In our article we want to talk about the long-winged shark, which is the most formidable predator of the water element.
Why is a shark long-winged?
If you've never heard of this one, keep in mind that it's the most dangerous of all. What kind of animal is a long-winged shark? This is a deceptively slow and at the same time very aggressive inhabitant of the ocean. It has been proven that this shark has attacked shipwrecked people much more often than all other representatives of this species.
She got her name because of her fins. It should be noted that they are larger than other species. The caudal fin is quite strongly developed. The maximum length of a predator is about four meters, although smaller individuals are usually found, no more than two and a half or three meters.
The long-winged shark has a narrow body, sometimes with a slight hunchback. Its size is not so impressive, there are species with larger parameters, but, nevertheless, it is very aggressive and dangerous.
What does a predator eat?
So what does the long-winged shark eat? The main prey of the predator is fish and cephalopods. Naturally, like her other relatives, she will not refuse to eat a sea turtle,carrion of marine mammals and crustaceans. Inside the caught sharks, sometimes they find garbage from ships thrown overboard by a person.
Sharks go hunting not only by themselves, but also in company with other types of marine predators. In such a community, they become extremely aggressive.
Where does the shark live?
The longfin shark is a true ocean fish. She, as a rule, rarely lives in the coastal zone. Most often it can be seen on the surface in the open sea. She never emerges from the water, only her fin is always visible.
The long-winged shark has one very interesting feature. She not only hears, but also feels absolutely all the smells above the water surface. It is this feature that gives her the opportunity to be the first to detect the victim and arrive in time for her, while others who lived in the ocean have not yet seen her.
Appearance of an ocean thunderstorm
The long-winged oceanic shark has its own characteristics that distinguish it from any other species. The predator is the owner of large dorsal and pectoral fins, outwardly they are very reminiscent of bird wings. Not only are they long, but they also end in rounded sections.
The shark has an elongated body, a small head and a slightly blunt muzzle. Her eyes are relatively small with a movable eyelid. The mouth of the predator has the shape of a sickle. It is always ajar during the movement of the shark. There are gill lines on each side of the mouth.
The largest fins are tail,dorsal, chest. The rest are much smaller. There are yellow spots on the fins - these are specific features of the color. The color of the predator can vary from light brown to gray-blue tones. The color scheme depends on the age of the shark.
The teeth of the upper and lower jaws are different from each other. At the top they are triangular and rather wide, with lateral grooves. The teeth of the lower jaw are smaller and look like fangs.
Dangerous Predator
The long-winged shark is the most widespread and dangerous predator of the oceans. It is most often found in subtropical and tropical waters. Oddly enough, but such a formidable predator avoids approaching the coastal zones of the seas.
Several years ago, the long-winged shark was not considered such a dangerous predator, because it hunted on the high seas. However, in 2010, there were several incidents of this species attacking humans in Egyptian coastal waters.
As it turned out, it makes sense to be afraid of a predator even at previously seemingly safe distances.
This species is one of the largest, it can be classified as "maxi sharks". The long-winged shark can reach four meters in length and weigh up to sixty kilograms. There was even a case when the weight of the predator was one hundred and seventy kilograms! It should be noted that females tend to be larger than males.
Shark features
The long-winged shark produces up to seven sharks at a time, each of them does not exceedhalf a meter. The predator reproduces by ovoviviparity.
A shark, unlike other fish, does not have a swim bladder. Therefore, in order not to drown, she needs to constantly move. Usually the predator moves extremely slowly, as if lazily, because it will take more energy to move faster.
Don't be fooled by the slowness in her movements. That doesn't make her harmless at all. If necessary, she makes powerful and fast throws and instantly clings to her victim in a stranglehold.
The long-finned oceanic shark is an extremely dangerous predator that threatens even its relatives. If you compare this variety with blue or silk, then it undoubtedly takes first place.
Shark is a rather curious creature that will not ignore any prey. And be sure to be interested in a passing diver. The basis of the food of the predator are tuna and squid. People have long noticed that sharks love to follow any ship, picking up any edible garbage thrown from the ship along the way. If a turtle or some dead animal comes across along the way, the predator will certainly arrange a feast for herself. Quite often, inedible household items or garbage are found in the stomachs of dead sharks.
Bloodthirst Predators
These predators are very aggressive. This is explained by the fact that any marine inhabitants eat up for future use. Solid prey comes across in their path not so often, and therefore, in order to maintain the necessary energy, sharks try to grabbig chunks for myself. Such instincts have evolved over millions of years and have repeatedly saved predators from starvation.
Man noticed that when a flock of sharks attacked tuna after a feast, a large number of dead fish swim on the surface of the sea.
It is also surprising that the long-winged shark is a very tenacious creature. There were absolutely incomprehensible cases when fishermen, having gutted a caught thunderstorm of the seas, threw it overboard. Oddly enough, but at the same time, the predator continued to calmly circle around the ship in search of food.
The harm caused by longwing sharks
It must be said that the long-winged shark causes great damage to commercial tuna fishing. This is due to the fact that predators consume this fish a lot, and their dexterity and speed in hunting cannot be compared with human capabilities. Humans just can't compete with sharks. The predator itself is quite often caught in nets set for tuna. However, it is completely uninteresting to humans. The maximum that people can do is to use her meat for food.
When shipwrecked on the high seas, everyone who managed to escape is in mortal danger from predatory creatures. After all, they have a very rare sense of smell, which allows them to track down accidents and attack people.
It should be noted that the long-winged shark is one of the most fearless creatures on earth. She can boldly attack an individual much larger than herself and at the same time not think that she herself may well become prey.
World famous researcher Jacques Yves Cousteau called long-winged sharks the most dangerous to humans. Although the great white shark, tiger shark and bull shark are also notorious, the majority of attacks on humans have been entirely of this species. It is difficult to judge the number of deaths, since there was no official statistics on the deaths of sailors who survived the shipwreck, but died from sharks. Nevertheless, there is reason to believe that in tropical waters, most of the people who find themselves in the water have become victims of the long-winged shark. For example, during World War II, a steamship with a thousand passengers was wrecked off the coast of South Africa. And to this day it is believed that most of them died precisely from these predators. So at present, the long-winged ocean shark is a very dangerous animal to be wary of.
