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Project Noah Nature School
Triaenodon obesus
I think one of the reasons people are awed by sharks is the way they swim. It is near perfection and when you look at their smooth power-rippling stroke, you know you are looking at a design that needs no improvement. 450 million years ago, when Antarctica was close to the equator and the Northern hemisphere was just ocean, you could see a shark swimming exactly the same way as the sharks you see today. In a time when a mountain range connected New York State, Greenland and Norway and the life on it was a few moss-like plants and small insect-like crustaceans, sharks had already conquered the oceans, … and we were still fish, fleeing them with a terror that remains deep within our instincts today. Guardian: Travis Sevier
Spotted on Apr 10, 2015
Submitted on Apr 10, 2015
2 Comments
Project Noah Fun Fact: One of the most common sharks found on Indo-Pacific coral reefs, the whitetip reef shark occurs as far west as South Africa and as far east as Central America. It is typically found on or near the bottom in clear water, at a depth of 8–40 m (26–131 ft). During the day, whitetip reef sharks spend much of their time resting inside caves. Unlike other requiem sharks, which rely on ram ventilation and must constantly swim to breathe, this shark can pump water over its gills and lie still on the bottom. At night, whitetip reef sharks emerge to hunt bony fishes, crustaceans, and octopus in groups, their elongate bodies allowing them to force their way into crevices and holes to extract hidden prey. This species is viviparous, in which the developing embryos are sustained by a placental connection to their mother. ~Wikipedia
Whitetip Reef Shark (Triaenodon obesus)
spotted in Queensland, Australia by PN member david14.
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Moved to the Fish category :-)