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Galeocerdo cuvieri Shark Teeth (Image: sharktoothcollector) |
The scientific name is Galeocerdo cuvieri, found in tropical and subtropical waters. It averages about 1.4 tons in weight and approximately 8 meters in length. Its back is slightly blue or gray, while its belly can be light gray, yellow, or white, featuring a short and rounded snout.
The teeth are serrated and sharp, capable of crushing bones; however, they quickly fall out and are replaced by new ones.
Tiger sharks are omnivorous, among the few shark species that will consume carrion. They also eat a wide variety of live food, including fish, crustaceans, mollusks, birds, mammals, and reptiles. Despite their keen senses, they are also known to bite and swallow items that are not digestible. In the stomach of one tiger shark, a 6 kg drum was found, along with beer bottles, coal, grill grids, jackets, cow hooves, and deer antlers. However, they do not die from these indigestible foods. When their stomachs become overloaded with difficult-to-digest items, they can vomit and expel everything.
Despite their excellent eyesight, tiger sharks primarily rely on their acute sense of smell to detect blood: they can sense prey with just a small amount of blood diluted in seawater. In darkness, they can also detect the electromagnetic fields emitted by animals hiding in the sand. They can sense slight changes in water pressure caused by an injured fish struggling. Once a prey is identified, the tiger shark swims around and nudges the prey before actually attacking it.
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(Image: masdebuceo) |
Tiger sharks undergo internal fertilization, unlike many other fish species that exhibit external fertilization. Males typically use their teeth to hold the female in place during mating. Females can give birth to between 10 to 80 pups at a time. The young are completely independent as soon as they leave the mother’s womb. At birth, the pups look just like their parents.
This dangerous shark species usually lives a solitary life, roaming from place to place. On average, they swim about 80 kilometers each day, only stopping to eat. Though they may appear sluggish at times, they become very active and aggressive when stimulated by food. When necessary, they can reach speeds of over 32 km/h.
During the day, tiger sharks generally stay in deeper waters but are occasionally seen basking near the surface. They tend to move closer to shore during the evening.
Tiger sharks are second only to great white sharks in terms of aggressiveness. They are considered one of the most dangerous shark species due to their frequent presence in shallow waters, large size, and indiscriminate feeding habits. They are classified as “man-eating fish.” Tiger sharks do not actively hunt humans, but they may attack and consume humans due to their “opportunistic” feeding behavior.
(Image: .hccnet)
