Thursday, September 6, 2007

Not Jaws!

There are more than 350 species of shark, but only a handful are dangerous to humans. The two largest, the basking shark and the whale shark, only eat small creatures like plankton.

How large is the largest? The whale shark is about 40 feet long. The smallest shark, the dwarf shark, is only 10 inches long.

Did you know that sharks can see better in the dark than cats? But better yet, they can detect electrical fields. Their electro-perception organ is called the Ampullae of Lorenzini. If shark stop swimming, they sink, since they don’t have swim bladders like most other fish.

Pacific Islanders once worshipped the shark god Kamohoali'i. Was that out of fear? They are pretty fearsome looking!

JJ

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