Sharks: Super Predators

Powerful, streamlined bodies and the unique ability to detect electrical fields from living prey make sharks extraordinarily efficient hunters. Of the more than 350 known species of sharks, most prey on other fishes, invertebrates or marine mammals.

Sharks can find prey buried under sand! They have small pores on head and snout that sense minute electrical fields from other fishes, even when they’re buried in the sand.

Although it looks smooth, shark skin is rough, like sandpaper. Sharks don’t have scales like other fishes. Their skin is covered with thousands of tooth-like plates called denticles that protect them like armor.

Not all species of shark must move to survive. Bottom feeders like nurse sharks can rest on the sea floor for long periods of time, but species that hunt in the open ocean may need to swim constantly to keep water flowing through their gills.

Sharks come in all sizes, from dwarf sharks at only 6 inches to whale sharks that are 50 feet long and weigh more than 20 tons  — or 40,000 pounds.

Will Sharks Survive?

For 400 million years, sharks have cruised Earth’s oceans, their dominance uncontested. Now many shark populations, including great whites, are in trouble. Overfishing, trophy hunting, slow maturation and naturally low rates of reproduction have reduced their numbers alarmingly during the past century.

Shark fishermen still land thousands each year, but the catch is dwindling rapidly. The soupfin shark fishery provides an example of why some species are disappearing.  When sharks are caught, their fins are sliced off and their bodies dumped back into the ocean as waste. Unable to swim, they're either eaten, drown or die of starvation.

Watch a Baby Blacktip Shark Birth!

On Jan. 19, 2008, a 9-year-old blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) gave birth to pups.

Aquarium staff went to great lengths to help ensure a successful delivery, holding 24-hour watches on the pregnant female for days prior to the births.

When the first pup was born, aquarium staff quickly removed the four newborn pups from the shark tank.

In the wild, sharks tend to give birth in secluded areas. This lowers the chances that a hungry predator is nearby and allows the young to adjust to life in the open ocean.

Here at the ABQ BioPark Aquarium, the other fish in the Ocean Tank are potential predators for newborn pups. The Aquarium staff used nets on long poles and scuba gear to catch them.

For several weeks, the pups stayed in a secluded tank.

Did you know?

• Blacktip sharks are viviparous. The young develop inside the mother's uterus, where she provides the nutrients they need. The gestation period is 10-12 months. The young pups are born live and ready to swim!
• Unlike most animals, it is normal for blacktip sharks to be born tail first.
• The newborn pups measured 20 to 25 inches long at birth. As adults, blacktip sharks can grow to more than 5 feet long!
• The mother shark came to the Aquarium as a pup from the Florida Keys.

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