The Great White Shark is high of the danger scale due to its massive size, large teeth and strong bit force.

 

It’s the most feared of all sharks in the world. One bite from this shark (Carcharodon carcharias) can easily leave a person fatally wounded.

 

The Great White Shark can reach 20 feet/6.1 meters long and weigh 5,000 pounds/2,268 kilograms. The Guiness Book of Records reports a 37.1 foot/13.3 meter Great White Shark being caught off the coast of Canada, but this data is not regarded well by many in the scientific world as this is much larger than the largest previously caught Great White. And, their teeth can reach 30 mm wide and stick out 40 mm from their gums.

Distribution

The Great White Shark is found in all of the world’s oceans. It is found both along the coast of all continents with the exception of Antarctica as well as out in the open ocean. Great White Sharks are always on the move and can detect prey from a great distance.

Habitat

This shark is found where the water temperature is between 54°F to 75°F/12°C to 24°C. They seek out large prey where they are in large quantities and avoid small prey.

Features and Size

It has a large snout. It’s tail has two lobs designed for speed with the upper lobe being about 20 percent bigger than the lower lob.

The Great White Shark has rows of serrated teeth much like the other sharks. As one tooth is broken off, another is ready to move into place.

 

All fish have the ability to detect vibrations in the water. This is done through the detection of changes in the electromagnetic waves that every animal gives off when it twitches a muscle. This is done through the lateral line in most fish.

 

In the Great White Shark, the Ampullae of Lorenzini is much more sensitive, detecting changes to a billionth of a volt allowing it to detect movements miles away.

Food Preferences

These sharks focus on marine animals. The most common animals it feeds on include seals, tuna, sharks, cetaceans, turtles and dolphins. They will also go after birds and other mammals that fall into the water.

 

They are attracted by erratic vibrations, the kinds of vibrations that wounded fish make in the water. They are also highly attracted to the smell of blood in the water. The smell of blood creates a frenzy that drives them crazy.

Despite their reputation, the Great White Shark does not kill constantly and nor does it eat everything in site like that of the snakehead. They eat when they are hungry and like other predators, they will ambush prey from behind of beneath them.

When the Great White Shark bites into its prey, it shakes its head back and forth until a chunk is cut off, effectively killing anything it bites into.

Reproduction

Like other sharks, the Great White develops its eggs in the utterus. Their young are born fully developed at 11 months.

Man Eater Danger Scale

High of the danger scale due to its massive size, large teeth and strong bit force. We rate them at a 7. The only reason we do not target them higher is that most attacks on humans were what are called bit tests. Sharks sometimes test their food with a bite before striking hard. Of all the attacks on humans, only a small portion prove fatal.