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The thresher sharks have an extreme example of this tail in which the upper lobe has evolved into a weapon for stunning prey. Bottom-dwelling sharks such as catsharks and carpet sharks have tails with long upper lobes and virtually no lower lobe. The upper lobe is held at a very low angle, which sacrifices speed for maneuverability.
Blacknose sharks are preyed upon by larger sharks, [7] and captives have been observed to perform an apparent threat display towards encroaching divers or newly introduced members of their species. The display consists of the shark hunching its back, lowering its pectoral fins, gaping its jaws, and swimming with an exaggerated side-to-side motion.
It is recognizable because of its seven gill slits, while most shark species have five gill slits, with the exception of the members of the order Hexanchiformes and the sixgill sawshark. This shark has a large, thick body, with a broad head and blunt snout. The top jaw has jagged, cusped teeth and the bottom jaw has comb-shaped teeth.
Many sharks can contract and dilate their pupils, like humans, something no teleost fish can do. Sharks have eyelids, but they do not blink because the surrounding water cleans their eyes. To protect their eyes some species have nictitating membranes. This membrane covers the eyes while hunting and when the shark is being attacked.
In the laboratory, epaulette sharks have survived for an hour without any oxygen at 30 °C (86 °F), which is also unusual in that most animals capable of tolerating oxygen deprivation do so at low temperatures. [16] The physiological responses of the epaulette shark to low oxygen are mediated by the nucleoside adenosine.
The bonnethead (Sphyrna tiburo), also called a bonnet shark or shovelhead, [3] is a small member of the hammerhead shark genus Sphyrna, and part of the family Sphyrnidae.It is an abundant species in the littoral zone of the North Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, is the only shark species known to display sexual dimorphism in the morphology of the head, and is the only shark species known to be ...
"We have to think about it in terms of the food web that's out in the ocean: Ultimately, at the very top of that cycle of life are the sharks and if we removed the sharks, smaller fish species ...
The sandbar shark is one of the largest coastal sharks in the world, and is closely related to the dusky shark, the bignose shark, and the bull shark. Its dorsal fin is triangular and very high, and it has very long pectoral fins. Sandbar sharks usually have heavy-set bodies and rounded snouts that are shorter than the average shark's snout.