Tiger shark - cartilage fish from the family of gray sharks, which is the most dangerous type of sea animal for people.
This huge gray fish lives in coastal waters and does not descend deeper than 3 meters. Unfortunately, people from time to time face a formidable predator and it ends in a pitiable way, even before death.
Sharks are crucial to the health of the oceans. For example, they keep fish populations, especially around reefs, in proper balance. Like other predators, sharks will select fish that may be sick or injured, and this helps maintain healthy fish nutrition. Sharks also keep a population of intermediate predators, such as perch and nests. If these fish become too numerous, small populations of fish will collapse.
Unlike most fish, its skeleton is made of cartilage instead of bone. Sharks also do not have swim bladders for buoyancy, as bony fish do. Large and fatty liver provides shark buoyancy. Instead of scales, like other fish, the skin of a shark is covered with dermal teeth - tiny toothed dots that give it a very rough feeling, but allow the shark to swim effectively through the water. Every part of the shark's body is very efficient and capable of functioning without burning a lot of energy.
But per person it happens in exceptional cases, because the toothy fish prefers to swim at 350 meters depth. Sometimes a shark was noticed at a depth of 900 meters. Perhaps it goes down and deeper, but it is not fixed anywhere.
Representatives of this species of gray sharks are found in all seas in temperate and tropical latitudes. Predatory fish wander, swimming in warm waters from one side of the world to the other. Easily crosses the Indian, Atlantic, and even the Pacific Ocean. Although the depth of the ocean does not frighten her, the fish still prefer to be closer to the continents.
Sharks are well aware of the environment. They use the six senses — vision, smell, hearing, taste, touch, and electroreception. Electroreception takes place with the help of special sensors on the shark's head These sensors allow the shark to detect weak electrical signals emitted by other aquatic animals.
Teeth abundant in sharks. When they lose a tooth, the replacement is ready to take its place. The shape and size of the teeth are specific to each species and can help identify the animal. Some teeth are good for breaking large pieces of meat; others best hold on to smaller sliding products; others are made to crush shells.
Habitat covers areas such as the northern Indian Ocean, Caribbean waters and Oceania. A large number of observe near the north-west African coast and near the island of Madagascar. The coastal zone of the Australian continent and the Persian Gulf are very attractive for sharks of this species. But where they do not swim - this is the Mediterranean Sea.
Newport Aquarium Sharks
Our volunteer divers regularly find shark teeth, especially under feeders. You might be lucky to see a diver show shark teeth through our display windows. Sharks use different breeding methods, depending on the species. Oviparathicity: some species lay eggs containing a developing shark embryo that feeds on yolk. Once the yolk is consumed and the puppy shark is fully developed, it will hatch out of the egg, as chickens do. Ovivipiparity: Some species retain the embryo and yolk inside the maternal shark until the shark puppies are ready to be born. Vivirativity: Finally, some shark species have embryos that receive food from the female through the placenta, like a mammal. Once born, all shark puppies are at risk of being eaten. big fish or other sharks.
Sand tiger shark
Ultimately, the female gives birth to live puppies. . These needle-shaped teeth are ideal for capturing slippery fish, but not for tearing flesh, so these sharks will swallow all the fish they catch.Tiger Shark Appearance
This species is the largest representative of its family living in marine spaces. The length of the shark's body is 3-4 meters with a weight of 400 to 600 kg.
Females are usually larger than males. Some females reach a length of 5 meters, but as a rule, the length of the female does not exceed 4.5 meters. Some experts claim that the predator can grow to the size of 7.5 m, weighing 3 tons.
Tiger Shark Appearance
Sand tiger sharks are found in all tropical waters, with the exception of the eastern Pacific. It is the only shark species that is known to swallow and store air in its stomach in order to achieve neutral buoyancy, that is, to maintain a stable position, not sinking or jumping when it swims.
Sand shark
Among all species of sharks in the Newport Aquarium, the sand tiger is the closest genetic to the famous Great White Shark. Although slow sand tigers look fierce, they are considered non-aggressive. A sandstone shark is easily identified by a high dorsal fin on the back. It is found in all coastal areas of subtropical waters around the world.
A large female was caught off the coast of Australia; its weight reached 1,200 kg and its length was 5.5 m. No more cartilage fish with similar data were found, apparently large copy was an exceptional case.
The body of the fish has a gray tint. Juveniles have a greenish skin along which dark stripes pass, resembling a tiger coloring. From this predator and got its specific name. The stripes gradually disappear when the shark reaches 2 meters in length.
Why are tiger sharks called scavengers?
Sand sharks feed on bony fish, smaller sharks, rays, cephalopods and shrimps. It is known that they form groups by age. Shark puppies are viviparous and give birth to 14 puppies after a gestation period of 12 months. These sharks are very smooth, with a contrasting pattern - a dark back and a light underside. They prefer to eat fish, but will also have cephalopods and crustaceans. They are alive and only give birth from two to four puppies at a time.
California Leopard Shark
These bright fish with thick saddle inscriptions on the back can grow up to seven feet and swim in schools, unlike most sharks. They are native to laminar forests off the coast of California. Since they are adapted for rubbing water plants, it is convenient to touch them with people.
Such stripes perfectly mask young tiger sharks from larger enemies, including adult representatives of their own species.
Adult fish have a uniform upper body color. The belly is light yellow or white. The large head has a dull wedge shape. Shark fall very big size and armed with razor-sharp teeth. The teeth have a characteristic appearance - a beveled top and a blade with notches. With such teeth, a bloodthirsty predator easily tears apart any flesh. The front part of the body has a thickened look and tapers towards the tail, which means it has excellent streamlining. Although, the readings of the speed that a fish can develop are not very high. The maximum speed of the shark in the water is 30 km / h.
Port Jackson Shark
The head of this species is bull-shaped, and its back has distinctive black explanatory markings. This shark spends most of its time sitting on the bottom. Native to the waters of South Australia, they also grow among forest algae. They are part of a family called Bullhead or Hornsharks.
Shark sharks are not as common as the media, if you believed, and the fear of sharks is largely unfounded. The tiger shark, however, is one of the few sharks that are known to attack swimmers and surfers, unprovoked. cannibal shark for a good reason.
The tiger shark is a real toothy monster. Breeding
Puberty of predators is comparable to their size. For example, in males it occurs, with a body length of 2.3-2.5 m. To become mature, females must grow 2.5-3 m long. These fish are viviparous.
Appearance and name
The tiger shark is one of the most likely shark species to attack an unprovoked person, and for this reason it is considered one of the most dangerous sharks in the world. Tiger sharks are a type of aggressive Big Three shark, along with large white sharks and bull sharks. Of the 111 recorded shark tiger attacks, 31 years have been fatal. The only species that attacks and kills more people than the tiger shark.
Why are tiger sharks so dangerous? First, they live in waters where people swim, so the chances of meeting are greater than those of deep-sea shark species. Secondly, tiger sharks are big and strong and can easily overpower a person in the water. And thirdly, tiger sharks have teeth designed to cut their food, so the damage they cause is destructive.
Fertilization occurs 1 time in 3 years, pregnancy lasts 16 months. A shark can produce from 10 to 80 sharks at a time. Cubs have a length of from 51 to 78 cm. When born, small tiger sharks immediately begin an independent life.
In the period before the birth of the mother shark appetite is lost. This circumstance helps to avoid cannibalism. In order to protect their babies, female sharks get together in packs, as the young everywhere lurk the danger, and above all, from the male tiger sharks.
What do tiger sharks look like?
The tiger shark is named after dark vertical stripes on either side of its body, which resemble tiger markings. These stripes really disappear as the tiger shark ages, so they cannot be used as a distinctive feature by every human being.
Young tiger sharks have dark spots or spots that eventually merge into stripes. For this reason, this species is sometimes called the leopard shark or the spotted shark. The tiger shark has a thick head and body, although it is already in the tail. The muzzle is dull and somewhat rounded.
Surviving in the depths of the ocean is not easy, however, those who are lucky grow into huge and fierce predators. There are no exact data on the life span of tiger sharks, but there is information that representatives of the species can live for more than 12 years.
Tiger Shark Behavior and Nutrition
Predatory fish are omnivorous and able to deal with everything that produces any movement. The diet of young individuals are mollusks, fish and. When sharks grow up, their diet is greatly expanded. Their victims are not only fish, but also other types of sharks, fur seals, sea lions, dolphins and even birds sitting on the water. Sharks love to feast on carrion and garbage, which many swims in the coastal zone.
How is a tiger shark classified?
Tiger sharks are among largest species sharks, both in length and in weight. Women over the age of men. They are usually solitary, but sometimes they gather where food sources are numerous. Tiger sharks belong to the requiem shark family; sharks that migrate and endure live young. Tiger sharks are classified as follows. Tiger shark mate, with a man, inserting a clasper into the female to release the sperm and fertilize her eggs.
Newborn tiger sharks are very vulnerable to predation, including other tiger sharks. Tiger sharks, i.e. their embryos develop inside the eggs inside the body of the mother sharks, egg hatches, and then the mother gives birth to live young. In contrast to viviparous organisms, tiger sharks do not have a placental connection to feed their developing young. While the mother has egg yolk, it feeds the immature tiger shark.
Tiger sharks have a great sense of smell. Smells in the water spread even better than in the airspace and the shark can feel the blood for several kilometers. Much depends on where the undercurrent goes.
In pursuit of prey, sharks often appear in close proximity to the coast and the likelihood of a collision with a person is high. According to statistics for 2011, 169 tiger shark attacks on humans were observed worldwide. 29 of them are fatal. It is very difficult to escape during a shark attack, given its huge strong jaws and sharp teeth.
Tiger sharks live in coastal waters and, apparently, prefer areas that are muddy and shallow, like coves and estuaries. During the day they usually stay in deeper waters. At night, they can be found on a hunt near reefs and shallows. Tiger sharks have been confirmed at a depth of up to 350 meters, but, as a rule, are not considered deep-sea.
Tiger sharks live all over the world, both in tropical and warm temperate seas. In the eastern Pacific, they can meet from the southern coast of California to Peru. Their range in the western Atlantic Ocean begins near Uruguay and extends north to Cape Cod. Tiger sharks are known to inhabit the waters around New Zealand, Africa, the Galapagos Islands and other parts of the Indo-Pacific region, including the Red Sea.
In order to hunt, sharks never join in flocks. It is common for them to eat their smaller relative. Normally, sharks are rather slow. However, sensing prey, the fish begins to move quickly and rapidly.
These predators do not have an air bubble and cannot hang in the water because of this. They have to be in motion all the time. The shark chooses a cave or seabed where it can rest lying down. Tiger sharks hunt mostly at night.
Food and hunting method
The short answer is what they want. Tiger sharks are lonely, nocturnal hunters, and they do not prefer any particular prey. They will eat almost everything they encounter, including fish, birds, rays and even other sharks. Tiger sharks also have a tendency to consume trash, floating in bays and hollows, sometimes leading to their demise. Tiger sharks are also cleared from carrion, and human remains were found in the contents of the stomach.
People create much more than sharks, people. Nearly a third of sharks and rays in the world are endangered and at risk of extinction, mainly as a result of human activity and climate change. Sharks are top-predators-consumers of food, and their decline can divert the balance of organisms in marine ecosystems.
Number of
These representatives are constantly hunted because of valuable fins and liver. In recent years, the population has declined, but in general, is quite stable.
Currently, the population of tiger sharks has the status of "close to vulnerable." Predators are not kept in captivity, as the fish do not live for a long time outside the ocean expanses and soon die.
Currently, tiger sharks are not threatened, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, although they are identified as threatened species. Tiger sharks are frequent bycatch victims, which means that they were accidentally killed by fishing methods designed to collect other species. They are also washed for commercial and recreational purposes in some areas of their range. Despite the fact that tiger nuts are prohibited, the number of tiger sharks is likely to die from the illegal harvesting of fins.
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The tiger shark is in the “honorable” third place in the list of ten that it is highly undesirable for any of us to meet. The second name of this species is the leopard shark. In the fish system, its place is determined as follows: the family of gray sharks (Carcharhinidae) in the karhariniform (Carcharhiniformes) detachment in the class of cartilage fish. The scientific Latin name of this shark is Galeocerdo cuvier.
Sand tiger sharks and tiger sharks do not match
In Australia, tiger sharks are profitable and are selected near swimming areas where shark attacks are a matter of concern. They are found all over the world, both in the oceans and in public aquariums. 
First of all, let's take one thing: sand tiger sharks are not the same thing as they really are not related at all. Tiger sharks are larger, have a pattern of spots and stripes, which give them their own name and more rounded snouts. Sand tiger sharks have sharp snouts and have reddish spots on their backs.
The genus name is associated with the Greek word "galeos" (γαλεός), which means "shark". And the name of the species “cuvier” is on behalf of the famous French naturalist, whose name is Georges Leopold Cuvier.
Distribution and other features of the tiger shark
The tiger shark, one of them, has a vast area of distribution: almost the entire world ocean of the tropical and subtropical regions (both in the open ocean and off the coast). The central part of the Pacific Ocean is the place where these sharks are found most often. Active at night.
Appearance and name
The name "tiger shark" is associated with a characteristic color. In young individuals that have not reached a length of two meters, there are clearly visible dark transverse stripes on either side, resembling a tiger pattern. At a young age, the stripes play the role of camouflage, masking the young sharks from larger relatives.
What does a tiger shark look like in adulthood?
The color of the upper torso of adults may be of varying intensity of gray shades with blurred darker gray spots. These are the remains of dull and faded stripes that adorn the sides and backs of young sharks.
The abdominal side of the tiger shark's torso, like in all pelagic species, is lighter than the dorsal: dirty white shades. Watch the video about tiger shark:
It is believed that the name "tiger shark" recorded its cruel character, because it is one of the most deadly sharks of the oceans.
In front of the shark body of this species is thicker, tapers in the belly area, and in the tail part is rather thin. Look carefully at the photo of the tiger shark and you will see these features of its structure.
This shark is distinguished large head and big eyes. Thanks to the wedge-shaped form, the head is very mobile, and the shark easily turns it to the right and left without difficulty. The tiger shark has a blunt and short snout, with a huge mouth that has powerful and strong jaw muscles. On the video about the tiger shark, you can see her mouth.
Uniqueness of teeth
Of particular note is the teeth of this terrible predator, they do not look like the teeth of other sharks. You can even admire them if you just look at the photo of a tiger shark - her teeth.
What are the features of the structure of the teeth:
- the width of the base of the tooth is greater than its length (height);
- they are sharp and large, and the edges are roughly notched;
- each notch has even smaller notches along the edges;
- the outer edge slopes inward about 45 degrees;
- the size and shape of the lower and upper teeth are about the same;
- only the first 2 rows of teeth are working.
Interesting fact: within ten years, about 24 thousand teeth grow and are used and discarded by one individual.
What are the advantages of a tiger shark with such uniquely arranged teeth and strong jaw muscles?
- Literally, not only the soft tissues are cut, but also the bones of the victims.
- Shells of sea turtles are very easily crushed.
Dimensions
After becoming acquainted with the capture tool (uniquely arranged teeth), the question arises: “What is the size of the tiger shark?” As one of the largest species of sharks in the oceans, they are large. The largest individual of this species, recorded by the Guinness Book of Records, was a female (pregnant) 550 centimeters long and weighing almost 1.5 tons. She was caught near Australia.
According to unconfirmed reports maximum size the tiger shark is designated by numbers 632 cm, 740 and 910 cm.
On average, their length is usually in the range from 325 cm to 425 cm, while the weight is from 350 kg to 635 kg. Sometimes there are larger individuals: males with a length of 450 cm, and females - 500 cm.
Food and hunting method
Observing what a tiger shark looks like, it seems that it is clumsy due to its large build. But in spite of such a build, she is an excellent swimmer among sharks of the karharin-like order.
With a slow patrol of the territory, it is characterized by a small speed, while the fish makes barely noticeable movements. But as soon as the shark senses its prey, it changes and becomes very fast. Attacking it instantly "goes" at great speed.
How does a tiger shark find prey, because it hunts even in the dark? These devices are:
- On its snout are the expanded pores of electroreceptors, thanks to which it catches the most minimal changes in the surrounding electric field.
- The lateral line located along the sides of the body fixes the minimum vibrations of the surrounding water space.
Tiger sharks hunt at night and alone. They sail away from the coast and rise closer to the surface. Only combed crocodiles can compete for food with them. Orcas can attack tiger sharks: see the video below.
This type of shark is very voracious and illegible in food. She eats everything:
- crustaceans (lobsters and crabs);
- mollusks (gastropods, bivalves, cephalopods);
- different types of fish, even skates and other sharks (gray-blue, the maximum length of which is 250 cm);
- marine mammals (seals, dugongs, sea lions, bottle-nosed dolphins and some others);
- sea turtles, even such large ones: green, leathery and loggerhead (it eats them from a strong shell).
Despite the diversity of the menu, the basis of the diet of tiger sharks - small animals. At the opening of the stomach large sharks This species was found relatively small fish (20 cm long).
The tiger shark has a very keen sense of smell, which enables it to catch minimal traces of blood. Perceiving the bass sound waves, she confidently finds her victim in muddy water. Then begins to circle around the prey and explore it, pushing the snout. Often the victim is swallowed whole.
A lot of different things were taken from the stomachs of tiger sharks: cans, boots, beer bottles, dog and cat remains, car tires, cans and many other unexpected items.
This is evidence that sharks are completely illegible in relation to food and can swallow everything.
Breeding
The ability to reproduce occurs in males who have reached a length of 2 - 2.9 meters. Mature females are somewhat larger: 2.5-3.5 m in length. The offspring is born every two years on the third. The process of mating is traumatic for the female, since the male often inflicts wounds on her, holding her with her teeth.
The tiger shark is an egg-breeding species. Pregnancy lasts more than a year (up to 16 months). The number of babies in the litter is 10–80 individuals, ranging in length from half a meter to 76 cm. After the birth of a shark, the born shark does not receive any care from the mother and has to independently ensure its own safety.
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