Great white sharks, also known as man-eating sharksand Carcharodon are some of the largest predatory fish on Earth. Their bodies grow up to 5 meters in length, and their weight can reach 2 thousand kilograms. Their lifespan averages 70 years, but they are on the verge of extinction, and today there are only about 3,500 individuals in the world. In general, white sharks are extremely unusual creatures, about which you could write an entire encyclopedia. A particularly interesting ability of these toothy creatures is endurance. Observations have shown that they can accelerate up to 25 kilometers per hour and swim for a long time without stopping, which allows them to swim across entire oceans in a very short time. One day, scientists attached a sensor to a white shark and were surprised by the observation results.
White sharks are considered one of the most dangerous fish in the world, and they are also very hardy. Photo source: Science Museum of Virginia
Animal swimming record
Scientists have long suspected that white sharks have high endurance. But scientific confirmation of this was received only in 2004. The year before, researchers attached a GPS tracker to the dorsal fin of a white shark, which was later named Nicole. Judging by satellite data, she sailed from the waters of South Africa and a few months later ended up on the coast of Western Australia.
Interesting fact:A white shark with a sensor on its fin was named after actress Nicole Kidman. It is known that the leading actress in the films “Moulin Rouge” and “Dogville” is very fond of sharks, and diving with them is one of her favorite activities.
Scientists monitor the movements of many wild animals using GPS sensors. Photo source: 3BL Media
A more detailed study of the collected data showed that the white shark swam across the entire Indian Ocean and thusovercame 11,100 kilometers.This journey took her 99 days, that is, 3.3 months. strong> You can conquer the Indian Ocean by ship in 7 days, but it is worth recognizing that ships move much faster and do not need rest. Sharks are living creatures, and the record set by Nicole could not be broken by any sea animal.
The authors of the study were even more surprised that after some time the white shark turned around and set off from Australia back towards South Africa.
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How sharks swim
Using a fin tracker, scientists have learned some interesting details about white sharks. For example, shark Nicole, during her swim from Africa to Australia, moved at an average speed of 4.7 kilometers per hourThis is much less than the maximum possible speed of white sharks. However, such a slowdown could allow the predator to save energy and cover a long distance, almost without stopping for a break. Sharks most often make their fast jerks only during hunting.
Observations show that sharks hunt only once every 2-3 days. Photo source: Atlas Obscura
Most of the time, the white shark swam on the surface. But sometimes she plunged into the Indian Ocean basin to a depth of 980 meters. In 2005, when scientists once again studied the data they collected, this was considered a record for the depth of white sharks diving into water. But later it turned out that white sharks are actually capable of diving even deeper – nowthe record for their diving under water is 1128 meters.
Why sharks are dying
The white shark Nicole showed by her example how wide the habitat of these creatures is. Science has learned that different populations of sharks can easily meet each other. Despite the fact that these predatory fish have three rows of sharp teeth, they take great risks during long swims. Not only do they sometimes become victims of fishing, but they also have natural enemies that threaten their population. If you are interested in details, read our material “What animals are dangerous sharks afraid of?”
Sharks have many natural enemies in nature. Image source: National Geographic
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Another extremely hardy animal is the swift. On our website there is an article about how these creatures fly for 10 months without landing and do not die – at one time tens of thousands of people read it. Scientists were able to prove that swifts are capable of flying for such a long time without landing by attaching GPS sensors to their bodies. The flight speed of these small creatures can reach 200 kilometers per hour, but this is not the most amazing fact. What is most amazing is that tiny birds manage to sleep while directly in the air.