TELL ME THE TOOTH game

GOOD NEWS!!

The TELL ME THE TOOTH game on the fun things to make and do page is finally fixed. You will now be able to use it freely.

Have a happy new year shark fans!!

The Dusky Shark

  Dusky sharks are a species of requiem shark and they an grow to 4.2 metres (14 feet) long. They spend most of their time in the sunlight zone, but have been recorded to dive as deep as -400 metres. A single dusky shark can migrate from under two hundred to over a thousand kilometres a year in search of food.
  Dusky sharks can be found all over the world. They are common off the shores of Australia, Southern Japan and South Africa. They can also be found in the Atlantic Ocean on the shores of North, Central and South America. However, marine biologists suspect that they can also be found in the Mediterranean Sea in addition to the coasts of West Africa and Spain.

The dark blue shows the dusky shark's recorded range.
The light blue shows the dusky shark's suspected range.

  Dusky sharks are not as prolific feeders as their requiem opportunist counterparts like tiger and bull sharks, however, they are known to scavenge when they reach full maturity (around 20 years of age) and can be found tearing into the flesh of a dead whale amongst other more impressive specimens such as great whites and a group of three or for of them will decimate a porpoise or manatee carcass in seconds. Their bite force of a dusky shark is 60 kilograms per tooth, the equivalent of being crushed by ten cars, is a large contribution to their ability to crack through turtles shells.
  The diet of a dusky shark mainly consists of tuna, mackerel, bluefish and herring. But larger dusky sharks have been known to eat turtles, guitarfish, stingrays,  angel sharks, thresher sharks and dogfish. These sharks really have big appetites!!

A dusky shark in Sea World Queensland, Australia.

A dusky shark swimming in the Pacific Ocean.

Last year, a man wrestled a dusky shark in an attempt to get it away from a group of children. This video is professional footage of the struggle. Do not bother watching beyond 40 seconds as  the shark is not featured beyond that point.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9Dr1mcpoEA

Dangers to Sharks Part I

  Over the next few months, I will be publishing new posts on dangers to sharks. Each post will be about a different shark.

So what creatures pose a threat to sharks in the watery world they seem to lord over? The answer is that several do. Of course, all this varies depending on which type of shark you are talking about.

  Let’s start with the more imposing of the sharks: the great white. Many see this as king of the sea, mighty lord of all marine life. They are mistaken. Throughout its life, a great white shark will have a minimum of two threats to it. The one permanent threat is human beings. The reasons why- although none are good reasons for it, there cannot be a good one- I have mentioned countless times elsewhere on the blog. As a pup, the threat to great whites comes from octopi. These creatures will wrap a long, suckered tentacle around the shark’s body and reel it in, either for food or protection. Another danger comes from their brothers in arms, for if several great white pups were to be attracted to one, small sized piece of food, there is a chance that they would do damage to each other in order to eat it. 

  As adolescents, these sharks tend to travel between warm coastal waters around the world. These include the Great Barrier Reef, South Africa - for the yearly sardine run - Northern Africa and Southern Europe in the Mediterranean Sea and finally, in some of America's most popular beaches like Florida and Hawaii. Travelling between these places, however, leaves them open to a new danger: adult bull sharks. These sharks do not so much attack to find a meal - there are many easier pickings in these areas like dolphins, turtles, squid and large fish - but to rid themselves of a competitor for food and territory. 

  Finally, as adults, these sharks face a peril more terrible than those it has faced before: killer whales. Although, as their misleading name suggests, many people believe these are the smallest type of whale, they have been, in truth, recently reclassified as dolphins. They often travel in large packs and even when they are alone they do not hesitate to attack a great white. These amazing creatures from the deep always use the same tactics: the killer whale launches towards the great white's side, clamping its massive jaws around the middle of the shark. It then tosses the badly bleeding creature into the air. Sometimes, if the shark is badly hurt enough for there to be no risk of an attack in mid-air, the killer whale will leap after it and grab it again just to show off. If the shark continues to thrash about, then the killer whale will grab it in the middle with its jaws (again) and clamp down as tight as possible. It will race through the water like this, shaking its head while the shark fops like a rag-doll, until its nemesis is dead.
  
  So there you have it, despite its fearsome reputation as king of the seas, the great white shark will always have another creature capable of killing it.

A great white shark feeding on a large school of fish.

Amazing Aquariums

The world is full of mind blowing aquariums, where young aqua-enthusiasts can watch the majestic blue world from beyond danger. But for a long time, there have been debates over which is the best. It is up to you to decide. The following links are to videos about some of the most amazing aquariums, so watch them and add your comment on which you think is the best.

LINK TO VIDEO                                                                    NAME OF AQUARIUM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRMjuoqVgXU               -Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDp7AlbyLnI                  -London Aquarium
http://vimeo.com/15817321                                                      -Mare Nostrum Aquarium, Montpellier
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MmNEHLbiUM             -Okinawa Churami Aquarium, Japan

These are the four aquariums which seem to play host to the most fascinating of marine life (Two of which I have visited-London and Montpellier). This does not mean they are necessarily the best. If you know a better one, put a link to the video on a comment for everyone else to see.

Thank you shark fans

Thank you to all shark fans out there for making SHARK NEWS' birthday week one to remember. You have now viewed the blog a spectacular 2,146 times. More shark profiles will be coming soon, so keep a lookout and keep viewing!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHARK NEWS

  Tomorrow will be the first birthday of SHARK NEWS, and there is only one way to celebrate it: A SHARK CELEBRATION!!
  Over the next week, I will be bringing you some stunning pictures of sharks, plenty of awesome facts and maybe even a few mystical shark videos.
  So check back every day, this week is SHARKFEST, and it will come round every year from September 23rd to September 30th.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHARK NEWS!!

Gulf of Greenland?

  Roughly two days ago, scientists on board the boat RV Apalachee found a Greenland shark in the Gulf of Mexico. Greenland sharks only live in the Arctic circle and, until now, that was common knowledge. They are the only type of shark that can live underneath the polar ice caps. The specimen was twelve foot (just under four metres) long.
  The biologists and scientists on board the vessel were studying the effects of a three-year-old oil spill on marine life and found as many as forty-four species of shark on their journey-all alive- throughout the Gulf of Mexico.
  Chip Cotton, a Florida State University researcher and part of the expedition, said, quote: "No way is this the only Greenland shark in the Gulf." Which is a good sign for the shark species.

Greenland sharks were never found away from Greenland...
Until now.

The Sand Tiger Shark

  The sand tiger shark can be found all over the world. They tend not to stray far from shore though so are unlikely to be seen in the open ocean. They live near to the shore in Eastern China and parts of Japan, several Mediterranean countries such as Spain, France, Italy and Northern Africa, the Atlantic sides of Brazil and the United States of America, around South Africa, throughout the Red Sea and surrounding Australia. They are also one of the most common sharks to be found in aquariums as they do not migrate very far, are not very aggressive and do not need to be fed constantly.
  Just as with the great white shark, the sand tiger shark comes under many different names: the ragged tooth shark and the grey nurse being the most common. The latter is of course slightly inaccurate as nurse sharks are extremely gentle and un-energetic whereas the sand tiger is seventh on the list of most recorded attacks on humans. Its scientific name, Carcharias taurus, can also be misleading. Taurus means bull in Latin meaning that this shark is... Erm... The bull shark 2. In truth the sand tiger shark is its own species, not just a misnamed bull shark. The French name for it as well can be confusing: requin taurus. Requin means shark in French and taurus was mentioned above. I was befuddled by this name when I was in the Mare Nostrum aquarium in the Oddeseyum, Montpellier, in the South of France. As I'm sure you have guessed, it follows on from the Latin.
  The sand tiger has some of the most daunting and yet fascinating teeth in the world of sharks. I have several myself amongst a collection of teeth from many sharks (horn sharks, shortfin mako sharks et cetera, et cetera). They have so many hat they are apparently unable to close their mouths completely (either that or they just like to show off).

Just look at those teeth!! One glance at the mouth of that shark is enough to have even the slowest, ungainliest diver swimming in the opposite direction faster than Michael Phelps. (Of course, if the diver did swim away, they obviously hadn't read this blog and thought that sharks were the terrifying killers they are cut out to be.) And so that brings us round to what teeth do best: eating.
  Sand tigers tend to feed on crabs, lobsters, squid and large fish. This is where the curved teeth really help: crushing the shells of crabs and lobsters (just as we might crush the shell of an egg or even the outside of a cake with a fork. Can you see the similarities between the teeth of the shark and the prongs of the fork?) and holding slippery squid and fish in place, just like the short fin mako shark (which has very similar teeth). As with most sharks, sand tigers only attack humans when they are provoked or feeling uneasy.

A sand tiger shark, clearly depicting its teeth.

  Another interesting shark, more fascinating facts. It may not seem that much, but just knowing about their teeth, or their name can give us an insight into their world.

A sand tiger shark drifting peacefully across the seabed.

Shark Proof Bathing Suits? Think Again...

Recently, an Australian clothes making firm based in Sydney created what they advertised as 'Shark Proof Bathing Suits'. With financial backing from local universities, the firm created two types of these bathing suits. So what are these bathing suits with the ability to repel sharks? What abnormal powers do they possess? To be honest, they are but regular bathing suits but with what the creators see as a touch of genius: different colours. That is all. So what do these colours do to make them different from your bog-standard, common or garden (or is that lake or ocean?) bathing suit? Well, the first is dark blue which supposedly makes the person donning the swimming costume invisible to sharks. Nice try, but with one tiny problem: sharks don't just use their sense of sight, but they sense movements in the water around them and smell what they think might be prey. So has the second got anything better than the first? Well, the answer is it is even worse. The second has black and white stripes which are to make the person wearing it look similar to a belcher sea snake (a poisonous marine creature). This takes advantage of the shark's bad eyesight, as they won't realise that the person is much larger than a sea snake. Again, there is a slight problem: sharks love to eat belcher sea snakes.
  So there you have it; don't trust the bathing suits. And to the makers, I say "Back to the drawing board, bonkers boffins!!"

The Longfin Mako Shark

Almost as rare as the megamouth, the longfin mako shark is found in the deep sea, near to six hundred metres below the surface, in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans and the Mediterranean Sea. Sadly, they do not tend to stray as far as Britain. Despite being very rarely seen and one of the most little known about sharks still in existence, they are nonetheless truly fascinating creatur
  There have been no recorded attacks on humans by longfins, as they hardly ever mix with the creatures of the Sunlight Zone. Their diet consists of small fish, diamond squid and deep sea jellyfish, this mix of food leaves them smaller than other sharks, but a sustainable meal in the Twilight Zone and Dark Zone where they live is very hard to come by. However, this lack of food may just give them the edge over the sharks of the Sunlight Zone when it comes to hunting. Their senses are sharpened by hunger and when they have to find their food, they rarely fail.
  So we have covered the prey of the longfin, but now we turn to the predators. With the absence of killer whales and omnivorous, cannibalistic sharks such as tigers, great whites and bulls, the longfin mako shark has only two predators: deep sea fishermen and the majestic and mysterious giant squid, terroriser of the deep sea and ruler of the dark water. They kill with silence and without mercy. As with most of the creatures from the Dark Zone, they are not fussy and eats whatever it finds. Longfins are no exception. Their powerful petorcal fins (which give them their name) and sharp teeth are no match for the giant squid's tentacles, suckers, unimaginable strength and sheer size. As was mentioned above, deep sea creatures are not fussy. This makes them easy prey for fishermen who only have to drop their lines baited with rich, Sunlight Zone fish such as tuna and chum for many unsuspecting, malnourished fish (and evidently sharks) to come knocking.

Silvertip Shark

  The silvertip shark is a magestic and sometimes scary member of the shark family. Commonly found in Northern Australia, Eastern Africa and Madagascar, the Carribean and Central American coasts, Saudi Arabia and China, it can be very territoreial and will fight to the death to keep other sharks and large, imposing sea creatures away from its territory. When it comes to hunting, however, the silvertip will not eat fish that are in its territory, but will venture from the coral reefs where they live into the open ocean which supplies them with larger, more substantial food. Silvertips are opertunistic and will take fish from fishing lines or drag them out of deep sea trawler nets by their tails.
  Although fatal shark attacks are rare, a silvertip mother will attack a human visciously if she feels they are threatening her litter, which will stay in their mother's territory until they are half-a-year old, or herself. If a human approaches a lone silvertip too quickly, the shark will become stressed and may attack. As of 2008, four provoked, and none unprovoked, silvertip attacks on humans have been confirmed-none of which were fatal-each was registered by the International Shark Attack File.
  A silvertip shark can be recognised by its distinctive silver dorsal fin tip. It is important for divers to register this when diving near one of these sharks-all but one of the attacks mentioned above were caused by the diver approaching a small silvertip under the impression it was a sluggish, harmless whitetip reef shark- the tail tips also have the silver markings.

A silvertip shark, warily guarding its territory from
competitors.

The Megamouth Shark

  The megamouth shark is the most recently discovered shark. It was first found in 1976, when some fishermen hauled up their nets to find a dead creature in them!! It was 5.5m long and weighed 1215kg!!
That is a lot of shark!! The megamouth has a very cunning way of luring fish and krill into its mouth: it has luminous lips!! That may not sound amazing or helpful, but small sea creatures are attracted to light so they swim towards it and get eaten by the shark. If that doesn't amaze you I don't know what will.
As they are so rare, we know very little about these sharks. As of 2012, only 55 have been seen in a wide range as they have been found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans.

This is the most famous photo of a megamouth shark.
This was the first one ever o be seen by man.

Two Headed Bull Shark Found of Florida

On the 6th of March this year, a fisherman found a two-headed bull shark embryo of Florida Keys. The shark was one of roughly a dozen found with two heads worldwide since people started recording their findings. A two-headed shark is made when twin shark pups do not finish separating from each other. A creature like this would not survive long as the heads may kill each other as they fight to get the best food without realising that by killing its twin head, it kills itself. This simple growth problem occurs not only in sharks but in all types of creatures, humans included. This is the shark equivalent of siamese twins.

The two-headed embryo being weighed by a 'SHARKDEFENSE'* member

*SHARKDEFENSE is a shark protecting society in Florida.

The Bull Shark

The bull shark is, without a doubt, the most dangerous shark to humans. They are the most aggressive shark known to mankind as they have been known to kill a wading animal or human on sight, even if they won't eat the body afterwards, without provocation.
Despite the vicious, menacing atmosphere that surrounds this species, they are truly one of the most fascinating branches of the family of sharks. This comes down to being one of the only two sharks that can survive in rivers as well as the oceans and seas of the world. For a long time, it was known as the only shark which could survive in both of these completely different conditions until a fisherman in Australia caught a speartooth shark which, due to the fact they had been thought extinct for 108 years, was met with great fanfare. Most sharks explode if they enter a river due to the lack of salt in the water, yet the bull shark, and its talent-sharing Australian counterpart, do not. Scientists remain unable to figure out how they do this.
Bull sharks can grow up to 2.4 metres long and can weigh up to 98 kilograms. They spend most of their  lives at depths of about 30 metres below the surface when they are not in rivers. They live in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans and can venture up to 2,500 miles up the Amazon river and have also been found in the Mississippi, Ganges and Zambezi rivers but the distance between them and the ocean in the last three rivers mentioned has never been measured.

A bull shark stalking the river bed of the Amazon surrounded by baby bait fish which
are too small for it to eat.

The Oceanic Whitetip Shark

  The oceanic whitetip shark are aggressive, territorial open ocean sharks. They scavenge oceans all over the world for whale carcasses and stray sea mammals. Although not often seen by people, these sharks are often present at ocean accidents such as plane crashes and sinking ships. They were rumoured to be present during the sinking of the Titanic, scavenging for scraps of food.
  They can grow up to 4 meters long and have the longest petorcal fins of any shark. they tend to travel alone and will avoid other sharks.
  The diet of an oceanic whitetip varies over different periods of time, as they can never be sure when they will eat next, they will eat anything that they find whenever they find it.
  Oceanic whitetips are more often than not surrounded by pilot fish, who stay with it for protection. The shark can't eat them as they are small, therefore meaning that eating them gives them indigestion (never ever trust a shark like this people, babies or not, are classed in the big category!) Despite the fact that they don't attack humans unless they are starved or there has been a certain amount of provocation, they are curious, powerful and frankly dangerous sharks and are not to be taken lightly.

A oceanic whitetip shark drifting peacefully in the
Atlantic ocean accompanied by pilot fish.

Several Species of Shark are Nearing Extinction

Several species of open water sharks are on the verge of extinction as they continue to be caught and finned by illegal fishing. The fishing of certain sharks has been banned but illegal fisheries continue to kill them for their fins. The shortfin mako, silvertip, sand tiger, oceanic white tip, bigeye thresher, pelagic thresher, and porbeagle sharks are all in danger of disappearing of the face of the earth. Soupfin sharks, great white sharks and pacific sleeper sharks are so endangered that they could die out any day now. Meanwhile, blue sharks and tiger sharks are decreasing in numbers rapidly and may soon die out.There is but 1% of the original population of the porbeagle shark left since their discovery. The same is true for the smooth hammerhead, dusky and bull sharks.

  The world must now fight for the lives of the sharks WE have killed. WE killed them and now WE must save them. If one shark species dies out, it will be OUR fault. WE must stand together and fight for the shark's rights.