IUCN Red List of Endangered SpeciesTM
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Great White Shark

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Great White Shark breaching
A frame-by-frame view of a Great White Shark breach- frame 3.
© Morne Hardenberg

Sharks are much older than dinosaurs. Their ancestry dates back more than 400 million years. Sharks are one of evolution’s greatest success stories. These animals are uniquely adapted to their ocean environment with six highly refined senses of smell, hearing, touch, taste, sight, and even electromagnetism. As the top predators in the ocean, Great White Sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) face only one real threat to their survival – us. The assaults are many. By-catch: the accidental killing of sharks by fishermen's longlines and trawlers. Illegal poaching: selling shark fins for soup. Illegal hunting: sportsfishing for shark jaws as trophies. Nets: placed along coastlines to keep sharks away from beaches. Pollution: toxins and heavy metals that build up in the shark's body. In some areas Great White Shark populations have plummeted by over 70%. If not stopped, it will lead to the extinction of this ancient species.
Read these 5 Reasons to Revere—Not Fear—the Shark.

The tooth of a Great White Shark can be three inches long – that’s 7 times longer than the average human tooth.

– Monterey Bay Aquarium

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Cool Stuff

A frame-by-frame view of a Great White Shark breach.

Would you somersault for a meal? Want to follow a Great White Shark as it crosses the open ocean? Would a sharkskin suit make you swim faster? Can you navigate the waters of South Africa’s False Bay? Check it all out here!

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Sections

Life & Natural History

A diagram of a shark's six highly refined senses: smell, hearing, touch, taste, sight, and electromagnetism

Great White Sharks have a long lineage – in fact their ancestors swam the ocean long before dinosaurs appeared. These sharks have an arsenal of sophisticated senses they deploy in order to be the ocean’s top predators. Find out why these sharks are about brain, not brawn.

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Science

Save Our Seas scientist Alison Kock tags a Great White Shark.

How far and how fast can a Great White Shark move? Can DNA solve the case of illegal shark-fishing? What can shark teeth tell us about evolution? Discover the new knowledge scientists are revealing about the shark world.

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Human Connections

Newspapers with shark attack headlines in South Africa.

Great White Sharks have many more reasons to fear people than people have to fear them. Thousands of sharks are killed every year especially for shark fin soup. Find out how sharks are being protected here.

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Comments

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 03/25/2010 - 11:56am.

It is slow to load- do I need the most current flash?

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 03/26/2010 - 10:17am.

It's interesting and very informative! I didn't know any of those facts about sharks!

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 06/01/2010 - 9:27pm.

This is my favorite shark!

Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 06/02/2010 - 12:52pm.

Bye bye my Devonian friend. I shed a tear for you. :~(

P.S. Tiger Sharks and Bull Sharks are way nastier than the Great White and the Megalodon rocks! But if we do kill all the sharks, where can the Sharkopath come from?

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 06/19/2010 - 11:28pm.

I totally concur with you here in Australia by far most shark attacks
are caused by Bronze Whaler ( Bull ) sharks with the White Pointer being
frequently wrongly blamed !! the bull sharks often venture into virtually fresh water rivers etc in search of prey, whereas the Whites are strictly speaking deep water animals..
loobee Lake Macquarie NSW Australia

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 06/10/2010 - 8:37am.

whoa

Submitted by Anonymous on Sun, 06/27/2010 - 1:49pm.

I really love the great white shark and believe it deserves to be protected. I admire those people trying to learn more about these sharks and not letting fear get in their way.

Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 06/01/2011 - 11:16pm.

Im with you on that

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 08/06/2010 - 1:24pm.

They are magnificents!

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 09/10/2011 - 1:28pm.

U are so right

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 01/18/2011 - 10:59am.

what its size?

Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 04/18/2011 - 11:29am.

this is really cool! i did not know that!

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 04/21/2011 - 8:49am.

it is awesome

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 04/21/2011 - 8:51am.

The shark is the real hero!

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 04/28/2011 - 11:54am.

what do wights eat

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 04/29/2011 - 11:03am.

WoW LoOk At DaT tHiNgE DuDe:P

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 05/10/2011 - 2:09pm.

It's sad... We are really cruel, and these are beautiful animals. We should admire and respect them, not hunt them. And thank you for this article...it's great.

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/13/2011 - 2:48am.

i eat sharks :)

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 08/23/2011 - 7:22pm.

so you eat shark? you are kidding right? if you do it will not be long before you start to get sick FROM ALL THE MERCURY IT HAS IN IT'S SYSTEM.
Instead of letting the shark swim around in your bowl or on a plate why do you not let them swim where they are helping the enviroment? And being the beautiful creature GOD put on this earth.

Pamela F

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/14/2011 - 11:28pm.

A very good sight, there should be more facts for people to look at which I don't see here

Submitted by Ocean Portal Team on Tue, 05/24/2011 - 11:50am.

For more information and facts on the Great White Shark, visit the Encyclopedia of Life.

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 11/15/2011 - 10:40pm.

nice

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 02/03/2012 - 1:17pm.

I like sharks. (:

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 02/07/2012 - 10:14am.

i love sharks i would like to see one in real life

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