These are the 10 most dangerous shark species in the world

At 400 million years old, sharks predate the dinosaurs and have been on the planet for around as long as the trees. There are over 500 species of shark and they populate every sea in the world, with some living deep in dark, artic waters with others preferring the California coastal waters. They can grow up to around 18 metres in length and have means of constantly producing razor-sharp teeth.

But are sharks really something we need to fear? Or should we be marvelling more at these beautiful creations of Nature?

Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias)

Let’s be honest: Spielberg’s ‘Jaws’ is great, but it absolutely massacred the shark’s reputation, causing thousands - if not millions - of people to fear these fascinating fish. The Great White featured in the film caused havoc for Martin Brody and co., but in reality these huge animals are curious, intelligent creatures that rarely want to bug humans and would much prefer to stay away.

Sharks are what scientists may sometimes call ‘taste testers’, meaning that they will use their mouth to get a better feel of what they’re looking at as unfortunately flippers are not made for grabbing onto things and they don’t carry long sticks to feel around. They may have a nibble to test if something is good to eat. But humans are rarely on the menu.

Tiger Shark (Galeocerdo cuvier)

You may have heard of Tiger Sharks being ‘aggressive’, but this is not the case either. Rather than attacking humans, Tiger Sharks are simply less fussy than their Great White Cousins when it comes to munching on something they wouldn’t normally have on the menu. But I’m not talking about humans: I’m talking about tyres, coal and anything that may be dropped into the sea that shouldn’t be there.

Bull Shark (Carcharhinus leucas)

Bull Sharks are another species that may cause chills. These sharks are euryhaline, meaning they can adapt to both salt and freshwater, with determined individuals being found up to 1,700 miles up the Mississippi River, and 2,400 miles up the Amazon River.

They too have a reputation of aggressive behaviour but this is simply because it comes into contact with humans more than others due to this feature of its biology that makes it more likely to be floating in human-infested waters.

Humans kill millions of sharks per year

So there we have it: the numbers clearly show that sharks are not vicious human-hunters with bloodcurdling anger built up ready to strike - they’re more intelligent than that and would much prefer a seal’s fatty blubber to a bony human. Away from the top three, we have recorded just 12 fatalities. And who’s getting angry at the Wobbegong with that moustache?

However, human kill millions of sharks every year, sometimes up to 100 million, with many species now endangered. And perhaps the cruellest thing of them all is shark fin soup. Fishermen will haul the beast from the depths, cut off their fins and throw the helpless animal back into the water where it drowns. A lot of shark species are obligate ram ventilators, which means they must constantly be on the move in order to push water over their gills to breath.

If they can’t swim, they die.

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In the water, you’re in the shark’s domain, and they’re much more intelligent than their black eyes make them appear. They’re watching you with their vibration sensors down the side of the body that flicker every time you move a muscle and gel-filled electro-receptors built into their snouts, but they’re for hunting fish and sea lions, not humans. Worry about Orcas, they’re scary, not Sharks.

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