PREHISTORIC PREDATORS
Take a closer look at
these amazing creatures
who have been around
for longer than
dinosaurs!HOW DO SHARKS
SHAPE THEIR
ECOSYSTEMS?
They keep other species in balance
by reducing their numbers, and
they affect the way prey species
behave (like where and when they
feed) simply by being present. For
example, in Cape Town, the Cape
fur seals minimise their chance of
being eaten by swimming at night
and preferring to travel in groups
around Seal Island.TEETH
Sharks have up to seven rows of teeth and they
are constantly losing and regrowing them. They
can have anywhere up to 3,000 teeth in their
mouth at once and can go through up to
30,000 teeth in their lifetime!
BREATHING
Some species of shark (like the great white)
can never stop moving. This is because if they
did they simply couldn’t breathe. Why? They
use something called ‘ram ventilation’, which
is when water must move through their gills to
keep them alive because they don’t have the
necessary muscles to pump water through
their mouth and over their gills.CAMO SHARK
The dark upper part and light lower part of the shark’s skin helps
him blend in with his environment. He is dark on top so that when
you look down into the water he blends in with the bottom of the
ocean, and light underneath so that he blends in with the surface
when looking from below. This is called counter-shading.EAR,
EAR!
Sharks only have
inner ears. That’s why
we cannot see them.SAFETY FIRST
If you’re heading for the beach these holidays, stay safe in the water by getting to know these shark spotter flags!No flag – no shark
spotter on duty.White flag (with solid black
shark) – shark in vicinity of
water users (siren sounded)
or after serious incident
when beach is closed.Red flag (with solid white
shark) – one hour after a
sighting or if a shark is spotted
but not near water users or if
there is an increased risk of
shark activity.Black flag (with shark
outline) – poor spotting
conditions in area where
majority of water users are.
No shark seen.Green flag (with shark
outline) – good spotting
conditions in area where
majority of water users are.
No shark seen.Info supplied by Shark Spotters.
Visit http://www.sharkspotters.org.za for more info.“For more cool facts, be
sure to get your copy of
Very Interesting Junior
from leading retailers or
http://www.coolmags.com now.”sharksWILDTHINGSAnimaltalk | April 2019 49