I am totally afraid to go out too far in the ocean. Much more than knee deep and I turn back. I love the ocean, love the sand, the water, the marine life, but I like all that in nice clear water that I can see through, thank you very much. Or on tv sitting on my dry couch. I used to think I would like to study marine life- sharks or whales. And I still have an avid interest in all things ocean. Esp sharks.
But, since I don't live by an ocean and I don't really wish to actually get in the water with sharks (I mean come on- that's obviously just crazy behavior), I just stay at home and watch SHARK WEEK! yes that needs to be capitalized.
Sharks are just cool (aside from the bloody killing and ripping of limbs- that part is admittedly horrifying). Here's some facts (courtesy of http://sharkfacts.org/ and just my general knowledge gleaned from years of being interested) for you all out there that are not shark crazy like me.
1. There are more than 350 varieties of sharks.
2. Sharks can smell one drop of blood in a million drops of water.
3. The chances of being killed by a shark are 1 in 300 million. The odds of dying from plane parts falling from the sky are one in 10 million. Pigs kill more people in one year than sharks do. (its ok- I'm still scared too)
4. The smallest shark is only 4 inches long. The biggest can get up to 40-50 ft and is considered completely harmless to humans (it eats plankton.)
5. Bull sharks (one of the dangerous kind) can and do swim up the Mississippi river.
6. Some species of sharks go into a trance if you turn them upside down.
7. Not all sharks have to keep swimming to breathe.
8. Some sharks have live births, some lay egg cases called mermaid's purses.
9. The Lantern shark can glow in the dark. Great white sharks (which can grow up to 2o ft) have been photographed leaping completely out of the water after seals. Mako sharks can swim at least 20 miles an hour.
10. Up to 100 million sharks are killed by humans every year.
I mean come on- that is just fascinating! Some sharks are beautiful- the blue, the whale shark, the reef sharks, the zebra shark. They are streamlined and sleek with beautiful colors and stripes and spots. Some of them are incredibly scary looking with jagged teeth and strange skin that looks like a mistake. Some are them are incredibly bizarre. Some literally look like they are rotting away. Sharks range from mean and nasty to completely peaceful and safe enough to actually hold on to their fins and be pulled along. I do love sharks- I love the variety, the power, the mystery, the beauty and even the weirdness and danger. And I love SHARK WEEK!
2 comments:
Ok Hudson is totally obsessed with sharks right now. We think it came from his initial obsession with Finding Nemo. Anyway, he calls them "Big Sharps"!! When we were in TN they took him to a Ripley's Aquarium and they said he was totally in awe. They had a really big tunnel you walk through where the Sharps swim over you - he loved it. He would totally sit and watch shark week with you. =) Oh yeah and he had never seen sting rays, so when they would swim up the glass waving their wing-thingies he thought they were, "waving to Huddy!" and he had to wave back to all of them. =)
Ok- wanted to respond to Amber's blog, but Brooke's comment is too cute! Big Sharps and waving at sting rays .....
Anyway, I really enjoyed this informative blog. Not really a huge "sharps" fan, can't really get past the horrible maiming of anything in their path thing, but all in all, I guess they are pretty interesting. Thanks for the facts!
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