creature.
Despite their inability to eat large prey, the nurse shark is a large species.
Adults can grow up to 4.5 meters in length.
In addition, nurse sharks are slow swimming which makes them a relatively easy target for fishermen.
The silky shark is anear-perfect predator, thanks in large part to its exceptional hearing.
Silkies attack in groups diving down into their prey open-mouthed and ravenous.
Their preferred diet consists of tuna, squid, and octopus.
The great white is one of the most advanced predators on earth.
The truth is great white shark attacks on humans are rare and often a case of mistaken identity.
There are not many areas of the ocean where a great white has not been seen.
Great white sharks live to around 30 years and give birth to egg developed young.
A fully mature tiger shark can grow to around 5 meters and weigh in at over 1,800 pounds.
The shark prefers the warmer waters of the Indian ocean.
However, there have been sightings off of Cape Cod and the coast of Japan.
Despite the fact that they can attack humans, the concept of them being man-eaters is again somewhat mythical.
Tiger sharks are nocturnal animals, which means they hunt at night.
An opportunistic predator, the oceanic whitetip will never pass up an opportunity to grab a bite to eat.
Zebra (Leopard) Shark The Aquarium Favorite
The leopard shark is a shark that many people will recognize.
Not just because of its interesting coloration but because it is astaple addition to any commercial aquarium.
These normally bottom-dwelling fish are one of the lucky types of sharks who can rest and still breatheunderwater.
Often, they turn to face the flow of the current to keep water flowing over their gills.
The Leopard shark is a peaceful fish that can grow to around 3.5 meters in length.
A nocturnal animal, the leopard shark is just as often prey as it is predator.
One of the inshore shark breeds, the Spinner rarely likes to venture into water deeper than 350 feet.
Despite their aggressive hunting techniques, they pose no real threat to humans.
Despite this, it is the smallest of the three filter-feeding types of sharks.
There have been just a handful of instances of this shark being captured.
However, as deep-sea fishing pushes deeper and deeper, expect that number to rise.
It has small soft finds and an asymmetrical tail to boot.
It covers a staggering 165 million square kilometers.
Just let that sink in for a moment.
Sharks, and lots of them.
There are thirty-four recorded types of sharks off the North American Pacific coast alone.
Random thought What is it with triangular bodies of water causing such trouble on the American coast?
Despite living out in the deep waters, it is a small shark rarely getting longer than 1 meter.
Their diet consists mainly of small fish and squid.
They have large eyes, and it is widely believed that they are visual hunters.
Unlike many types of sharks, the crocodile shark doesnt give birth to large litters.
Usually, a female will give birth to between 1 to 4 pups.
They are born live, and it is believed they are nourished by the mother using unfertilized eggs.
Given their size and deep-sea location, crocodile sharks pose no real threat to humans.
However, caution would always be advised given their powerful jaws and natural predatory nature.
There is very little known about their population levels; however, they are not considered endangered or threatened.
Interestingly, unlike many other shark breeds, they have a very small habitat.
They rarely stray from the same 1,000 square meter area.
Horn sharks are bottom-dwelling sharks with broad, muscular fins that help them move along the seabed.
The horn shark has a breeding cycle that is different from many other shark species.
Once fertilized, these eggs will develop for between 6 and 7 months.
The exact rate of embryo growth is dependant on the ambient water temperature.
There is a lot that is not known about the Thresher shark.
There is just no data to show it.
Their numbers are sadly in a steady decline, thanks mainly to fishing.
They are commonly found in water depths of around 1,500 meters.
Interestingly enough, they spent their day down in the depths and ascend to the surface during the night.
Feeding on small squid and bony fish, they are deceptively vicious predators.
A mature cookiecutter shark will only grow to around half a meter in length.
Yet, it is an aggressive predatory regularly taking chunks out of whales and larger sea mammals.
However, they have been times when they have been noticed as deep as 3.7 km!
In addition, given its small size, it poses no danger to humans.
Most shark breeds need to move to breathe.
So a shark is constantly moving from the day it is born to the day it dies.
Furthermore, these icicles or brinicles will freeze any animal they come into contact with also.
Sharks have roamed the earth for over 400 million years.
Thats longer than the oldest dated tree on this planet.
Its only natural, therefore, that a few shark species have been lost along the way.
It is believed that these were the precursor to the placoid scales that cover modern-day sharks.
Most likely avoiding the deeper water where the real giant monsters of the ancient seas called home.
Unlike modern-day sharks and many other prehistoric shark breeds Edestuss teeth did not fall out when they were old.
Megalodon The King of Kings!
This is three times longer than the largest great white.
In fact, the meg was the ruler of the seas for over 20 million years.
A giant creature takes a giant bite.
This is ten times stronger than the great white and 100 times stronger than a human!
There is a reason the megalodon has been such a popular creature for works of fiction.
What Drives Our Love Affair with Sharks?
As I mentioned at the start, I love sharks.
I always have done.
They are just fascinating creatures, and its not just because of the Great White.
Ive written fiction novels about Megalodon, and Ive voluntarily studied sharks for my own enjoyment.
Not in the ocean but online, of course.
Sharks make fantastic movie villains.
It could also be because, to make it conquer the world, humankind took to the seas.
We fear sharks, and we respect sharks, and that is an intoxicating combination of emotions.
The reality is that sharks do not pose a huge risk to human life.
Sharks are the king of the ocean.
We are intrinsically connected, eternally walking the same path but on different terrain.
I say this not in approval but disgust.
Each year it is thought that we kill millions of sharks.
Thats a heck of a lot more damage to them than they do to us.
Should things not change, our love affair will come to an unfortunate end.
These are just some of the different sharks currently on the endangered list.
Pondicherry Shark
The Pondicherry shark is, without question, the most endangered shark species in the world.
However, it has since been sighted in some Sri Lankan rivers.
A small shark, the Pondicherry only reaches a meter in length and poses no threat to humans.
Yet, it was fished extensively and used for meat.
So despite its extreme scarcity, it was still being sold on fish markets in small Sri Lankan villages.
Ganges Shark
The Ganges shark is a critically endangeredfreshwater rivershark.
Take the Borneo shark, which was not sighted between 1934 and 2004 and seemingly disappeared again in 2017.
Our Favorite Types of Sharks: Conclusion
Out infatuation with sharks is engrained into our psyche.
We seem to have a connection with these majestic beasts that cannot be defined or broken.
Sharks are the unrivaled sovereign of the seas, and rightly so.
They are amazing and fascinating creatures.
From large to small, no two shark species are the same.
We barely scratched the surface with our list of the best types of sharks.
There are so many that were also deserving of a mention.
