Tiger Shark
· Tiger Shark Habitat
· Tiger Shark Food
· Tiger Shark Behaviour
· Conservation Status
· Tiger Shark Facts

Tiger Shark

The Tiger shark belongs to the family Carcharhinidae and its scientific name is Galeocerdo cuvier. It is called Tiger shark since it has black markings that resemble the dark camouflaging lines of a tiger.

Tiger shark habitat

The Tiger shark is primarily found in tropical and subtropical parts of the world, but it is sometimes spotted in temperate regions as well. They can dive down to 1,200 feet (340 metres). Tiger sharks can be found near the shoreline as well as in open pelagic waters far from the nearest land.

They tend to prefer coastal waters, but during certain parts of their life they will frequently venture far from the coast. Small, young Tiger sharks need to stay away from larger Tiger sharks since bigger sharks will not hesitate to prey on smaller sharks from their own species. Staying away from older sharks is also a good way to avoid fighting.

Tiger shark diet

Tiger sharks are extremely opportunistic feeders and will eat virtually anything. They are skilled hunters, but will gladly feed on carcases if given the opportunity. Their diet is varied and can contain fish, sea birds, mammals, reptiles, octopuses, squids, sea turtles and a wide range of different crabs, lobsters, clams and similar. As mentioned above, Tiger sharks will also prey on each other as well as on other sharks. Dissected Tiger sharks have turned out to have dolphin, whale and porpoise remains in their stomachs.

Researched carried out on a Tiger shark population living near Hawaii showed how the diet of the Tiger shark changes as the animal grows older. In the Hawaiian waters, the young Tiger sharks turned out to be nocturnal hunters that obtained most of their food from the bottom of the ocean. Their main prey is bony fishes, crustaceans and cephalopods, but they could also catch birds and land mammals. As the Tiger shark grown older and larger, it will start to include marine mammals, elasmobranches and sea turtles in its diet. Young Tiger sharks can not do this since they are too small and lack sufficient hunting skills. 

Tiger shark weird diet

As mentioned above, the Tiger shark is an opportunistic feeder and it will not hesitate to scavenge and devour carcasses as well as other strange items that somehow resemble food to the Tiger shark. When scientists have studied the stomach content of Tiger sharks, they have sometimes stumbled on virtual junk yards. One research team did for instance find a ladies pyjama, while another discovered roil of chicken wire. Other surprising items that have been found inside Tiger sharks are rubber tires, shoes, rags, a bad of potatoes, bottles, tar paper, a sack of coal and a spam can. 

The remains of sheep, horses and cattle have also been found inside a group of Tiger sharks. It turned out that slaughterhouse offal had been dumped into the water where they Tiger sharks used to search for food. Another Tiger shark had somehow managed to eat a dog, but exactly how this came about nobody knows. The same mystique surrounds the Tiger shark that was caught off the coast of Durban in South Africa. This shark turned out to have the head and forequarters of a crocodile inside its belly.