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Shark Fun Facts
There are Sharks in every corner of the World. The
first sharks on Earth were 400 million years ago. There are 350 different
types of Sharks and their size ranges from 6 inches to 45 feet. Many people
are afraid of Sharks but many do not harm people, only about 25 species
are known to attack man. There are up to 80 types of Sharks that are in
threat of extinction. Extinction means there are not many of them
left because they are being killed for shark meat and liver oil.
Sharks have well developed senses which helps them to
survive in their environment. The life span of the shark is 25 years and
they never stop growing. Sharks are fish not mammals - they breathe
through gills.
Below is a list of some information about Sharks and some activities for you to do. When you are finished, take some time to explore a few internet sites with your partner. Have Fun!
The Dwarf Shark is the Smallest Shark = 6 inches
This picture shows the Dwarf Shark's teeth. The Dwarf shark is also called the Cookie-cutter because of the way it's teeth are shaped. This picture shows how small the head is by seeing the man's fingers holding it.
Activity: Take out your ruler and see how big 6 inches is. Draw a 6 inch shark in your Shark journal.
The Whale Shark is
the Largest Shark = 45 feet
which is as big as a tractor trailer truck or a sailing ship.
Even though the Whale Shark is the biggest it is not the scariest. It doesn't even bite anything and it mostly ignores fish. Instead, it eats tiny microscopic ocean plants and animals known as plankton.
The Tiger Shark or Leopard Shark is known as the garbage shark because it will eat almost anything. A fisherman once caught a tiger shark and found in its stomach 9 shoes, a belt and a pair of pants. It will eat bony fish, sea mammals and birds. It is dangerous to humans.
You can see how the Leopard Shark got its name.
Activity: Refer to an in classroom book about Leopards and compare the picture with this one.
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The tiger shark is about 16 feet
long. It is called the tiger shark because of its markings. Activity: Using the classroom yardstick (a yardstick = 3 feet) measure on the floor how big the tiger shark is. Tape pieces of paper together to show the length of the tiger shark. |
The Blue Shark a dark violet blue body with a white underside. It's body is slender and it has a narrow snout. It is easy to spot because it swims near the surface with its fins usually sticking out of the water. The blue shark is the most traveled shark. The longest known travel is from New York to Brazil = 3,740 miles.
The Blue Shark is 10 1/2 feet long = the height of the classroom.
Activity: Look at the classroom Globe and locate New York, U.S.A. and Brazil to see how far one blue shark traveled. Make an entry in your Shark journal and include a drawing showing this.
The Great White Shark swims in deep cold seas. It is gray with a white underside. This makes the Great White Shark hard to see. From above the shark looks like the water and from below the shark looks like the sky. The Great White shark is called the lion of the ocean, it feeds on sea mammals, turtles and even other sharks.
The Great White Shark is between 15 - 20 feet long.
The Great Hammerhead Shark is an odd looking shark. It has a thick bar across the front of its head with an eye at each end of the bar. It is brownish green in color with a white underside. It mainly eats squid and octopus and sometimes salmon and other fish.
The Great Hammerhead shark is 20 feet long.
Activity: Why do you think
this shark is called Hammerhead?
The Bull Shark is
the only fresh water shark. It is found in fresh water rivers and
lakes. It is gray in color with a lighter underside. It is
considered dangerous. It is the most frequent attacker of people
because it swims in shallow waters where people swim.
The bull shark is 11feet long. It is thick bodied with a short blunt snout. It eats other sharks, bony fish, turtles and birds.
Now that you have had a chance to learn some Shark Facts, take some time to browse the internet sites on Sharks below. Think about which Shark you would like to do a story about as you view the sites.
*Remember to click on the word "Back" at the left hand top part of your monitor to get back to this page.