Shortfin Mako Shark - One of the World's Fastest Sharks

The shortfin mako shark is one of the world’s fastest sharks reaching speeds of up to 20 mph, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History. The shortfin mako is also known for being able to skillfully leap out of water.

Although preferring warm waters,this extremely fast shark can be found worldwide. The shortfin mako tends to stay in tropical, temperate waters and is most commonly spotted off the shore waters of Cape Cod and Cape Hatteras.

Description:

• Blunt snout
• Large black eyes
• Metallic blue in color with white bellies
• Average adult size is 10 ft
• Females are larger than males
• Teeth are visible while mouth is closed
• Short pectoral fins

Diet:

• Feed on fast-moving pelagic fishes such as, swordfish and tuna
• Sometimes feed on other smaller sharks, porpoises and sea turtles

Top 5 Smallest Sharks According to the Discovery Channel

Most people think of sharks as passive dangerous creatures that roam the sea. But, surprisingly, there are several sharks that don’t even measure a foot long. 

The Pale Catshark

The Discovery Channel lists the top 5 smallest sharks:

5. African Lanternshark – 9.4 inches

4. Shorttail Lanternshark – 9.4 inches

3. Green Lanternshark – 9 inches

2. Panama Ghost Catshark – 9 inches

1. Pale Catshark – 8.27 inches  

CNN's Lisa Ling discusses Shark Finning

In 2008 Anderson Cooper spoke with CNN's special corespondent, Lisa Ling, about the practice of shark finning. 

Shark Night 3D Premiers September 2nd

Relativity Media’s  upcoming Shark Night 3D is directed by David R. Ellis and stars some of Hollywood’s youngest stars, such as, Sarah Paxton, Dustin Milligan, Chris Carmack and Joel David Moore.

First Image Released of Shark Night 3D

The premise of the film is about seven men and women who spend a weekend at a lake house in the Louisiana Gulf. Their ideal vacation quickly turns into a nightmare when they encounter sharks in their freshwater lake.

Shark Night 3D is scheduled to hit 3D theaters on September 2^nd.

Two Fun and Easy Shark Games for a Shark Party

1. Shark Attack Game:

Supplies:

·         Permanent marker

·         White Balloon

·         Music

 How to play:

·         Draw a Shark Face on the balloo

·         Have players stand in a circle while music plays

·         Have players tap the shark face balloon back and forth while the music plays, the objective is to keep the balloon away from you

·          Randomly stop the music while the players are tossing the balloon

·          Whoever is touching the shark balloon when the music stops is out

·          The last player standing wins.

2. Feed the Sharks:

Supplies:

·         Shark stuffed animal

·         Laundry basket

·         Ping pong balls

How to play:

·         Place shark stuffed animal inside laundry basket

·         Give each player 5-10 ping pong balls to represent the “shark food”

·         Have players stand several feet away from the basket as they toss the ping pong balls into the basket to “feed” the shark

·         Determine which player tossed the most ping pong balls into the basket within 30 seconds

·         The player that tossed the most in wins.

A Shark Attack Couldn't Stop Bethany Hamilton from Fulfilling her Dreams

Bethany Meilani Hamilton was born into a family of surfers on February 8, 1990. With two older brothers and parents who had a passion for surfing, Bethany was destine to follow suit.

Born and raised on the island of Kauai, Hawaii, Bethany took to the water at a young age. She entered her first surf competition at eight years old where she took home the win for both the long and short board divisions.

Bethany continued to enter competitions, such as, the 1999 Haleiwa Menehune Championships and the Volcom Puffer Fish contest, where she continuously brought home the win. Bethany became a well-known up and coming pro surfer at a tender age.  She instantly had a passion for surfing and completion just as her family of surfers did. At such a young age, Bethany already knew what she wanted to be when she “grew up;” Bethany wanted to be a pro surfer and she had the natural talent to make her dreams a reality.

On Halloween morning, 2003, Hamilton went for a morning surfer off Kauai’s North Shore around 7:30 a.m. with her good friend Alana Blanchard and Blanchard’s dad. That morning, the water was calm and Bethany lounged on her surfer board with her left arm in the water while waiting for a wave to come.  Within seconds the 13 year-old was attacked by a 14-foot tiger shark, biting off her left arm just below the shoulder.

Hamilton’s friends paddled her back to shore where they used a surfboard leash as a tourniquet to wrap around what was left of her arm. Bethany was rushed to Wilcox Memorial Hospital where she spent seven days in recovery after losing 60% of her blood.

Despite the tragic incident, Bethany was determined to not let her it stop her from fulfilling her dreams of becoming a pro-surfer.  Only one month after the attack, Hamilton returned to the water.  Just over a year after being hospitalized, she returned to her passion of surfing competitively and placed 5^th in the Open Women’s division and soon after won her first National Title by 1^st place in the Explorer Women’s division of the 2005 NSSA National Championships.   

Hamilton continues to be an inspiration for many, leading led her to write a book and most recently, having a movie written about her.  

Soul Surfer in theaters now

Soul Surfer is the inspiring true story of Bethany Hamilton, a teen surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack.

Bethany Hamilton had a natural talent for surfing and at young age had already participated in numerous national surf competitions. Halloween morning 2003, Bethany’s world changed and her dreams of being a pro surfer appeared to have been shattered. While surfing that morning, a 14-foot tiger shark came out of nowhere and bit off her arm.

Soul Surfer tells the amazing story of Hamilton’s determination and unwillingness to let her shark attack stop her from fulfilling her dreams.

Cast includes:

• AnnaSophia Robb as Bethany Hamilton
• Helen Hunt as Cheri Hamilton (Mom)
• Dennis Quaid as Tom Hamilton (Dad)
• Lorraine Nicholson as Alana Blachard
• Carrie Underwood as Sarah Hill

South Florida's Most Common Sharks

The University of Florida IFAS Extension advises beach-goers to be aware of some of Florida’s most common sharks that can cause great damage with a single bite.

• Blacktip Shark – most common in clear-waters along Florida and Bahama beaches.

• Spinner Shark – often seen leaping out of coastal waters.

• Sandbar Shark – often found nearshore at depths of 60 to 200 feet. It is brown or gray with a white belly.

• Blacknose Shark – found in Florida bays and lagoon feeding on small fishes. It os a pale olive-gray on top and whitish below.

• Nurse Shark – sometimes found hiding under ledges and wreck but most commonly seen at the oceans bottom.

Diving with Sharks at The Florida Aquarium

 The Florida Aquarium offers an unforgettable shark diving experience for only $150 per person.

“Dive with the Sharks” allows for certified SCUBA divers, as young as 15, to come into one-on-one contact with sharks, stingrays and other saltwater species living in their 93,000-gallon saltwater exhibit.

The experience is about 90 minutes long with all equipment provided. The $150 fee includes admission for the diver, a shark diver hat, and photograph of the diver while underwater.

All you need to bring is a small bag filled with a mask, bathing suite, towel and your diver certification card. 

Basking Sharks, Not as Dangerous as They Appear

At first glance, the Basking Shark looks terrifying and dangerous. Although the Basking shark is the second largest fish in the sea after the Whale Shark, it is not as threatening as it appears feeding only on plankton.

According to the Florida Museum of Natural History Ichthyology Department, the currently accepted scientific name of the Basking Shark is Cetorhinus maximus. The name is derived from the Greek, “ketos” meaning marine monster/ whale and “rhinos” meaning nose. The maximus part of the name is derived from Latin meaning “great.”

Basking Sharks, like most other sharks, were previously heavily hunted for their oil, meat, vitamin rich livers, and of course, for their fins. Although there are now many conservation efforts in place to protect these sharks, according to The Basking Shark Project, Basking Sharks are slow to mature and grow which has kept them listed as vulnerable on the IUCN’s Red List.  

Location/Habitat:

·         Found in cold to warm temperate waters because they are a coastal-pelagic species.

·         A recent study, according to The Basking Shark Project, has shown these sharks to have a trans-atlantic and trans-equatorial migration

·         Found feeding/swimming at or below the water surface because they are pelagic sharks.

·         Can be seen traveling in pairs or in large schools of up to 100 or more.

·         In the spring the Basking Shark is found off the Atlantic coast of North America (North Caroline to New York)

·         In the summer these sharks head north and are found in New England and Canada.

·         During the winter months the Basking Shark cannot be found suggesting that they migrate beyond the continental shelf

Description:

  ·         Average adult length is around 22-29 feet

  ·         Average length at birth is between 5-6 feet

  ·         Typically gray-ish brown but can also range from dark gray to black

  ·         Extended gill slits that almost encircle the head of the shark

  ·         Extremely large mouth that contains hundreds of tiny teeth

Eating Habits:

·         One of only three filter feeding shark

·         Swims through water with its mouth open taking in food and water

·         Food is strained from the water by gill rakers

·         Capable of filtering over 1800 tons of water per hour

·         Feed in areas that contain a high density of zooplankton

Kayaker Josh Reeves dives into the Gulf to take a closer look at the rarely spotted Basking Shark

According to News13 in Panama City, FL, on March 17, Reeves and other beach go-ers spotted the massive Basking Shark swimming along the Bay County pier. 

Employees at Gulf World explain that this type of shark has never been seen in Gulf waters before. The Basking Shark is the second largest species of fish, the first being the Whale Shark.

Upon spotting the shark, Reeves, who works with a shark tour service in Panama City Beach, decided to kayak out to the shark and then took it a step father when he jumped into the ocean and swam alongside the estimated 25-foot long shark.