Great White Shark

Carcharodon carcharias

Built for long-distance predation, the great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, is a large lamnid shark of temperate and subtropical seas, often called simply the white shark. It has a conical snout, heavy body, crescent-shaped tail, dark upper surface, pale underside, and broad serrated teeth suited for cutting. Regional endothermy lets it hunt in cool water and move between coastal seal colonies, offshore seamounts, and open-ocean migration routes. Young sharks feed heavily on fish and rays, while larger adults also take seals, sea lions, dolphins, whale carcasses, and other large prey.

Great white sharks are not realistic aquarium animals; attempts to keep them long term have usually failed because they are wide-ranging, high-oxygen swimmers that injure easily in confined tanks. Human work with the species is mainly field research, public-safety planning, fisheries management, and ecotourism oversight. Tagging, photo identification, genetic sampling, and bycatch reports help scientists follow movements and population trends. In many regions white sharks are protected or subject to strict rules, so responsible boating, cage-diving operations, and beach advisories aim to reduce conflict without treating every sighting as an emergency.