Sharks Show 9 Surprising Traits, From Basic Math to 450 Million Years of Survival
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 14
Sharks Show 9 Surprising Traits, From Basic Math to 450 Million Years of Survival
1 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Jul 14
Summary
Nine newly highlighted shark traits recast them as more than instinct-driven predators, with studies showing some can distinguish quantities such as three versus five and remember shapes for nearly a year.
Port Jackson sharks also learned to associate jazz with food in tank experiments, while other research points to long-term social bonds, including grey reef sharks regrouping with the same companions for up to four years.
Shark biology is equally unusual: some species nourish pups through an umbilical cord, spiny dogfish can stay pregnant for up to two years, and sand tiger embryos can eat siblings in the womb.
Their bodies and senses add to that picture—skin is covered in tooth-like denticles, and specialized pores help detect vibrations, electrical signals such as a beating heart, and possibly Earth's magnetic field.
The broader context is evolutionary: shark ancestors date back about 450 million years, surviving all five major mass extinctions and predating trees, dinosaurs and Saturn's rings.