20 THINGS THEY SHOULD

KNOW ABOUT SHARKS

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1. There are 440 different types of sharks in the world.

2. 100 million sharks are killed in the world each year.

3. Of all the shark species in the world's oceans, only 5 are considered to be friendly and not a danger to humans. 

4. The largest shark is the whale shark.

5. The largest shark that ever lived was the Megaladon. It lived up until 2 million years ago and was 60 feet long and had a bite worse than T-Rex. 

6. The largest shark ever caught was a 37 foot big white.

7. Some scientists are concerned about the number of sharks being killed each year. If we continue to kill sharks at this rate, we may destroy a very important part of the ocean.

8. Not all sharks eat fish or hunt prey. 

9. New Zealand is home to the Mako Shark, one of the fastest sharks. It can reach speeds of 60 miles an hour (90 KMs per hour)

10. Sharks have been around for 450 million years.

11. The oldest Shark fossil found is estimated to be 400 million years old.

12. Sharks do not hunt people. The are curious creatures with a great sense of smell. 

13. The smallest shark is the Dwarf Lantern Shark.

14. A person has a 1 in 63 chance of dying from the flu and a whopping 1 in 3,700,000 chance of being killed by a shark.

15. Sharks do not lay eggs like turtles and other forms of sea life.They have babies called pups. 

16. Most sharks do not sleep as they have to keep moving to force water through their gills.

17. Some sharks may live up to 100 years of age though the average age is thought to be about 30 years. 

18. Sharks have an amazing sense of hearing. 

19. A shark's sense of smell is 10,000 times better than a human. The also have excellent vision.

20. Sharks are a very important part of our ocean ecosystem and their presence helps to create a balance among all ocean life.