Sharks

The animal that I choose to research is a shark. A shark has been my favorite animal since I was 3 when I first saw one. I am very scared of them, but they fascinate me and I enjoy reading and watching them. In the future I hope to go swimming with them!
A little about them:
Sharks have been on earth, in the ocean for over 400 million years. Sharks were here even before dinosaurs took over earth. "They are such good survivors that they've had little need to evolve in the last 150 million years." Sharks have the most powerful jaws on the planet. Unlike most animals' jaws, both the sharks' upper and lower jaws move. Sharks never run out of teeth. If one is lost, another spins forward from the rows and rows of backup teeth. Normally, sharks eat alone. But sometimes one feeding shark attracts others. They swim up as quickly as possible and all begin to try to get a piece of the prey. They bite wildly at anything that gets in their way -- even each other. Almost all sharks are "carnivores" or meat eaters. They live on a diet of fish and sea mammals (like dolphins and seals) and even such prey as turtles and seagulls. Sharks even eat other sharks. For example, a tiger shark might eat a bull shark, a bull shark might eat a blacktip shark and a blacktip shark might eat a dogfish shark! The teeth of the carnivores are sharp and pointy. Their skeleton is made of cartilage instead of bone, which allows greater flexibility. Their skin is made of denticles instead of ordinary fish scales. The denticles are constructed like hard, sharp teeth and help to protect the shark from injury.
What competition do sharks have? Are they only predators or also pray?
In the sea sharks are considered predators. They live on a diet of fish and other sea mammals such as dolphins or seals. They are pray only to other sharks who are bigger and stronger then them self.
Reproduction of Sharks-

"Baby sharks are called pups. Just like there are many types of sharks, there are also different ways that sharks come into this world. There are three ways that sharks are born:

• eggs are laid (like birds)

• eggs hatch inside the mother and then are born

• pups sharks grow inside the mother (like humans)

Sharks can have from 1 to 100 babies at a time, depending on the type of shark. The ones with pups that grow inside the mother have fewer babies at a time than sharks that lay eggs outside the body. Sharks do not care for their babies after they are born, but they do search for a safe place where they can lay their eggs or give birth."

Videos/Images-

In conclusion I think that sharks are amazing animals although they do scare you to death! Watch out my fellow swimmers! :)