Carcharodons, also known as white sharks, are rightfully considered the most dangerous waterfowl predators that roam the oceans. Many people would like to know what the largest one is and what it looks like. White shark.
These graceful predators swim in all oceans on the planet, with the exception of the Arctic Ocean. They live in warm waters, so people can often observe them close to the shore. California and Australia can be called the most favorite places for dangerous white sharks. These animals are also called “ White death”, since they are the ones who commit more than a third of all attacks on people by sharks in general. They have from 3 to 5 rows of sharp triangular teeth in their mouths, which are constantly replaced. The white shark has about 300 teeth in total.
Lifespan
Scientists believe that the lifespan of white sharks is 70-100 years. Their maturity occurs at about 30 years of age, at which time they begin to reproduce. These strong, powerful animals are created by nature to be predators. Usually, a female white shark carries several sharks at the same time (from 5 to 10), but gives birth to only one. This happens because the cubs destroy their brothers and sisters while still in the womb, this is how natural selection works.
White Shark Sizes
It is impossible to say exactly what the largest white shark is. Typically, adult female white sharks are larger than males, and can reach a length of 4.9 meters, while males grow up to 4 meters. But there is a lot of evidence, both oral and documented, pointing to other, larger data on the weight and length of the largest predators ever caught:
In 1959, a white shark 5.17 meters long and weighing 1.2 tons was caught on a fishing rod near the Great Australian Bight called Daniel Bay. Believed to be the largest line-caught and officially recorded big fish, it was caught by Elf Dean.
But it is known that in 1976 an even larger specimen of the white shark (or white death) was caught. Also off the coast of Australia, Cliven Green caught a shark weighing more than 1.5 tons and 5.24 meters long. True, there is no documentary evidence of this.
And near the Azores in 1978, with the help of harpoons, a huge white shark was caught with a length, according to various sources, from 6.2 to 7 meters. When they tried to harpoon her, the predator killed 2 fishermen: she bit one in half, and pushed the second into the water and broke her spine.
Another documented case was the capture of a shark, 6.4 meters long and weighing about 3.2 tons. This “white death” was caught and photographed off the coast of Cuba back in 1945.
It is also reliable that the largest measured female white shark was caught off Prince Edward Island in 1988. Its size was 6.1 meters and its weight was 1.9 tons.
There are unconfirmed reports that sharks measuring around 8 and 7 meters in size were discovered and caught in 1982 and 1987 respectively.
In addition to the specimens caught by fishermen, a huge pregnant female Carcharodon, approximately 6 meters long, was captured on camera in 2013 in waters off Mexico. Despite all this evidence, some scientists agree that the length of the white shark can reach 11-12 meters.
Perhaps they are right, there is a possibility that somewhere in ocean depths Huge representatives of this shark species still live. Or maybe they lived just recently, because the size of predators directly depends on their living conditions and the availability of sufficient food. IN Lately, humans do not contribute to improving the situation in the world's oceans. Fishing, man-made disasters, pollution environment(water in particular) – reduces the number and diversity of living organisms on the entire planet. And a small amount of food entails a decrease in the number and size of predators, who have nothing to feed their huge bodies.
Ecology
Basics:
White sharks are the largest predatory fish on the planet. They grow up to 6 meters in length and can weigh more than 2 tons. They have good intelligence and are quite curious. These animals have well-developed senses and an exceptionally well-developed brain that allows them to control these senses. This is why white sharks are at the top of the ocean food chain.
Their gray body allows them to camouflage well on the rocky bottom, and the underbelly of the sharks is white, which is why they received the name “white sharks.” Unlike other fish, sharks have a cartilaginous skeleton instead of bones. The white shark has 300 teeth, and they are arranged in seven rows.
The body of white sharks is ideal for swimming. Its torpedo-like shape and powerful tail allow it to swim at speeds of up to 24 kilometers per hour. When a shark chases prey, it can push its body forward, jumping out of the water. Her attack strategy involves quick, unexpected movements and a death grip with very strong jaws.
White sharks feed mainly on fish - rays, smaller sharks and other fish. When they reach maturity, sharks can attack marine mammals, including seals, sea lions, elephant seals, and also do not disdain carrion - they eat the corpses of large animals, they especially adore fat dead whales. There are known cases of white sharks attacking humans, but sharks were not known to eat people.
White sharks reach sexual maturity at 15 years of age, and they live on average about 60 years.
Habitats:
White sharks live in almost all oceans and seas, although they prefer temperate coastal areas. They can live in the open ocean, or near islands and off the coasts of continents, in cold and tropical waters at depths from a couple of meters to 250 meters. Researchers have noticed that many sharks are constantly migrating, for example from South Africa to Australia, from California to Hawaii. They migrate over very long distances.
Security status: vulnerable
White sharks are mercilessly exterminated for their fins, from which they make a delicious soup, and also for their jaws, which are often just hunting trophies. Sharks often die due to becoming entangled in fishing nets, and the younger generation also loses their habitat before reaching adulthood.
The white shark has 6 well-developed senses: smell, hearing, touch, taste, vision and... electromagnetism!
The sense of smell helps them distinguish between substances at the molecular level - 1 part in 10 billion parts of water. For example, a white shark can smell a seal colony 3 kilometers away.
The pores on a shark's face are filled with cells that sense the strength and direction of electromagnetic radiation. They use this sense to navigate the open ocean and to monitor the heartbeat and gill movements of prey.
Most white sharks are not deadly to humans, although they can bite. Researchers say these curious fish usually take a "test bite" and then release a person, but are unlikely to deliberately kill them to eat them.
White shark - among the many sea inhabitants(lat. Carcharodon carcharias) has long caused fear and speculation, which often turns out to be just a figment of people’s imagination. And the white predator itself, as if in mockery of humanity, has been simply improving its qualities as the most cunning underwater predator for millions of years.
Man-eating shark, jawed predator, white death - whatever people called this graceful, ominously mysterious, intelligent and organized animal. She really instilled and instills animal fear in people with just her appearance in the sea. Of all shark attacks on humans, a third are attributed to the great white shark. The predator lives in all coastal waters with temperatures ranging from 12 to 24 degrees Celsius. She lives on average 30 years, and reaches sexual maturity only at 15 years.
However, the deeper scientists and enthusiasts study this predator, the clearer the understanding becomes that the largest predatory fish in the world is not as deadly as the overly exaggerated rumors say. Many different studies and underwater recordings, as well as various and often dangerous experiments, have shown that humans are by no means the favorite delicacy for the great white shark.
When a white shark attacks
Often fatal shark attacks on a person occur because the person behaves too carelessly and forgets that one should not get close to it, for example, not to dive into the water in the hunting areas of the white predator.
This animal can even cause admiration, and not just fear, because the great white shark is one of the most armed predators in the world for hunting, since it has a very sensitive sense of smell, excellent hearing, vision, tactile and taste sensations and electromagnetism.
What does a white shark look like?
It has the body of a torpedo. Some individuals can reach a length of up to 12 meters, and their weight approaches three tons.
The shark has a white or very light belly, and top part bodies are gray, brown or green - so the great white shark is almost invisible in the depths of sea water. Seals, whales, fur seals, dolphins and other sharks are terrified of its huge mouth with triangular teeth arranged in several rows. The shark tears the flesh of the victim with its upper jaw, and holds it with its lower jaw.
This shark has an amazing ability to maintain its temperature higher than the temperature of the surrounding water. Therefore, it is considered a warm-blooded animal, just like all mammals. And besides, the great white shark has the most perfect sense of smell on the planet.
White shark's sense of smell
The sense of smell greatly influences the life of a shark, so two-thirds of the brain of the largest marine predatory fish is spent on its work.
Great white sharks are able to smell a substance dissolved 1 in 25,000,000 in water at a fairly large distance - 650 m.
White shark can catch electricity
The beautiful predator has a head that is unique in its ability to detect an electrical signal better than any modern laboratory, and human abilities exceed millions of times.
The great white shark has a special eye structure - like a cat, and is able to see prey in the dark, and a special organ of the shark - the lateral line - allows it to detect the slightest disturbances in the water at a distance of over 100 meters.
White shark breeding
It is noteworthy that great white sharks become predators even before they are born. Usually up to 5 sharks are born in the belly of a shark, but only one will be born. It is she who will devour all her brothers and sisters before they are born. Pregnancy lasts 11 months and occurs once every two years and a white shark is born.
Watch a video about how a great white shark lives in nature:
more about the white shark:
Carcharodon, or as it is also called "white death", lives in warm sea waters. It belongs to the order “lamniformes”, the family “herring sharks”.
This is one of the types of sharks that are the most aggressive, and they are the ones that attack humans.
Appearance
An adult reaches from 4.3 m to 6.2 m. At the same time, females are larger; their size is from 4.7-5.4 m, and their weight is from 1,500 to 2,500 kg. The average length of males is from 3.6 to 4.2 m, with a weight of 600-1,200 kg.
But there are also large individuals, their sizes reach up to 7 meters and weight up to 3,100 kg. She has an elongated strong body with a cone-shaped head. The body has gills and fins. The nose is the most important organ with which, like a dog, it can smell its prey or even a small amount of blood dissolved in a huge amount of water, this is about a drop of blood per 115 liters of water.
The most interesting thing about the white shark’s appearance is its huge teeth (up to 5 cm), growing in three rows. They are comparable to the teeth of a saw, thereby helping it hold prey or tear it into pieces if it cannot be swallowed whole.
If a tooth wears out or falls out, a new one grows in its place, resulting in several rows. The first row of teeth is mainly used, while the back ones serve as spare ones; in case of replacement, they are pushed out in place of the front ones.
But the teeth are not the worst thing, since her jaw squeezes the victim with a force of several tons per square centimeter, so the victim does not have the slightest chance of escaping from the mouth of this bloodthirsty predator. Its color is similar to a camouflage suit. The belly is white, and the sides and back are gray, with blue or brown tint, which gives her the advantage of not being noticed.
From below, it merges with the bright sky. From above, it is lost in the depths and thickness of the water, and from the side it visually breaks up into a light and dark spot, so the victim most often does not suspect that danger is already very close.
The caudal fin has the same length and width, both above and below. There are also five pairs of long gills on the body. The mouth resembles a wide, curved arc. There is a triangle-shaped fin on the back. On the chest there are long, large fins in the form of a spiral.
Habitats
Carcharodon is an inhabitant of the seas and oceans. He loves and feels very good in warm water. The water should be from 10 to 25 degrees above zero.
Most often they are closer to the surface of the water, but there are cases when the fish is almost at the bottom, withstanding low temperatures. As a rule, these are large individuals. White sharks mainly live in the south of the Sea of Japan.
They also live off the coast of the American continent. You can also find them on:
- Cuba;
- Bahamas;
- Argentina;
- Brazil;
- In the Indian Ocean;
- Seychelles;
On reefs, shallows and rocky capes, she gets her food and therefore her main patrol is there, as well as those areas that are inhabited by pinnipeds: seals, sea lions.
Lifestyle
This fish likes to lead a solitary lifestyle. She must swim, since she lacks a swim bladder, to provide herself with enough oxygen. The speed is 3.7 km/h.
These sharks have what is called dominance. Females are several times larger than males, older ones are larger than younger ones, and large ones are larger than smaller ones. When meeting individuals of their family, they behave more than friendly, but if the matter does not concern some personal territory, in this case one shark can bite another, thereby making it clear who is in charge in this case.
While searching for food, they rarely fight, resolving their conflicts with their own special behavior or a separate ritual. This shark is also known for the fact that it sticks its head out of the water, so it is better for it to see its prey and catch its scent, which is better captured in the air than in the water.
During an attack, the shark lifts its nose so that its grin comes to the fore and crashes into the victim. After which she, using special movements tears off part of the victim's body. A large individual that attacks large prey is capable of tearing off a piece weighing 65-75 kg. These predators are very curious and intelligent. They can communicate with each other if any situation requires it.
Reproduction.
The shark reproduces very slowly, since puberty occurs at 11-15 years in females, while in males this threshold is 10-11 years.
This is a viviparous fish that gives birth to one, less often two, young in 1 year. Gestation lasts about 10-11 months. After birth, the baby shark already has teeth, thanks to which it immediately begins to hunt and lead a predatory lifestyle. Due to the large gap between puberty and low fertility, sharks are facing extinction.
Lifespan
IN wildlife This type of shark can survive for more than 45 years.
Nutrition
Almost everything that floats in the water is a shark's food source. These include mammals, turtles, birds, fish, as well as:
Carrion also becomes an object of consumption, for example dead whales. The hunt takes place in the morning. The predator prefers solitary hunting, but the smell of blood, as a rule, attracts other relatives.
Thanks to her sense of smell, it is not difficult for her to detect even a small drop of blood at a distance of several kilometers.
After a hearty meal, this type of fish can for a long time remain without food. Exact amount The food eaten is not known for certain. There is an opinion among scientists that her appetite and portions of food consumed directly depend on the temperature of the water. As you know, metabolism occurs much faster in it than in cold water.
In general, Carcharodon eats when the opportunity presents itself. He eats, even if he has just had a big meal.
Shark and man
This shark is one of the most aggressive species of its relatives. She attacks people more often than others. More often than not, this happens out of curiosity. A shark, biting a person, tries to understand what it is, and it also bites sticks, surfboards and buoys.
She may also confuse her usual diet: a turtle or a pinniped, with a surfer, since they are similar on the surface of the water.
This type of fish is in great demand in the sport fishing industry. Once hooked, it can offer enormous resistance, which only adds excitement to this type of fishing. After she ends up on deck, the fishermen take her life, but they don’t eat the meat because; The urine it secretes passes through the muscles.
Security
This species is on the verge of extinction and extermination. Now the hunt for the white shark is open, as its jaw, teeth and fins are worth a lot of money. Frequent attacks on sharks by killer whales, which turn the shark on its back, after which the shark drowns, have also been recorded.
Perhaps the most dangerous and formidable predator of the world's oceans is the white shark. According to the scientific classification, white sharks belong to the chordate type, the herring family, the class of cartilaginous fish, the superorder of sharks and the order of lamniformes.
What are its characteristics, weight, length, appearance? Where does the white shark live and is it dangerous to humans? This will be discussed in detail below.
Great white shark Carcharodon
Great white shark, known to science just like carcharodon, it is a large predatory fish that lives in all waters of the world's oceans with the exception of the Arctic. This predator got its name thanks to white color belly, which is clearly separated from gray back with a broken line.
Average Carcharodon length exceeds 7 meters, and its weight is at least 3 tons. This rightfully suggests that such a fish is the largest on earth. It can only compete with whale and basking sharks, which are not dangerous to humans and feed mainly on plankton.
But not only the size of the carcharodon inspires horror in all living things, because such a predatory fish is firmly entrenched in the minds of people as a merciless killer, ready to attack at any convenient opportunity. That's right: these giant predatory fish are known for attack water sports enthusiasts(divers, surfers, swimmers).
And according to statistics, the chances of salvation from such a predator are much less than when falling under the wheels of a truck: if a carcharodon begins to pursue and attack its prey, then it does not stop until it finally tastes human flesh.
Interestingly, the great white shark is on the verge of extinction, and there are only only about 3500 individuals. As mentioned earlier, this predator belongs to the herring family, which also includes a number of sharks:
- regular mako;
- long-finned mako;
- Pacific salmon;
- Atlantic herring.
Carcharodon is believed to be one of the oldest organisms on the planet, and this opinion was given impetus by the research of scientists who came to the conclusion: the white shark is a close relative of the megalodon, which became extinct 5.5 million years ago. However, at the same time, other scientists believe that Carcharodon is still closer to the mako shark than to the ancient megalodon.
Great white shark range
The great white shark can be found in all waters of the world's oceans, where the temperature is not lower than 12 degrees and not higher than 24 degrees. In more cold water these predators are extremely rare. It is also interesting that such fish live both in salt water and in lightly salted and desalinated water.
Interesting fact: such a predator does not live and could not live in the Black Sea. This is explained by the fact that the water here is too fresh, and in the Black Sea there is not enough food for the survival of this predatory fish.
Carcharodon can be found on the coast USA, Canada, Guadeloupe, Argentina, Chile, Japan, China, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, as well as off the coast of Croatia and Italy, Portugal and North Africa. By the way, this species is protected in New Zealand.
Largest population lives off Dyer Island, which is in South Africa. There are also Scientific research these predatory fish.
White sharks settle in the seas. They feed on fur seals, whales, large bone fish. And only a large killer whale can terrify this predator.
Like most other sharks, Carcharodon has a spindle-shaped, streamlined body, a conical head, small eyes, nostrils and a wide mouth. The teeth of this fish are very sharp. They are triangular in shape and have small notches on the sides.
The approximate number of teeth varies from 280 to 300, with their help the predator easily deals with prey. All Carcharodon teeth arranged in 5 rows. The replacement of the first row of teeth occurs in young individuals once every three months, and in adults - once every eight months.
The white shark also has gills, which are located on the sides of the head (5 gill slits on each side). The color is typical for all similar fish: belly white, back gray. Thanks to this transition from one color to another, this predator can easily hunt in the water column and at the same time remain invisible.
On the back of Carcharodon there is one fin, two on the chest. The tail has a fin with two equally sized blades. Carcharodon has a very developed circulatory system, which warms up the muscles and allows the predator to swim quickly.
The interesting thing is that this fish no swim bladder, because of which she has to be on the move all the time, otherwise she will simply start to drown. But, obviously, such anatomy does not in the least prevent it from living for millions of years in the depths of the seas and oceans.
Dimensions: how much does a white shark weigh and what is its length
For many years, ichthyologists have been conducting research and arguing about the size of this formidable predator and how much such a fish weighs. One of the largest white sharks was recognized as being caught back in late XIX centuries in Australian waters, which was almost 11 meters long.
One more large specimen was caught off the coast of Canada in the first half of the 20th century. His length was 11.3 meters.
If we talk about the average sizes of carcharodon, they are as follows:
- average shark - from 4 to 5.2 meters in length and 700-1000 kg in weight;
- big shark– from 6 to 8 meters in length and 3500 kg in weight.
As a rule, females are larger than males. A large shark can be called one whose size is from 6 meters to 7.5 meters. The largest white shark can reach 12 meters in length.
And yet, scientific debate continues to this day. Ichthyologists question the facts about the captures of the largest carcharodons, since the difference in size between them and other white sharks is too great.
Scientists believe that the record figures most likely relate not to Carcharodon, but to giant sharks, thereby feeding on plankton. Moreover, the fact of catching big shark off the coast of Australia and Canada it was recorded not by scientists, but by ordinary fishermen.
To date, the largest size of Carcharodon is considered length 6.4 m and weight 3270 kg.
What does Carcharodon eat?
Juveniles feed on small bony fish, small marine animals and mammals.
More mature individuals hunt fur seals, sea lions, shellfish, big fish, even other sharks and whales.
Thanks to their color, these predators can easily camouflage themselves while hunting, and heat body allows them move quickly and catch your prey. And also thanks to active movements, active brain activity occurs, thanks to which this predator is able to come up with clever strategies during the hunt.
By the way, about attacks on people: very often surfers and swimmers with their body movements remind Carcharodon of the same seals, so it can actively attack them.
But here it is worth taking into account the fact that these predatory fish prefer fatty foods. Therefore, having bitten a person and tasted him, the shark swims away in disappointment. So the opinion that such predators feed on human flesh is very erroneous.