Like this tweet for a shark fact

Whale sharks, basking sharks, and megamouth sharks are all filter feeders like whales

More people are killed per year by jellyfish than sharks

The bonnet head shark is the only known omnivorous shark

The massive decline of shark populations on the east coast of the United States is directly linked to a rise in the price of clam chowder

Sharks predate dinosaurs by 150 million years

Sharks have survived 4 mass extinction events

The Greenland shark is the longest living vertebrate, with some speculating they could live past 400 years

100 million sharks are killed each year due in large part to unethical fishing practices like longlining. Sharks kill about 6 people a year

Whale sharks are the largest shark species with some reaching over 30 feet in length and I cannot stress enough how much it is not great whites they aren’t even in the top 5

The smallest shark species is the dwarf lanternshark with a max length of approximately 8 inches

5 shark species make up the vast majority of attacks on humans

While great whites are known to attack humans, these attacks are mostly one-strike as they get disappointed that you are not a seal

To round out the set of shark attack facts, 3 shark species make up the vast majority of fatal shark attacks

Megamouth sharks, an extremely rare species, look weird because their mouths are at the front of their heads rather than the undersides

Basking sharks are the second largest shark species and as such sightings have often been hailed by headlines saying “REAL LIFE JAWS”. In reality they’re filter feeders and if you swam into its mouth it would just make both of you uncomfortable

Most primitive sharks had teeth that separated into trident-shaped needles as seen in this frilled shark

(The frilled shark is another shark with its mouth at the front of its head rather than the underside!)

Shark skin is made up of tiny teeth-like scales called dermal denticles

You’ve heard of narwhals, now get ready for the longnose sawshark. It has teeth on its elongated chainsaw of a snout

Sharks can often survive several weeks without eating

Bull sharks can swim in fresh water and have been known to battle crocodiles

Sharks are 100 million years older than trees

You age sharks much like you age trees- by counting the rings on their vertebrae

Female sharks are usually much bigger than males. This is true for most large oceanic fish

Basking sharks generally swim very slowly but can swim as fast or even faster than great whites- approximately 5 meters per second

Building on the last fact, basking sharks reach this speed when attempting to breach, a behavior seen in great whites attempting to catch prey. The reason basking sharks do it is unknown, as they are filter feeders. I like to think they’re just having a good time

The world’s fastest shark is the shortfin mako, with one report clocking one at 46 mph

Goblin sharks have pink skin

25% of shark species are categorized as endangered, threatened, or vulnerable

Sharks have extremely sensitive electroreceptors they use to sense electric fields from prey. They may also use this ability to navigate using the earth’s magnetic field

Though the stereotype of sharks being mindless predators persists, they are actually often quite social and intelligent

Sharks can reproduce asexually

Some sharks, when flipped upside-down, go into a trance-like state known as tonic immobility