Hammerhead Sharks Research Paper

Sharks grow slowly and reproduce at a low rate. Their natural rate of replenishment is low, because they reproduce late in life and produce few offspring (Sims and Reid, 2002). If too many of a certain shark species is killed in a certain area, it is possible that that species may never recover. For example, the number of dusky sharks and sandbar sharks off the eastern United States decreased by more than 80% between 1985 and 1995. The sand tiger shark and the great white shark are threatened world-wide. Despite reproduction, little is known about the status, behavior patterns, and their migration patterns of most

Shark mating rituals vary from the size of the shark and its specie. In smaller, more flexible species, the male coils around the female, while the male of the larger specie orients himself parallel and head-to-head with the female (Woums & Demski 1993). Some species mating rituals also consists of males biting females on the pectoral fins or the middle of the back to hold on to them (Woums & Demski 1993). The female will often bear scars or marks, after the ordeal. Due to the fact that sharks are cold blooded animals, there is no precise gestation time. The development of the embryo will depend solely on the temperature of the water, however, the gestation period can last anywhere from 2 months to 2 years (Woums & Demski 1993). Within shark species there are two methods of reproduction. In some cases a female shark will lay eggs in a coastal nursery where the presence of other sharks are absent. And in other cases, usually in the larger sharks, females give birth to live offspring (Wourms & Demski 1993). In which case the young are born fully developed, and once they are born they shoot away fast or they risk being eaten.

Sharks are one of the oceans top predators. They vary in size from the extremely small dwarf shark, to the colossal whale shark. Sharks can be found all across the world’s oceans, from the tropic waters of Hawaii to the sub zero temperatures in the Artic oceans. Of the hundreds of sharks a select few species have actually been recorded in the Artic. Of these few, only three of them spend the majority of their time in these harsh, freezing waters. These sharks are the Greenland, Pacific Sleeper, and Salmon sharks.

Great hammerhead sharks appear to adapt well to their environments. One of their capabilities is that they are opportunistic predators and are willing to eat anything they can get their hands on to help them survive. Consequently, one concern would be the changes in temperature in the water. The hammerhead does not seem to adapt well to the cooler waters.

If a bull shark and hammerhead shark were to fight, the bull shark would win. Bull sharks are the most dangerous sharks in the world! Along with this, bull sharks have special adaptations, and they hunt in shallow waters. Although hammerhead sharks have great vision, the shape of their heads, and the placement of their eyes cause them to have a huge blind spot right in the middle of their head. This makes it easier for other sharks to win a fight against the hammerhead.

In John Bauer’s short story, “The Truth About Sharks”, Beth is treated unfairly by the security guard. To begin with, the security guard shouts at Beth due to the misunderstanding about her shoplifting, which caused her to cry and become uncomfortable. As Beth is talking to the security officer, the officer angrily shouts and causes Beth to say “ you’re hurting me!”(133). Beth is treated unfairly because of the misunderstanding due to her shoplifting. She is terrified of the consequences that could happen such as going to jail, losing her son and being charged. Beth is uncertain about her future and the next moments. This situation will drastically change the daily lives of all three characters and put them in uncertainty. Next, Beth is violently

Judson contributes to onefs understanding of sex among different organisms in that she makes difficult concepts simple to comprehend. Although she uses scientific terminology, she limits it so that anyone can understand the technical information she shares. Judson also describes the types of environments in which each species and

Reproduction usually occurs once a year for hammerhead sharks. Male hammerhead sharks start to bite the female hammerhead sharks when they are ready to mate. Female hammerhead sharks give birth to their cubs in the warm water. They are able to have 12-15 cubs at once. Not all cubs will make it out of birth from the mother. The female hammerheads immediately leave the pups alone to take care of themselves. A good percentage of the cubs will survive after birth and it is unusual for all cubs to survive.

The Mako shark is a very unique species of cartilaginous fish in the Lamnidae family (Col-Spector, Audrey, “MAKO SHARK- Enchanted Learning Software"). This pelagic swimmer is the fastest shark that has ever been observed in the ocean, clocking in at speeds up to 60 mph (Col-Spector). Its streamlined body allows it to swim at faster speeds than most other fish, making it a highly successful predator. “Schooling fish, including tuna, herring, mackerel, swordfish, and porpoise” are popular among the diet of the Makos (Col-Spector). Although they like to prey specifically on schooling fish, Makos eat just about anything they come across (Col-Spector). The Mako sharks physical features and social characteristics is what sets it apart from other species of the deep.

Pacific sleeper sharks, which are also known scavengers, can glide through the water with little body movement and little hydrodynamic noise making them successful predators. They feed by suction and cutting of their prey. They have large mouths that can inhale prey and their teeth cut up any pieces that are too large to swallow. They show a characteristic rolling motion of the head when feeding. Only in Alaska has the shark's diet been studied - most sharks' stomachs contain remains of giant Pacific octopus. They are also known to feed on bottom-dwelling teleost fishes as well as soles, flounders, Alaska pollock, rockfishes, shrimps, hermit crabs, and even marine snails. Larger Pacific sleeper sharks are also found to feed on fast swimming

the black tip shark has a very pointy nose in fact more pointy than any other sharks it uses a chemical odor to attract a mate near by.

Many animals migrate for different reasons. Ducks migrate to warmer weather when the seasons change. Humpback Whales migrate to follow their food source krill. The Great Hammerhead was known to have movements, but it was not-believed that the movement was in patterns like a yearly migration of most animals that migrate. The Great Hammerhead shark is a large shark and can grow up to 20 feet and weigh in at over 1,000 pounds. Until Recently it was unknown if the Great Hammerhead Shark migrated.

The shark reproduces in a fascinating way.First it has a small litter of pups (2 - 4) then the pups eat the unfertilized eggs.They also deplete or use up their yolk sac in the womb.(Thresher sharks are slow

Charvet-Almeida’s (2005) paper talks about several key factors regarding reproductive cycles of wild populations of freshwater stingrays. The authors also make reference to differences in captive breeding rates over the wild population, Charvet-Almeida (2005) states, “ the results obtained refer to observations of freshwater stingray reproductive biology in

Multiple paternity is common in sharks because fertilization is done by multiple males to ensure genetic diversity of the species but it seems Tiger sharks tend to be genetically monogamous to ensure that food will be provided by the male. Could this be a threat to the entire species? The sharks are capable of being mated with at the same time but female Tiger sharks chose to stay with one male until he leaves before mating with the next. Since Tiger sharks are not a concern for the depletion of their population, this might not be the case. Since Tiger sharks span across a large area of the world there is a constant dependence on encounters between male and females which if the population of Tiger sharks decreased, than it would be extremely