Shark

Avg. speed

4 kn

With more than 500 species, sharks are overwhelmingly harmless to sailors, though the oceanic whitetip earned a fearsome reputation among shipwreck survivors in open water. Most are solitary hunters that feed on fish, squid and marine mammals, and their presence at the surface often signals a feeding event unfolding below. Sharks are an ancient lineage that has patrolled the oceans for some 450 million years, predating the dinosaurs and even trees. Far from the mindless killers of legend, they are key apex predators whose health reflects the health of the entire marine ecosystem.