The tiger shark is a requiem shark whose name comes from the dark gray stripes and spots running along its body vertically. These markings are more readily observable in younger sharks, fading away with age.
Animalia | |
Chordata | |
Chondrichthyes | |
Carcharhiniformes | |
Carcharhinidae | |
Galeocerdo | |
G. cuvier |
Animalia | |
Chordata | |
Chondrichthyes | |
Carcharhiniformes | |
Carcharhinidae | |
Galeocerdo | |
G. cuvier |
Among the largest extant sharks, the tiger shark is only behind the whale, basking, and great white sharks in terms of size. It is even regarded as the second-largest predatory shark after the great white. With the great white and bull sharks, the tiger shark is a member of the “Big Three”, as they are most well known for attacking humans. Tiger sharks have a more sleeker build than the great white shark which is bulkier. When it comes to the difference between the tiger, and bull shark, the latter shows increased aggression than the former.
Size: Length: 10 ft 8 in–13 ft 11 in (3.25–4.25 m) Weight: 386 to 1,400 lb (175 to 635 kg)
Teeth: The teeth are serrated, with sideways-pointing tips. Like most sharks, their teeth are continually replaced by newer ones throughout their lives.
Fins: It has a set of long, pectoral fins, as well as a pelvic and anal fin. There are two dorsal fins, a larger one on its back and a smaller one lower down. The caudal fin on its tail is very large and helps it pivot quickly.
Body and Coloration: It has a broad, flat head, shaped like a wedge, with a snout shorter than the width of the mouth, long labial furrows, and a slender body. The skin of a tiger shark comes in shades of blue or light green, while their underbelly is white or light yellow. Dark spots and stripes, which give the shark its name, are primarily visible in juveniles, fading as it matures.
They are seen along the Gulf of Mexico, beaches of North American, and certain parts of South America. Tiger sharks are also commonly observed in the Caribbean Sea. Other locations include Africa, Australia, China, India, and Indonesia.
The tiger shark resides close to the coast, mainly in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. Its behavior is primarily nomadic, guided by warmer currents. During the cold months, it stays closer to the equatorial regions, which are warmer. It mostly remains in deep waters (up to 140 m) surrounding the reefs, but it does move into channels to pursue prey in shallower waters, though that is quite uncommon indeed. In fact, as per studies they are not found below a depth of 350 m, though in rare cases these sharks dwell in waters that are about 900 m deep. They prefer turbid coastal areas where freshwater runoff occurs as different prey species group together in these areas.
This shark is an apex predator with a vast appetite, aggressively consuming various marine prey. Their diet includes aquatic birds and mammals, bony fish, crabs, lobsters, porpoises, shellfish, skates, small sharks, snakes, squid, rays, and turtles. Even some terrestrial mammals like brown rats, cats, dogs, goats, horses, and sheep become part of their diet from time to time.
Tiger sharks live for 12 years on average.
Do They Attack Humans
While the number of bites by these sharks is one of the largest, second only to the Great White Shark, the actual biting rate is low and tends not to be fatal most of the time.
As apex predators, tiger sharks have few natural predators. However, there are records of killer whales working in a group to bring down tiger sharks. The juveniles are often eaten by the adults of their own species, and other shark species too.
Tiger sharks mate via internal fertilization, giving live birth to 10-80 pups in a single litter. The male inserts his claspers into his mate’s cloaca (genital opening). Throughout the mating process the males firmly hold on to the females using their teeth to keep them in place, causing immense discomfort to their mates. The tiger sharks do not connect to their young via the placenta; instead, embryos develop inside individual eggs until they hatch.
The baby tiger sharks develop inside the mother’s body for up to 16 months. A newborn shark is usually 20 to 30 inches long. Males become sexually mature at 7.5 to 9.5 ft, while females do so when they are 8.2 to 11.5 ft long. Females mate once every three years.
According to the IUCN, the tiger shark is “Near Threatened” or “NT”. This is due to the high rate of finning and fishing. In 2010, Greenpeace International identified it as a fish which had a high chance of being obtained from unsustainable fisheries, and put it on the seafood red list. Meanwhile, the New Zealand Department of Conservation classified this shark as “Migrant” with “Secure Overseas” under the New Zealand Threat Classification System in June 2018.
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