What are the top 10 most deadly sharks on the planet?
The top 10 most deadly sharks
This is a question we are constantly asked when we take our customers on holiday on our shark diving trips. If you look at the statistics sharks do have an undeserved reputation that plays on our primal fears – such as more people get killed in america by vending machines than sharks. If you read articles about shark attacks then these are often agreed as being to 10 top most deadly:
- Great White Shark
The beast of a shark is the ultimate predator. The apex fish has been hunting in our oceans for at least 34 million years and until man came along had few natural animals that prey on it (although killer whales sometimes do target them). They can reach 14 feet and their favourite food is seals. They are one of the few sharks that are warm blooded which means they can hunt in cold seas.
- Tiger Shark
These camouflaged beauty’s generally stick to warm water. They are very curious and are often referred to the garbage trucks of the ocean, due to the strange contents found in dead shark’s stomachs. They are believed to be able to only taste their food once they swallow it. Most other sharks tend to take a test bite and if you’re not a natural food for them then they spit it out.
- The Mako
These are the Ferrari’s of the shark world. Slender and sleek they are the fastest shark in the sea with recorded speeds up over 40mph (try and run in the shallow end of the pool to see how difficult it is to move fast in water). Due to their great hunting techniques they are a endangered species due to shark finning by man.
- Oceanic White Tip
These were once one of the most prolific sharks on the planet. Found in tropical waters they tend to be scanvangers but also eat anything they can get their hands on. They have such a fierce reputation primarily due to the naval ships that were sank in WWII in tropical waters and these sharks were thought to feed on the drowning men in the water. They are very curious and often bump things in order to ascertain if it is a potential food source.
- Bull shark
These large and powerful sharks are the only shark species that can swim in fresh and salt water. They have been found hundreds of miles up rivers and feed on farmers livestock. Because they have no clear identifying marks like the stripes on a Tiger or the white tip of an oceanic they may be responsible for more attacks then believed.
- The Great Hammerhead
Due to the flat nose on these sharks they have one of the most active senses for detecting small changes in electrical current emitted by other animals. This means they are one of the most effective hunters in the shark family. There are several types of hammerhead sharks most of which are shy and timid, the Great Hammerhead though can grow up to 20 feet.
- The blue shark
These are often like puppies with sharp teeth. They are well camouflaged and often found in larger numbers which means when they do find a food source they can quickly devour it. They are quite curious too!
- Black tip shark
Due to their sheer abundance in certain parts of the parts of the world they can soon get very “excited” when there is an easy food source in the water. This can soon lead to an eating frenzy which can get pretty wild.
- Bronze whaler
This is a large shark at around 10 feet and gets its name from its brownish colour. Despites its size it is a fast shark and likes to harass spear fishermen.
- Sand Tiger
Unlike the ‘Tiger’ shark they do not have a fierce reputation. Their teeth are specially designed for catching fish which also makes them look scarier than they actually are.
Oyster Diving have been running trips for 10 years with dozens of shark species around the world including many of the ones listed above. As we don’t chum the water the sharks have never gone in to hunting mode. Yes they can be curious (wouldn’t you if you saw lots of strange things coming towards you with bubbles pouring out of it). In the 20 years I’ve been diving I have never once felt threatened, in fact it’s normally me that swims towards them rather than the other way around.
Nothing beats your first shark encounter. You often hear about drug addicts chasing their first high and the same goes for sharks, you look for bigger and more deadly ones. The biggest difference is that as sharks are a lot less likely to kill you and it’s good exercise and educational.
If you would like to join us on one of our shark trips then take a look at our holidays.