The perception of sharks as dangerous animal has been provoked through a popular film called the Jaws. The author was Peter Benchley. He portrayed sharks as “Human-eating monster” in this film. I watched this film so many times. Trust me, it was awesome and marvelous..
· People belief, only a few sharks are dangerous to humans. These kinds of sharks are usually large, powerful predator, may sometimes attack and kill people. In 2006 the International Shark Attack File (ISAF) had an investigation or study into 96 suspected shark attacks, it confirmed that 62 of the cases as unprovoked attacks and 16 as provoked attacks. Between 2001 and 2006 the average number of victims of shark attack (around the world) per year from unprovoked shark attacks is 4.3.
· Out of those sharks’ species, there are only four sharks involved in an unprovoked attack on human being. They are the great white, tiger, bull and oceanic whitetip shark.
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/sharks/statistics/2006attacksummary.htm
Different with the common perception that sharks are "eating machines". Recent studies showed that sharks are powerful in problem solving skills, social skills and full of curiosity. Sharks’ brain to body-mass percentage are the same or similar to mammals and birds. Unbelievable, sharks can take part in playful activities. For example, researcher figured out that Porbeagle sharks again and again rolling in kelp and chasing people who follow a piece of kelp behind it. In 1987, near Smitswinkle Bay, South Africa, there was a group of sharks worked together to move a dead whale to deeper water to be eaten. This can be a proof that sharks are good in solving problem and high in social activities.http://www.new-brunswick.net/new-brunswick/sharks/species/porbeagle.html
· In general, sharks swim at an average of 8 kilometers per hour but when they are feeding or attacking, they can reach speed 19 kilometers per hours (12 mph). The fastest shark, the shortfin mako shark, is able to reach speed up to 50 kilometers per hour (31 mph). The great white shark is also able of speed bursts. These exceptions may be because of the warm-blooded or nature of the sharks' physiology.
· Some sharks are able to lie on the base of the ocean while actively pumping water through their gills, and believe it or not, their eyes stay open and actively follow divers while sleeping. When a shark is sleeping, it does not use its nares, but it rather used its spiracales. If it does use its nares while resting on the ocean base, it would breathe in sand rather than water. Most of the scientists confident that, this is one of the reasons why sharks have spiracles. There is a unique shark called the spiny dogfish. According to Kidzone “The spiny dogfish's spinal cord, rather than its brain, coordinates swimming” no wonder spiny dogfish can keep on swimming even it is sleeping.
· http://animal.discovery.com/fish/river-monsters/bull-shark/
