They have a fearsome reputation and many people are, quite rightly, very wary of them. Great whites can and do attack humans and have caused fatalities. What you may not know is that some of them like to be petted – if they can find someone brave enough to do it! In this video, we see one such courageous human petting a great white shark who appears to be enjoying it. Of course, the shark may also be trying to take a bite of the fisherman’s hand but we’ll let you decide that for yourself.
Fierce Fish of the Oceans
Great whites are generally found in cool coastal waters and their slate-grey upper bodies blend in with rocks on the ocean floor. The name ‘great white’ comes from their white underbelly. Their bodies are designed for efficient and fast swimming with torpedo-shaped torsos and powerful tails. These sharks can reach speeds of over 15 miles an hour but have outstanding acceleration which allows them to breach the water, attacking prey from beneath. Hunting prey is their specialty! In addition to their power and speed, they have around 300 serrated teeth in several rows that can rip flesh apart. They also have an excellent sense of smell and a special organ to detect electromagnetic fields given off by animals in the sea. This allows them to detect prey that is some distance away. So, when they are not hanging out with fishermen, what do great white sharks eat? Their diet is pretty varied; they will eat crustaceans, mollusks, and other sharks. They will also eat sea lions and seals as well as sea birds. However, they have also been seen eating smaller orcas and the carcasses of large whales.
Great White Attacks
The film, Jaws, did not do a lot of good for the shark’s reputation! However, their image is recovering these days and it is recognized that, because their numbers are decreasing, we need to do what we can to protect them. Between a third and a half of all shark attacks in the world, every year, are from the great white. There is no doubt that they can cause humans some very nasty injuries but very few are fatal. Because great whites are naturally curious, they have been known to take a ‘sample bite’ of a human because they do not know what we are! Experts believe that humans are not the natural prey of the great white shark and they do not really view us as food. Therefore, most attacks are caused by the sharks mistaking surfers and swimmers for seals or other prey, especially when viewed from below. We wonder what this great white thought this fisherman was!
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