Sharks

Feared by most, loved by some and hunted by many, sharks are one of the most mysterious groups of creatures roaming the Earth today. Defined as a fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a sleek, streamlined body, a shark can range in size from the two foot pygmy shark, to the colossal 50-foot whale shark.There are more than 250 different species of sharks currently identified, making it one of the most diverse animal genera on the planet. Sharks are found in every major body of saltwater in the world, but are more common in warmer waters. There are a small number of shark species that do thrive in fresh water, and certain sharks have been known to venture from their saltwater homes to major freshwater lakes and rivers.Most members

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The 'pig fish', otherwise known as an angular roughshark, probably thinks you look pretty ridiculous, too.

Bizarre pig-faced shark found dead in the Mediterranean Sea. Is it real?

By Brandon Specktor

Italian naval officers found a dead angular roughshark (also known as the pig fish) in the waters near Elba.

A young angel shark swims through the waters off of Wales, awaiting its next meal.

Elusive angel shark shows off its ninja ambush skills in rare underwater footage

By Brandon Specktor

Researchers caught rare footage of a juvenile angel shark swimming off the UK coast, offering hope that the critically endangered species is still breeding.

A rare "virgin birth" of a smoothhound shark (Mustelus mustelus) in an Italian aquarium may be a scientific first for the species.

Italian shark has 'virgin birth' after 10 years in all-female shark tank

By Harry Baker

A female smoothhound shark recently gave birth in an Italian aquarium without having mated with another shark, in what may be a first-of-its-kind "virgin birth."

A great white shark tears into a humpback whale carcass at Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, east of Boston.

'Unimaginable' video shows great white sharks ripping humpback whale carcass to shreds

By Brandon Specktor

NOAA researchers stumbled upon a gang of great white sharks scavenging a dead humpback whale calf off the coast of Boston. Now, they're sharing the footage.

An illustration showing how the attack may have gone down, with a megatoothed shark biting the lower jaw of the sperm whale.

Megalodon's mortal attack on sperm whale revealed in ancient tooth

By Laura Geggel

An ancient sperm whale tooth has gouge marks on it that may have come from an megalodon attack.

Bonnethead sharks are one of the four species of sharks to take refuge in the canal.

Sharks hide in Florida canal to escape toxic red tide sweeping the coast

By Harry Baker

Hundreds of sharks have taken refuge in a Florida canal to escape the toxic red tide, an algal bloom sweeping the Gulf Coast.

Director Eli Roth visits with a shark in his documentary, "Fin."

Humans are the real monsters in gory new shark documentary

By Mindy Weisberger

Acclaimed horror director Eli Roth has a new documentary on a horrific subject: the shark finning trade.

Silhouette of a shark as seen from below water, looking up at the surface.

7 unanswered questions about sharks

By Laura Geggel

Ask any shark biologist a question about sharks, and chances are, the answer might begin with, "We're not really sure…"

Greenland shark swimming, Somniosus microcephalus isolated on black background.

20 times sharks made our jaws drop

By Kimberly Hickok, Stephanie Pappas

Here are our favorite stories about sharks, from an ancient Greenland shark to a behemoth "queen of the ocean."

Underwater photo of a great white shark.

Man survives attack by great white shark off California beach

By Jeanna Bryner

A 6- to 8-foot-long great white shark bit the right leg of a 35-year-old man body-boarding off Grey Whale Cove State Beach in San Mateo County, California, Saturday (June 26) morning.

Original excavation photograph of Tsukumo No. 24.

Oldest-known shark attack discovered in 3,000-year-old skeleton with 800 injuries

By Mindy Weisberger

Scientists reconstructed a 3,000-year-old shark attack from marks left behind in the victim's skeleton.

Denticles, or microscopic shark scales vary greatly between species. These ancient denticles are telling a previously unknown story of mass extinction.

Mysterious event nearly wiped out sharks 19 million years ago

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

About 90% of sharks disappeared from the ancient oceans in less than 100,000 years, but it's unknown why.

great white shark

Great white shark population off California's coast is growing

By Stephanie Pappas

The population of great white sharks in Northern California is around 300 and growing.

The Godzilla shark, shown in this artistic concept illustration, would have been equipped with 12 rows of piercing teeth and a pair of 2.5-foot-long (0.8 meters) fin spines on its back.

300 million-year-old 'Godzilla shark' identified as new species, gets a new name

By Harry Baker

Scientists have finally classified and named the ancient 'Godzilla shark' which was first discovered in 2013 in New Mexico.

An epaulette shark swims around near the seafloor.

Baby sharks are born scrawny and sick because of climate change

By Harry Baker

Increasing ocean temperatures caused by climate change are leading sharks to be born younger, smaller and weaker.

Megalodon probably gave birth to live young, as do the majority of modern sharks.

Megalodon shark mamas had human-size cannibal babies

By Mindy Weisberger

New analysis of rare megalodon fossils revealed that their newborn babies were the biggest live babies in the shark family.

The dead basking shark was more than 26 feet long.

A truck-size shark washed up on a Maine beach. How did it die?

By Brandon Specktor

An enormous basking shark washed up dead on the coast of Maine this week. Officials have not determined the cause of death.

Great white shark swimming in the ocean

2 people die in shark attacks. How unusual is this?

By Patrick Pester

Separate shark attacks in Hawaii and the eastern Caribbean leave two people dead. Experts say tragedies like this are rare relative to the number of people in the water.

Megalodon, the biggest predatory shark of all time, watched over its young as many modern sharks do — by raising them in defined geographic areas known as nurseries.

Megalodon nurseries reveal world’s largest shark had a soft side

By Mindy Weisberger

Scientists have identified five locations that the extinct predator Megalodon used as "nurseries" for young sharks.

A swordfish (Xiphias gladius) left part of its "sword" sticking out of the shark it killed.

Whodunit solved when 'sword' is found embedded in thresher shark

By Laura Geggel

It's a mystery why a swordfish stabbed a thresher shark to death, but it's possible they were competing for food.