Sharks
Silo of shark species, from lagoons to the deep sea.
Great white shark
Carcharodon carcharias
Great white shark
An iconic apex predator able to leap clean out of the water to surprise prey, and to cover thousands of kilometres on transoceanic migrations still poorly understood.
🌊 0–1200 m
- ⚡ Can leap entirely out of the water to surprise prey at the surface
- ⚡ Ultra-fine electroreception via hundreds of ampullae of Lorenzini
Frilled shark
Chlamydoselachus anguineus
Frilled shark
Nicknamed the "snake shark" or a living fossil, it has changed very little in 80 million years and resembles a giant eel with 300 needle-like teeth.
🌊 50–1500 m
- ⚡ Considered a living fossil, virtually unchanged for 80 million years
- ⚡ The longest known gestation period of any vertebrate: about 3.5 years
Whale shark
Rhincodon typus
Whale shark
The largest fish in the world, a peaceful filter feeder that can reach the size of a school bus while feeding almost exclusively on plankton.
🌊 0–1900 m
- ⚡ The largest fish in the world, able to exceed 18 metres in length
- ⚡ A spot pattern unique to each individual, like a fingerprint
Bull shark
Carcharhinus leucas
Bull shark
The only large shark able to survive in fresh water for long periods, it has been found more than 4,000 km up the Amazon.
🌊 0–150 m
- ⚡ The only large shark able to survive long-term in fresh water, found far up major rivers
- ⚡ A hunting technique of ramming before biting
Megamouth shark
Megachasma pelagios
Megamouth shark
So rare it was only discovered in 1976, with fewer than 100 individuals observed since, despite reaching over 5 metres in length.
🌊 12–250 m
- ⚡ A species discovered only in 1976, one of the major zoological discoveries of the 20th century
- ⚡ A mouth that can open over a metre wide to filter plankton
Goblin shark
Mitsukurina owstoni
Goblin shark
Nicknamed the "alien shark", it projects its jaws out of its head at blinding speed to catch prey — one of the strangest attacks in the animal kingdom.
🌊 100–1300 m
- ⚡ Can project its jaws out of its head in a fraction of a second to catch prey
- ⚡ Detects prey via electrical sensors spread across its long snout
Scalloped hammerhead shark
Sphyrna lewini
Scalloped hammerhead shark
Its hammer-shaped head, the cephalofoil, is an extraordinary biological radar, studded with electrical sensors able to detect prey buried in the sand.
🌊 0–80 m
- ⚡ Ultra-sensitive electroreception via ampullae of Lorenzini spread across its cephalofoil
- ⚡ Near-360° panoramic vision
Tiger shark
Galeocerdo cuvier
Tiger shark
Nicknamed "the wastebasket of the sea" for its extraordinarily opportunistic diet, it has been known to swallow objects as improbable as licence plates or tyres.
🌊 0–350 m
- ⚡ The most varied diet known in any shark, including non-food objects
- ⚡ Teeth able to slice through the shell of an adult sea turtle