Chordata · chordates

Sand tiger shark

Carcharias taurus

Odontaspididae · sand tigersIUCN: Critically Endangered
Sand tiger shark
Photo: Bryce Watts-Parker · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized

A toothy but docile coastal shark common on wrecks off New Jersey and North Carolina.

Fun factEmbryos eat their siblings in the womb, so only two pups are born.

Waters
Worldwide, Northeast US
Depth zone
Coastal shallows & estuaries, Continental shelf
Diet
Fish, rays & squid
Size
Up to 3.2 m

Classification

Chordata › Chondrichthyes › Lamniformes › Odontaspididae

  1. Kingdom Animalia animals
    • Many-celled organisms that eat other living things for energy (heterotrophs)
    • Cells have no cell walls
    • Most can move at some stage of life
  2. Clade Bilateria bilateral animals
    • Body has a left and right side that mirror each other (bilateral symmetry)
    • Head end with concentrated nerves; three tissue layers
    • Includes about 99% of all living animal species
  3. Clade Deuterostomia deuterostomes
    • In the embryo, the first opening becomes the anus and the mouth forms second
    • Includes echinoderms and chordates
  4. Phylum Chordata chordates
    • At some stage of life: a stiffening rod along the back (notochord)
    • A hollow nerve cord along the back (dorsal)
    • Slits in the throat (pharyngeal slits) and a tail past the anus
  5. Subphylum Vertebrata vertebrates
    • A skull (cranium) protecting a brain
    • Backbone or similar support around the nerve cord
    • Includes fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals
  6. Infraphylum Gnathostomata jawed vertebrates
    • Jawed vertebrates: jaws formed from gill arches
    • Paired fins or limbs
    • Includes all fishes except hagfish and lampreys, plus all tetrapods
  7. Class Chondrichthyes cartilaginous fishes
    • Skeleton made of cartilage, not bone
    • Skin covered in tooth-like scales (denticles)
    • Teeth constantly replaced; males have claspers for mating
  8. Subclass Elasmobranchii sharks & rays
    • Sharks and rays: five to seven separate gill slits on each side
    • Many rows of replaceable teeth
  9. Clade Selachii sharks
    • Sharks: gill slits on the sides of the head
    • Pectoral fins not joined to the head
  10. Superorder Galeomorphii galeomorph sharks
    • Sharks with an anal fin and five gill slits
    • Includes most familiar sharks
  11. Order Lamniformes mackerel sharks
    • Mackerel sharks: anal fin and two dorsal fins without spines
    • Mouth reaches behind the eyes; no eyelid (nictitating membrane)
    • Embryos feed on unfertilized eggs in the womb
  12. Family Odontaspididae sand tigers
    • Sand tigers: ragged, protruding teeth
    • Gulp air at the surface to float
  13. Genus Carcharias
    • Species in the same genus are very close relatives and often look alike.
  14. Species Carcharias taurus Sand tiger shark

Closest relatives in the guide