| Definition/Meaning | Word/Phrase |
|---|
| large pelagic shark of warm seas with a whiplike tail used to round up small fish on which to feed |
Alopius vulpinus
,
fox shark
,
thrasher
,
thresher
,
thresher shark
|
| large harmless plankton-eating northern shark; often swims slowly or floats at the sea surface |
basking shark
,
Cetorhinus maximus
|
| widely distributed shallow-water shark with fins seemingly dipped in ink |
blacktip shark
,
Carcharhinus limbatus
,
sandbar shark
|
| common blue-grey shark of southwest Pacific; sport and food fish |
blue pointed
,
bonito shark
,
Isurus glaucus
|
| slender cosmopolitan, pelagic shark; blue body shades to white belly; dangerous especially during maritime disasters |
blue shark
,
great blue shark
,
Prionace glauca
|
| most common shark in temperate and tropical coastal waters worldwide; heavy-bodied and dangerous |
bull shark
,
Carcharhinus leucas
,
cub shark
|
| relatively slender blue-grey shark; nearly worldwide in tropical and temperate waters |
Carcharhinus obscurus
,
dusky shark
|
| most common grey shark along coasts of middle Atlantic states; sluggish and occasionally caught by fishermen |
Carcharhinus plumbeus
,
sandbar shark
|
| shallow-water shark with sharp jagged teeth found on both sides of Atlantic; sometimes dangerous to swimmers |
Carcharias taurus
,
Odontaspis taurus
,
sand shark
,
sand tiger
|
| large deep-water shark with white-tipped dorsal fin; worldwide distribution; most dangerous shark |
Carcharinus longimanus
,
oceanic whitetip shark
,
white-tipped shark
,
whitetip shark
|
| large aggressive shark widespread in warm seas; known to attack humans |
Carcharodon carcharias
,
great white shark
,
man-eater
,
man-eating shark
,
white shark
|
| shark of the western Pacific with flattened body and mottled skin |
carpet shark
,
Orectolobus barbatus
|
| large primitive shark widely distributed in warm seas |
cow shark
,
Hexanchus griseus
,
six-gilled shark
|
| large dangerous warm-water shark with striped or spotted body |
Galeocerdo cuvieri
,
tiger shark
|
| Pacific shark valued for its fins (used by Chinese in soup) and liver (rich in vitamin A) |
Galeorhinus zyopterus
,
soup-fin
,
soupfin
,
soupfin shark
|
| small bottom-dwelling shark of warm shallow waters on both coasts of North America and South America and from southeast Asia to Australia |
Ginglymostoma cirratum
,
nurse shark
|
| medium-sized live-bearing shark with eyes at either end of a flattened hammer-shaped head; worldwide in warm waters; can be dangerous |
hammerhead
,
hammerhead shark
|
| very swift active bluish shark found worldwide in warm waters; important game fish |
Isurus oxyrhincus
,
shortfin mako
|
| voracious pointed-nose shark of northern Atlantic and Pacific |
Lamna nasus
,
porbeagle
|
| common shallow-water schooling shark of the Atlantic from North Carolina to Brazil and off west Africa; dangerous |
lemon shark
,
Negaprion brevirostris
|
