Shark adventures, tours, and trips, people are fond of it but have a fear of getting themselves attacked. Having a large size, we often think sharks eat whatever comes in their way, be it trash, aquatic animals, or even humans. But it’s not exactly true. Though there are shark species that do eat anything that is available at the time, humans are not one of their favorite foods to eat.
When you look at the cases of shark attacks, most of them you will find are provoked. Sharks become aggressive mostly when they are triggered and do not attack humans unnecessarily. However, safety measures should be in place.
If not humans, then what are the things sharks eat or prefer to eat? Well, it’s important to find out since sharks play a crucial role in the ecosystem and help balance marine life. So, without any other argument, let’s find out what sharks eat.
What do sharks eat?
Marine mammals, Mollusca, algae, fishes, and even other sharks, when it comes to food preferences, sharks are not choosy, and they eat whatever is easy to get. However, as there are hundreds of species of sharks found all over the world, their food choice might differ a bit. Similarly, some eat more food than others.
In general, the shark’s diet is labeled as a carnivore, which means that they prefer to eat meat or flesh of animals. As sharks live in water, marine animals are often the target, such as fish, crustaceans, squid, turtles, and all other marine life animals.
Sharks of smaller species, such as pygmy sharks, typically consume smaller prey, such as bony fish and squid, while sharks of larger species may eat larger mammals like seals, turtles, and sea lions. Then there are shark species such as basking sharks that prefer to eat plankton.
When it comes to individual liking, some of the well-known sharks are known for their fondness for particular food. For example, hammerheads always look for stingrays, tiger sharks focus on sea turtles, blue sharks like to have squid, and dogfish prefer to have crabs and lobsters.
The best way to determine what a shark species eats is to look at its mouth. Sharks have specialized teeth meant for the food they prefer to feed on. When it comes to great white sharks, they have razor-sharp teeth to cut through large fish and other mammals. Their diet largely consists of meat, and they like to eat pinnipeds, large fish, and seabirds as well.
Whereas the teeth of a tiger shark resemble a serrated blade to help break their prey.
To put it in a shell, all sharks are somewhat carnivores and eat ocean animals or plankton. Let’s get right down to listing out the top five things.
What are the 5 things sharks eat the most?
To determine the top 5 things, we are going to divide the sharks into two categories so that it’s easier for you to understand their food preferences. So, let’s figure it out and see what are the top 5 things sharks like to eat.
For carnivorous sharks, the five things they eat are:
- Fish
- Turtles
- Squid
- Seals
- Lobsters and, of course, other sharks as well.
When it comes to shark species that prefer plankton, the five things they like to eat more are:
- Shrimp
- Barnacles
- Crustaceans
- Krill
- Algae
Besides that, sharks can eat other marine animals, whichever is easily available to them.
How much do sharks eat in a day?
We have talked about what are the 5 things sharks eat, but how much they eat still needs to be answered, and it’s an important question too.
As per the research, the food consumption of sharks depends heavily on their size and weight. As a matter of fact, every time sharks hunt, they eat between 0.5 and 3 percent of their overall body weight.
The weight of a shark can be different and depends on its species. It can be anything from 1500 to 4000 pounds, or it can be less or more than that. Using this information, you can estimate the quantity of food a shark eats a day.
Conclusion
The misconception that sharks are vicious man-eaters has been sowed so much so that we feel pointlessly afraid. Whereas only a few shark species are considered dangerous to humans. Rest aside, sharks are carnivores, and they like to eat other sea animals, out of which the 5 most edible things sharks eat are discussed in the article.
