Latest Shark Stories
ATLANTA (AP) - A prized whale shark at the world's largest aquarium died Thursday night, the second death of a popular animal at the center in 10 days.Ralph, one of four whale sharks in the only such exhibit outside Asia, arrived at the Georgia Aquarium in June 2005 from Taiwan, where he had been destined to become seafood. The cause of death was not immediately determined."Recently, he has not been eating well and has had some unusual swimming patterns," aquarium spokeswoman Donna...
By Jeremy Manier, Chicago Tribune Nov. 29--A fearsome mega-predator of the ancient seas had the most powerful jaws of any fish that ever lived, according to a new study that makes even the biggest great white shark seem like a slack-jawed weakling. The new report by scientists at the Field Museum and the University of Chicago offers a unique window into the bizarre aquatic world of 400 million years ago, when the conquest of dry land by animals had barely begun and the first jawed...
BEIJING - Many species of shark are facing a serious threat to their existence because of worldwide fishing trends, environmentalists said Wednesday.Fishermen "used to cut the lines and let sharks go," said Pete Kinghts, executive director of WildAid, a San Francisco-based conservation group, told a shark conservation conference. In recent years, however, fishermen have kept the sharks to sell their lucrative fins.One-third of the more than 500 shark species are threatened with...
By Frank Jack Daniel SAN BLAS, Mexico (Reuters) - Three Mexican men who spent months lost and drifting across the Pacific Ocean in a flimsy fishing boat arrived home on Friday to a heroes' welcome. The bewildered-looking trio faced a barrage of questions from more than 100 noisy journalists, including over unproven allegations of drug smuggling, after they touched down in Mexico City on a commercial flight from Honolulu. The men's 25-foot (8-meter) fiberglass boat ran into trouble off...
By Nellie Andreeva LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Production on CBS' upcoming legal drama "Shark" has been shut down after the sudden death of star James Woods' younger brother. Woods received the call about his brother Michael Jeffrey Woods' passing Wednesday evening while he was on set, and immediately flew to Rhode Island, where his family lives. The cause of the death is believed to be a heart attack. "Shark," which stars Woods as a celebrity attorney-turned-prosecutor, began...
By Alister Doyle, Environment CorrespondentOSLO (Reuters) - Thousands of marine animals could be tracked under a $150 million project to understand threats to life in the oceans with technology perfected for supermarket checkouts, scientists said on Monday.Under the scheme, scientists would implant electronic tags into creatures such as salmon, tuna, sharks, sturgeon, penguins or polar bears to register their movements via acoustic receivers on the floors of the oceans or via...
ATLANTA - The world's largest aquarium has added two of the world's largest fish. Two female whale sharks - Alice and Trixie - went on display Sunday after arriving the night before at the Georgia Aquarium. They joined two male whale sharks, Ralph and Norton, in their 6 million-gallon tank. The four sharks are the only ones of their kind on display outside of Asia. The females were flown more than 8,000 miles from Taipei, Taiwan. They received a police escort from Hartsfield-Jackson...
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A Mexican marine biologist has discovered a new shark species in the murky depths of Mexico's Sea of Cortez, the first new shark find in the wildlife-rich inlet in 34 years.Postgraduate student Juan Carlos Perez was on a fishing boat in early 2003 studying sharks from the Mustelus family netted at depths of 660 feet when he noticed some of them had darker skin and white markings.The sharks, slender, dark gray-brown and around 5 feet (1.5 meters) long, turned out to be...
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A Mexican marine biologist has discovered a new shark species in the murky depths of Mexico's Sea of Cortez, the first new shark find in the wildlife-rich inlet in 34 years. Postgraduate student Juan Carlos Perez was on a fishing boat in early 2003 studying sharks from the Mustelus family netted at depths of 660 feet when he noticed some of them had darker skin and white markings. The sharks, slender, dark gray-brown and around 5 feet (1.5 meters) long, turned...
By George Thande VICTORIA (Reuters) - The Seychelles has banned the cutting off of sharks' fins by foreign fishermen to curb a flourishing global trade that is threatening the survival of the sea predator and marine ecosystems. The United Nations estimates that 100 million sharks are killed every year world-wide, mostly for their fins which are a delicacy in East Asia where a bowl of shark fin soup can command high prices. Dozens of countries have banned the practice of slicing off of...
Latest Shark Reference Libraries
The slender bamboo shark is a bottom dweller found in shallow coastal waters where the ocean floor is sandy or muddy--around bays, inlets, and coral reefs. Found mainly in the Indo-West Pacific waters from the Arabian Sea to India; also in Thailand, Indonesia, Taiwan, Philippines, and Solomon Islands. It is occasionally found in freshwater of the Perak River of Malaysia. The body of this species is brownish in color covered with dark splotches above and cream colored underneath. The mouth...
This harmless shark is native to the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Indonesia, it is also found in coastal waters from Japan to India. It lives on the ocean floor in shallow areas around coral reefs, hiding during the day and feeding at night. In Taiwan and Madagascar the whitespotted bamboo shark is used for food. Occasionally this species is kept in home aquariums as pets. The young whitespotted bamboo shark will have a black body covered with white and light blue spots and dark vertical...
The Barbeled houndshark (Leptocharias smithii) is a species of bottom dwelling shark and sole member of the Leptochariidae family. It is a fish found in the Atlantic Ocean, inhabiting coastal waters of Africa from Mauritania to Angola and found at depths up to 246 feet. It is occasionally found as far north as the Mediterranean Sea. Its habitat is typically muddy water around river mouths. This fish can grow up to 32 inches in length, and is characterized by its long, slender body,...
The Leopard Shark (Triakis semifasciata) is a species of hound shark found in the coastal waters of the eastern Pacific Ocean, along the coast of North America from Oregon to Baja California. Its habitat is rocky areas, rocky reefs, kelp beds, sandy areas and under piers. Tagging has revealed that stock is mostly resident in San Francisco Bay. However, about 10 percent of the population migrate further out into the ocean seasonally. They swim mainly at depths of 10 to 250 feet. They prefer...
The Horn Shark (Heterodontus francisci) is a species of bullhead shark that ranges from central California to the Gulf of California, Mexico, and possibly Ecuador and Peru. Its habitat includes rocky reefs, kelp beds, sand flats, crevices, and caverns at depths from 7 to 490 feet. It is mostly nocturnal and is rather sluggish in the daytime. The adult can reach a length of 4 feet and weigh about 22 pounds. It is brown with black spots. If harassed it may bite. It has poisonous spines on...
