Hagfish

8 Pages 2106 Words

y impossible (Sanders 31).

The great white is the only shark that can hold its head above water to see what is happening on the surface (MacGregor 47). It has been said that sharks do not swim through water as much as they “fly” through it with their torpedo like body (Gorman 25). The fins of a shark serve important roles in this action. As the shark moves the Caudal, back, fin to propel it forward, careful adjustment of the pectoral, side, and dorsal, top, fins keep the shark level and on course, much as the wings and tail of an airplane do. Great whites have a pair of nostrils near the tip of their snout. Since “breathing” takes place in the gills, the nostrils of a shark are used solely for sniffing out their prey (Gorman 11). The nostrils can smell a drop of blood in 25 gallons of water (All About Sharks). Unusually large olfactory bulbs result in a keener sense of smell than that of nearly all other fish. The pores on the nose are tiny electrical field sensors, connected to nerves via canals filled with receptive jelly, which can detect heartbeats or movement of prey (Martin 55).

“Sharks are drawn to motors by their electrical signals, (on their snout), and have a habit of biting them to see if they’re edible,” said Andy Hartman. “That is how they decide what and what not to eat- and sometimes they’ll knock out a bunch of their teeth” (Gorman 10).

Much has been made of the infamous jaws of the great white. They have about 3000 teeth arranged in several rows. The first two rows of teeth are used for grabbing and cutting prey, while the teeth in the last rows rotate in place when front teeth are broken, worn down, or fallen out ...