MY OH MY THE SHARKS (FINALLY 5-2), BA DUM, BA DUMP, BA DA BA DA DUH DA DAH OR YOU KNOW, HOWEVER THE JAWS THEME LOOKS WRITTEN OUT IN YOUR HEAD…

BY HEATHER MARLETTE

                        Wow do I suck with the being timely on the blog…my bad, sorry sorry. So, here we have it. I know you have been waiting with baited (ha, cheesey pun totally intended) breath. It is the top FIVE hcmarlette favorite apex predators of the deep. I can say that yes, the main 3 are in here, but I am thinking you may not be able to correctly guess # 1 shark in my majorly scientific and professional countdown. On the coolness of sharks. Okay, maybe not scientific, but you have to give me entertaining…

                        Coming in at number 5 is the singular most distinctive looking shark, the hammerhead. I mean, come on – even without any further information I am right here, it is a top 5 shark. Right now, you can picture it. You see the EXACT shape of its head. These sharks can be seen to be in large schools during the day – and these are massively large schools. They will often break off to be solitary hunters during the night hours. They are located largely in the Southern and Eastern African waters, but also have been confirmed to have large populations near Costa Rica, Columbia and Hawaii. They range from 3 feet to 20 feet long, and weight goes up correspondingly from 6.6 to 1,300 pounds. The feature of this shark that gives it its name is of course the "hammer" shape head that is more commonly known as the cephalofoil. This elongated head is believed to have many evolutionary techniques behind its shaping (thought you may be missing the cheesey illusions…) but the major and latest popular theory is this came to be to give the shark the 360 degree field of vision it has with its eyes located on the sides of the hammer head – though I think it is more anvil shaped. The trade off – disproportionally small mouths, causing the sharks to mainly be bottom feeders. The mating process can seem violent as it mainly consists of the male following and biting the female harder and harder until the female always copulation. Recently there has been some evidence of asexual reproduction possibilities.

                        Number 4 on the bad ass list of sharks is the Blacktip Shark – not the Blacktip Reef Shark guys, the Blacktip Shark. This is a truly stunning shark to look at. It has a combination of many of the typical shark characteristics, like a long nose/snout, a short, stout body the long gills the gray body and white stomach. They also of course have black tips on some if not all the fins, from the pectoral to the dorsal to the pelvic and on. It may give this shark the appearance of being outlined, and draws attention to the muscular body. This is a requiem, viviparous shark that can differ so much within the species there is no true average size of groups that they travel in, however it is believed they are generally in groups. They generally will be in the range of around 5 feet. The females give birth every other year, to anywhere from 1 to up to 10 pups, who live in a nursery in their youth, in shallow, calm waters. Often these grown females will return to give birth in the nursery they grew up in…which is, in my humble opinion, incredibly endearing. If caught in a situation lacking males, the females can reproduce asexually. These sharks are quite quick, but are known to be milder for requiem sharks, only becoming aggressive if they feel their food is threatened which has caused them to be classified as slightly more dangerous to humans in their presence, and have a number of reported attacks. They are on the Nearly Threatened List as well as most on my countdown, as they are popular query amongst commercial and recreational fisheries. The coolest feature of these fish is their trademark spin jump for fish skimming the surface that shows off the beauty of those black tips as well as the strength of this sea creature.

                        BA DUM, BA DUMP, BA DA BA DA DUH DA DAH. Yes. At number 3, not one so HA, at number 3 is Brucie boy himself – Mr. Jaws. Although, the story that Peter Benchley based that on actually occurred more in Jersey and is believed to have been a Bull Shark – who is still to come on the list – but ya know, it’s a cool transition. That is right. Number 3 is the Great White Shark. That is not white. It is grey. It has a white underbelly. Again, The Great White Underbelly, not the same appeal, nor effect. So, the Great White is of course mainly known world over due to its size, made legendary in Benchley’s novel and the movie adaptation, which is much larger than reality – though achieving lengths upwards of 20 feet this is actually quite rare, yet with an average length of 15 feet there are no shrimps in this species... This shark’s first known fossils are approximately 16 million years old and is believed to be the direct descendant of prehistoric sharks. The shark lives all over, with large concentrations in California, Hawaii, and Australia (Southern) and of course South Africa, namely Seal Island where we were introduced to Air Jaws. This shark is deadly if it attacks, with the force of an average 20 foot long specimen displaying a bite force of 4,000 pounds of pressure. However, little is known about these sharks, as they tend to be illusive to scientists. They more than any shark, for obvious reasons (re: Jaws – novel, movie and sadly sequels) this shark above all others have a reputation of being a “man eater.” The number of shark attacks and deaths resulting from said attacks is way too low to lend any type of credence to this theory. Great Whites do not seem to target humans, and often the attacks are a result of mistaken identity, the shark thinking the diver or person on the surface is some other fish or hopefully (to the shark) a seal. Often, as long as not caught alone, after the first exploratory bite that the Great White gives, a diver (or swimmer) can be saved as the shark turns to come back, or swims off completely. They do not survive long in captivity, usually dying or being released due to poor health within a year, and never achieving its great size potential. When you hear me say that sharks are simply insanely misunderstood creatures, these Great Whites are generally the species that I have in mind. I mean, they have the nick name of white death. They have a bad rap. Trust me; the evidence proves they are a scape goat for –

                         The Bull Shark. Number 2 on Heather’s Sharktastic list. These sharks are nasty (WARNING SWEAR WORD COMING) bastards. There is literally no other way to describe them. They are called the Bull shark (most popular name, they have others) due to their short stockiness, flat snout and their crazy unpredictable behavior. As I said, Bull Shark is the most typical name but due to their wide spread locations they have many names. They are most likely going to be the ones responsible for shallow water attacks, and it is believed that the number of attacks is much higher than reported, as other species get the finger pointed at them. They are vicious creatures who have the ability to survive in fresh as well as salt water. I would love to explain how, but I am not in fact that scientifically minded. I know it has to do with the way their gills filter the water and the chemicals in their blood adjust. They do not require much depth, the deepest it generally dives is barely to 500 feet, and prefers to swim at a 30-50 foot range. That’s what I have. They can be anywhere from 2.5 feet to over 7 feet in length, and up to 700 pounds. They have a bite of up to 1,300 pounds of pressure. The females tend to be larger than the males. These sharks do not play nice with others, being very solitary hunters, sometimes going up to hunt in pairs, never more. They are nasty, and will attack not only if they feel threatened, but if they feel another is encroaching on their territory. They are also viviparous giving birth to a few live pups after a 12 month gestation period, and are one of the species believed to become aggressive in the womb with the dominant pups attacking and eating the others before birth. These ferocious apex predators have no true predatory threat as they do not back down from fights and are larger than many of their fellows. Though some diehards still cling to the rouge Great White Theory, most in the scientific community blame this species for the 1916 attacks that inspired Peter Benchley, due to the attacks that occurred in salt and fresh water, and mainly in shallow areas. This species is also on the Near Threatened list due to the long gestation and low birth rate mixed with human predatory hunting.             

                 Since I have gotten this to be lengthy somehow I have to withhold the number one Heather Shark. I know, there are tears, perhaps a few broken hearts. It is coming I promise – and it is already half written so it shouldn’t even take as long!! Really no promises though.

MY OH MY THE SHARKS (AT LEAST 10-6), TO QUOTE THE GREAT MR. JOSS WHEDON – GRR, ARGH

BY HEATHER MARLETTE

                Okay, so no, sharks do not grr nor do they argh – but if I can bring it back to Joss Whedon, and by extension Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I will. Every time – so, I guess warning blog readers, warning. Any way in today’s Shark Week tribute blog, I intend to kind of go over the different types of more well-known sharks to show you that they really are just animals that do what they do, no need to be scared. They are truly just doing what is in their nature to do, and they are not hunting human kind, no “man-eating” killer sharks here. I do have to give another disclosure – these are my personal favorite species of sharks. I have researched and know these sharks as they are the ones that interest me the most. Disclosure – I am not a shark expert and these are the facts I know to be true and am always welcome to scientific correction. The ranking of sharks is my opinion ONLY.

                Number 10 on my list is the gigantic yet graceful Whale Shark. The Whale Shark is a filter feeding (feeds from straining water for food particles/matter) fish that grows to enormous length, the average being 31.82 feet and 9 tons– the largest recorded at 41.50 feet and 21.5 tons, though many have claimed to have seen larger. This shark enjoys warmer or tropical waters, and as far as science knows lives for about 70 years. Though they have been known mainly as filter feeders, there is some documentation of them feeding on small schools of fish, or in the area where fish have spawned. It is a five gill shark, with 300-350 sharp rows of small teeth. The shark has a grey body, white stomach and trademark yellow spots and stripes.  The Whale Shark is an active feeder. This gentle giant does not appear to pose any harm to divers at all, and many divers report having been able to “catch a ride” on them – though, responsibility screams at me to mention that the shark scientific community majorly warns against this. Breeding and birthing are pretty un-known, though it is believed that they give birth to a pup, not lay eggs.

                Number 9 is the Pacific Angelshark – which is shock of all shocks, a subspecies of the angel shark that is found in the Pacific Ocean. How do you like my investigative skills now, what, WHAT?? It is mainly the Eastern Pacific, This is a small shark, averaging about 5 feet, and they have the same characteristic Angel Shark features, the flat body and large pectoral and pelvic fins. They are ambush predators who target their victims by sight, concealing themselves on the ocean floor and attacking squid and spiny fish that venture close enough. Most stay in a hunting spot up to several days. They are largely nocturnal creatures, staying buried under the sea floor in the day. They are mainly solo creatures and they are what are known as viviparous breeders, having up to 6 pups at a time. They are not necessarily dangerous to mankind, unless provoked which can result in a major and painful bite. Sadly they are classified as a Near Threatened species, since their meat is much sought after and are hunted by professionals and sportsman.

                Next up at number 8 is the Silvertip Shark. This is a larger shark that can be easily identified by the white marks around the edge of its fin. It is found in both the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and can attain an average length of 10 feet. It is often spotted near coral reefs and near offshore islands, and can dive to depths as deep as 2,600 feet. They are also viviparous breeders, having up to 11 pups at a time, always in the summer season. They are a fierce predator that reigns over smaller fish and other requiem (live bearing, warm/fresh/brackish water, migratory) sharks similar in size, and often have scarred bodies to reflect their confrontational nature. They are not scared of humans, and since they are confrontational in nature, they are categorized as a threat to humans since they have no fear and often come close to divers. They are a huge target for hunters, as every part of them is coveted from their jaws/teeth to their fins to their meat. They join our friend the Pacific Angelshark on the Near Threatened Species list due to this.

                Give it up for the requiem sharks – cruising in at Number 7 on this very scientific list is the Grey Reef Shark. It has the typical reef shark features with a short and round snout and big eyes. They are fast swimmers, and the most common reef shark in Indo-Pacific region. They will always be found in the shallow water before the coral reef drop-offs (I know, again with my investigative skills…) and are actually quite small for sharks, average length attained is usually a little over 6 feet. What they lack in length these lovely sharks make up with in aggression. Being ironic, they are not territorial creatures, but quite social, often hanging out in groups of as up to as many as 20 in daylight, and breaking off to individual hunting routines at night. They too are viviparous (realizing at this point I have not explained that well, it is simply a creature that sustains an embryo or embryos through a placental connection) giving birth from 1 to 6 pups every other year. They were one of the first and most definitive species to go through what is known as the threat display – hunching their posture, dropping their pectoral fins and swimming side to side. They are seen as dangerous to divers, and you should watch for their tell-tale threat display if around them. Since they are suspect to commercial fisheries combined with their slow and low reproduction rates, they too are on the Near Threatened Species lists…are you seeing a trend?

                Sprint swimming into Number 6 is the beautiful Blue Shark There is nary a better shark to leave today’s blog with - and I do need to leave you wanting to come back for 5-1, right? They are of course a requiem shark, viviparous delivering large broods of 25-100 pups at a time and live for about 20 years to the best of our knowledge. They segregate into sexually specified schools also grouped by size, and have been called the “wolves” of the sea. They prefer cooler water and migrate large distances. Males range from 6 feet to 9 feet, and the female is larger at 7 feet to 11 feet, males reaching maturity at 4-5 years old, and females at 5-6 years old. Adult Blues do not have major predators outside of killer whales, while younger ones can fall victim to other sharks as well. They are typically slow moving and slightly lethargic, but can have great bursts of speed. They are not seen as hugely dangerous to mankind, with only a recorded 13 attacks on record, and 4 fatalities. They cannot be found on any lists and though upwards of 10 to maybe 20 million of them a year are recorded as hunted by humans, but their flesh though edible is not widely sought after, though they are sometimes sought after for sportsman due to their beauty and speed. They do not do well in captivity usually dying within 30 days – so let’s leave them in their natural habitat, please

                There you go…numbers 10-6 on Heather’s list of rocking sharks…trust me, you want to tune in tomorrow when I will let you know the awesomeness of the top 5 sharks according to Heather…trust me there is no science here at all, so if you want to see something interesting, I would keep tuned…