Sharks Essay Research Paper Sharks

Sharks Essay, Research Paper

Sharks

“It.s tail swayed slowly from side to side, pushing the hunters body

through the murky water. All signs of motion were non-existant, except for the

rhythmic movement of the water over the five gill slits on either side of it.s

head. Slowly gaining speed, the shady figures unmoving eyes fixed on it.s

target, a lost harbor seal pup. As the distance between the predator and it.s

prey grew closer, the jaws of the massive fish drew forward, exposing nearly

eight rows of razor sharp teeth. Strings of it.s previous meal hung in rows

from between it.s teeth. Sensing danger, the harbor seal frantically tried to

find a place to seek refuge, but it was too late. The jaws of the shark closed

around the seal with an astounding 14,000 pounds of pressure, cutting the seal

in half. The Great White shark claims another victim.1″

Any one who.s seen the famous movie series “Jaws” may look at the Great

White Shark in a similar manner. Perhaps it.s the way that Hollywood uses a mix

of fact and fiction in the series. This may have frightened many people into

hating the Great White for it.s ferocity. It might have also been the size of

the shark in the movie that.s kept thousands of people off the beaches and out

of the water. Better yet, it could have been the overall storyline: A Great

White shark with an eating disorder and a taste for human flesh. Perhaps that.s

what is keeping vacationers from grabbing their trousers and snorkels.

Over all, there have been 1026 attacks on humans by sharks in the last

ten years. Only 294 of these attacks have been linked to Great White sharks.

That.s roughly the number of people who drown each year in swimming accidents.

Of these 294 attacks, less than eighteen percent were fatal. Out of the

eighteen fatal incidents more than seventy percent was contributed to loss of

blood. This means that the shark didn.t kill the victim. The shark bit the

victim and then released them (also known as the taste test). The shark samples

the victim by nibbling on an appendage or two often resulting in a severed

artery or other major blood vessel. Therefore, the Great White should be

considered a mantaster not a maneater.

This intrigued scientists considering the size of the sharks brain. The

Great Whites brain is about one half the size of a dogs. Over seventy percent

of the brain is used for tracking prey. The other thirty percent is used for

body functions. Studies show that the sharks main purpose is to eat. People

think that the sharks main purpose is to kill. This is incorrect, sharks only

eat when they are hungry. Impulses from the brain are sent to the jaws and the

stomach telling the shark that it is time to hunt for food.

“Why do sharks not follow a basic attack pattern on a human. In a human

attack, the primary strike is usually the only contact, as though the shark

finds us(humans) to be unpalatable. There is a theory on this as well,

involving the differences in our anatomy and the pinnipeds(seals, sea lions).

We are mostly muscle where the pinniped body has a great deal of fat. It is

theorized that the shark somehow senses this and abandons us as a potential meal

because our bodies are not as energy-rich as the pinnipeds. Of course, this is

often enough to kill us – or at least, really screw up our day!”

Cold Hard Facts

The Great White shark has remained unchanged for 250 million years. It.

s greek name is Carcharodon carcharias. This is derived from carcharos meaning .

ragged. and odon meaning .tooth.. There isn.t a defined size range for the

Great White but most experts agree that the length of the shark is usually

between 12 and 16 feet with the maximum figure being about19 to 21 feet. (The 21

foot is an actual record from 1948. The largest ever recorded!) If the Great

White is that big try to imagine the size of those massive jaws and teeth, Not

to mention the enoromous power behind those jaws.. These huge eating machines

used to be even bigger! The Great White was once known as Carcharodon megalodon.

The only difference in between the Great White and this previous model is size.

The Carcharodon megalodon was MASSIVE compared to the modern day Great White.

Averaging forty to forty-five feet in length, it is theorized that this giant of

the deep could swallow a city bus whole. There are many scientists who theorize

that there may still be some of these giants down there… down deep enough

where the bodies would never wash up on shore.

The Great Whites teeth are serrated like a bread knife. Averaging about

one to two inches in length and about one-half to one inch in width. These

teeth are so ragged and so sharp, old native spears have been found with these

teeth on the end of them. Scientists think the natives used these spears as

saws!

The most mysterious aspect about the Great White

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