Great White Shark

The Great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) is a large, robustly built shark with a grey upperside and a white underside. It has a stocky, torpedo-shaped body, a short cone-shaped snout and a large triangular first dorsal fin. Great white sharks are among the largest living sharks and fish, though smaller than the whale shark and basking shark.

Females mature at about 4.6-4.9 m and males at about 3.4-4.0 m. Females weigh roughly 1,000-1,900 kg and males 680-1,000 kg. A 2014 study of catch records in the northwest Pacific found the longest reliably measured great white shark to be 6.02 m.

They live in tropical and temperate seas around the world, along coasts and in the open ocean. Populations are largest off the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of North America, southern Africa and Oceania. They are wild predators and are not suited to living in captivity.

Great white sharks appear in the fossil record about 6-5 million years ago, in the Pacific. Because shark skeletons are made of soft cartilage, most fossils are teeth. Their ancestry has been traced to a large extinct shark with similar teeth that lacked serrations.

Over a few million years, serrations gradually developed in one lineage, and Great white sharks descended from it. They spread across the globe by the end of the Pliocene, replacing the much larger megalodon.

Carl Linnaeus described them in 1758 under the name Squalus carcharias. The genus name Carcharodon was coined in 1838 and combines Greek words meaning sharp and tooth. Populations in the major ocean basins have distinct genetic lineages, and cold or warm water barriers probably help keep them apart.

Great white sharks are generally solitary, but they may gather at feeding sites. They communicate with body language, with at least 20 known forms, and appear to set up dominance hierarchies by size. Fights are very rare, and disputes over prey are often settled by tail splashing.

They are apex predators that eat fish, squid, seals, dolphins, sea birds and sea turtles, and they scavenge whale carcasses. They often ambush seals from below, and off South Africa they sometimes leap out of the water to do so. Juveniles feed mainly on smaller prey such as fish.

They migrate vast distances. One shark tagged off South Africa swam to Australia and back within a year. Great white sharks must swim constantly to breathe, and how they sleep is not well understood.

Great white sharks are estimated to live for over 70 years. They mature slowly, with males reaching maturity at about 26 years and females at about 33. A study of sharks off eastern Australia and New Zealand found annual survival of over 70% for juveniles and over 90% for adults.

They appear to have strong immune systems, tolerate high levels of mercury and arsenic, and heal relatively quickly from severe wounds.

As many as 116 parasite species infest them, including copepods on the skin, fins, mouth and gills, and tapeworms in the gut. Orcas sometimes prey on them, and young sharks may be eaten by other sharks, including older Great white sharks.

This is general awareness only, not veterinary advice. If you find an injured or unwell wild animal, contact a vet or a wildlife rescue.

How big do great white sharks get?

Females mature at about 4.6-4.9 m and males at about 3.4-4.0 m. A 2014 study of northwest Pacific catch records found the longest reliably measured one to be 6.02 m. Claims of sharks over 11 m have been discredited.

How long do great white sharks live?

They are estimated to reach over 70 years of age. They grow slowly, and males take about 26 years to mature while females take about 33.

Can you keep a great white shark in an aquarium?

No. They are very hard to keep because of their size and migratory nature. Early captives survived only days, and later ones lasted weeks, then were released. The most successful exhibit displayed six sharks between 2004 and 2011; the sharks were released when they outgrew it, and the programme was discontinued in 2011 after enough data had been gathered.

Are great white sharks man-eaters?

No. They normally do not prey on humans, and most bites are thought to come from curiosity or possibly mistaken identity. They do cause the most recorded unprovoked shark bites on people, with 351 since 1580 as of 2024, 59 of them fatal.

Are great white sharks endangered?

They are listed as vulnerable globally. In European and Mediterranean waters they are critically endangered. Accidental catches in fishing gear and beach protection nets are major threats.

Great white sharks have about 300 serrated teeth arranged like a conveyor belt, with back teeth moving forward to replace those at the front.

They are partly warm-blooded. A network of blood vessels keeps parts of the body warm, so they can stay active in cool water.

Their liver can be almost 30% of their body weight. It stores energy and helps keep them from sinking.

They can dive down to 1,300 m. A feeding area in the open Pacific between North America and Hawaii has been nicknamed the White Shark Café.

The 1974 novel Jaws and its 1975 film turned them into famous movie villains.