Shark Week is a main part of many people's lives, as it gives us all a chance to look into the world of an animal that so many of us don't truly understand. This is probably why we're all so scared of these animals, as we don't know enough about them, so we think it's time to make a list that people can enjoy and take a look at.
What we've done is throw together numerous shark facts, starting with some facts that people may already know, or that they have seen somewhere else, but then move on from that. Yes, we think that it's time the world took a look at many of the facts about sharks that people don't yet know or understand. We're going to get a little bit weird with this one!
So, we think it's about time that we took a look at some great shark facts. Not only that, but beyond the facts that people may already know or that will be on Shark Week, we want to give people a look at the world of sharks that they may not find anywhere else.
23 Sharks Don't Like The Taste Of Human Beings
Despite the fact that we're scared of them and there are numerous movies out there that play on this fear, sharks don't actually enjoy the taste of human beings!
This is why they have been known to attack human beings but they rarely purposefully attack them as prey, often confusing them for seals or another form of animal prey.
Sharks do not want human beings if they can help it, as they really do not like the taste of them, which is why they will often take a chunk out of them before moving on!
22 Sharks Have Eyelids
It's funny the sort of thing that can end up freaking us out, and we reckon this creeps us out more than anything else to do with sharks. We think it's because eyelids are something we associate with human beings.
We're glad that not all fish have eyelids, otherwise we think we'd struggle to leave the house everyday.
Seriously, what is it about this that is bothering us so much? If we came face to face with a shark, we would be more scared of their eyelids than their teeth.
21 Great White Sharks Can Jump Ten Feet Out Of The Air
We have all seen those wonderful images of whales breaching, hurling themselves into the air and being caught on camera by people nearby.
However, whales aren't the only sea creature that can do this, sharks can also being able to do the same.
We can understand why people who are afraid of sharks would never want to see these guys fling themselves in the air up to ten feet. We like to think that if we stay out of the water then we're safe!
20 They Can Only Swim Forward
This is something that we have all heard of before as it's the basis of a famous phrase, that sharks can only swim forward. However, rather than being a myth, this phrase is genuinely accurate!
The reason sharks can only swim forward, unlike the other fish in the ocean, is that these fish only have very stiff fins that cannot be controlled by their muscular system.
Now you know that these animals genuinely can't stop swimming forward! The more you know.
19 Sharks Go Through Around 30,000 Teeth In A Lifetime
When a human being loses a tooth or has to have a tooth removed, it is a major issue, but this is different for a shark. These animals lose so many teeth in a lifetime, around 300,000 to be exact!
At one time, a shark has forty to forty-five, in up to seven rows in their mouth.
That is a lot of teeth, but that doesn't mean they don't have a lot more waiting on the benches for when they end up breaking them off on something in the water.
18 They Do Not Have Vocal Cords
One of the more unpleasant things about sharks and other things that scare us is that they often don't exhibit the same behavior as us.
We are a very vocal species, making a lot of noise to convey a lot of things to the world around us, whereas sharks do not.
Due to the fact that they do not have vocal cords, sharks don't make any sounds throughout their life. It's a good thing they have the music that accompanies them whenever they approach, right?.
17 They Reproduce Asexually
Now we need to start on the things that people won't be able to see on the television. Trust me, it's about to get down to some of the nitty gritty, like how they reproduce!
No, not every single shark or species of shark out there reproduces asexually, with many of them reproducing as you would expect a large fish to, but some of them have been seen to reproduce this way.
This form of reproduction is known as parthenogenesis and has been seen in a variety of different species of shark, so we know that it can be quite regular for some of them.
16 Sharks Live In Every Ocean On The Planet
Unlike many other animals that only exist in a certain area of the world, with some having every single species known to man within a certain country, sharks are different.
Yes, for those who are scared of these big fish it's probably not good news that they're literally found in every ocean across the planet.
The various diverse species find themselves swimming throughout the entire world, meaning that there really is no escape from these things.
15 It's Possible To Tell The Age Of A Shark
As human beings, we have a concept of time that many other animals don't, marking things down as time passes, such as how long we've been on this planet and how old we now are.
Animals don't do this, as they're all about instinct and looking for the next meal.
However, human beings have found that they're able to see how old a shark is by counting the rings on their vertebrae, much in the same way that we can tell the age of a tree by counting the rings within the trunk.
14 They Bite Each Other During The Mating Ritual
When sharks are setting up to get down to it, they set up a mating ritual which ends up with the female shark being impregnated and then not going anywhere near the male shark for a while.
This is because during the ritual, the male shark will bite the female shark right on the head.
It's believed that this is certainly part of the mating ritual, but also because they want to show their dominance and remove some of their aggression.
13 The Largest Shark To Ever Exist Was A Megalodon
Until recently, only experts knew about this horrifying animal, this giant shark that used to rule the oceans before it eventually went extinct, but it has now made its way into popular culture through movies and television.
The Megalodon has been extinct for around sixteen million years at this point, so there's no need to worry about it anymore.
When it existed in the oceans though, it averaged a length of fifty feet. That is a serious size for any creature.
12 Sharks Can Move Both Their Upper And Lower Jaw
One of the things that makes many sharks great hunters is that they can manipulate parts of their body in a certain way that turns them into a real predator. One of these things is the ability to move both their lower and upper jaw.
This manipulation makes it easier not only for them to catch their prey, creating a wider gap, but then gnashing through the prey as well.
It's not a pleasant thought, but this sort of stuff is exactly why people continue to be scared of one of the most impressive predators known to man!
11 Their Skin Is Six Inches Thick
Sharks actually have the thickest skin of any species known to man, allowing them to withstand a serious amount of damage before it splits.
While not all sharks have skin as thick as six inches, this is the thickest some species can end up getting to.
Even those that don't have skin as thick as this, have skin thicker than most other species of animal around the world. Sometimes we wish our skin was this thick!
10 Nurse Sharks Are Incredibly Lazy
Sharks in general are known for having to always be swimming so that they can breathe, the movement essentially keeping them alive, but that's not true of all species.
For example, Nurse Sharks don't do this, which is why they've gained the reputation of being one of the laziest sharks of all time.
They also eat a lot less than other species of shark, not needing the same amount to keep them alive. Throw in the fact that they don't often migrate and you've got yourself one lazy fish!
9 They Have Oily Livers
Sharks are known for being agile, depending on which species you happen upon, and this is because evolution has turned their bodies into total machines.
One of the components of a shark's body that remains impressive to experts is their significantly oily liver, which helps them keep their balance as they swim in the water.
Alongside this liver, sharks manage to stay buoyant in the water due to their skeletons being made of lightweight cartilage.
8 Sharks Have Existed For 450 Million Years
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When we think about how long human beings have existed on this planet, it really brings into focus how little time we've had on this planet, how much we've managed to achieve in such a short time as well!
Sharks have been here for 450 million years in their current state, and while species then continued to go extinct and come into being, it's still a very long time for the genus to last.
Do we think there's even a chance that the human species will make it to the point where they've existed on this planet for 450 million years?!
7 Sharks Can Be Carnivorous Within The Womb
There are a lot of horror movies out there about the fear of pregnancy and the fact that maybe a child will turn evil while in the womb, somewhere that the mother can't get the child out of them.
While a baby shark will not start to eat the mother while in the womb, they will go after the rest of the babies within the womb.
That's right, some sharks will turn carnivorous while still in the womb and eat their brothers and sisters! That is some dark stuff if you ask us.
6 Female Sharks Lose Their Appetite Before Birth
Human beings end up having a lot of odd things happen to their bodies while they're pregnant, including the sort of foods that people want to eat while they're pregnant. Sharks take this to a whole new level...
One of the odd things that happens to their body is that they lose their appetite just before they give birth, taking in less food than they usually would.
It is believed this is to stop them from actually eating their own young! This way, their mind is only on protecting them until they can look after themselves.
5 Frilled Sharks Can Be Pregnant For Up To Three And A Half Years
Different species of shark have different gestation periods, with the frilled shark having the longest gestation period of all of them.
All we can say is, if we looked this weird, we would want to try and slow down the amount of us that were in this world so it makes sense they hold onto them for this long a time!
Three and a half years is a long time for anyone to have to hold onto a child, so we can only assume it's not a pleasant experience for a frilled shark!
4 Bamboo Sharks Don't Swim
When we think of animals that live in the sea, we mostly think of animals that swim, as that sort of seems like the main way to get through water, but this isn't always true.
Yes, believe it or not but this type of shark uses four fins to move themselves along the seafloor, not to swim through the oceans with grace!
We can't speak for everyone else, but this little guy freaks us out in a major way. If something lives in the sea and has this many fins, then they should definitely be using them to swim!