The shark doctor is in! Ask me anything. Have questions about sharks? Marine biology? Ocean conservation? Me? Anything at all? Ask me anything! Ask away, my flight is in two hours and I’m bored.
Tag friends who might have questions, and please share!
🧪🦑🌎
What is something a common ordinary person can do to help shark conservation? Any things to avoid buying, or any places to donate to that are good places? I'm landlocked so actually being on the coast doesn't help. :(
I've seen bags of shark teeth for sale and was intrigued. They said they collect them, as sharks constantly lose them. Is that true?
Is the shark tooth trade harming them?
(Wondering whether to buy them for a craft project, as I'd like to avoid plastic)
Sharks have the unique trait where unlike humans, when they lose their teeth, they grow back with ease. So go ahead and use those, since the sharks naturally lost them, and they aren’t using them anymore.
This is a foolish basic question but am I right in understanding that sharks are technically fish rather than mammals, but they give birth rather than lay eggs? I’ve been meaning to look it up for years. Yes, everyone reading this may point and laugh now.
Mammals are defined by their mamaries, not by giving live birth! Although most mammals do have a placenta, which is their defining feature. Lots of animals give live birth: lizards, snakes, even frogs if you stretch the definition a bit.
My understanding is that delivery methods vary from shark specie to specie. Some lay eggs, some have live birth, some lay eggs into a special chamber where the eggs hatch and are later released into the water (sort of like certain male seahorses holding the brood for a bit).
Here in NE Ohio we're weirdly obsessed with the official Ohio fish fossil Dunkleosteus. Does Dunky count as a shark or was he definitively something else?
I have heard that sand tiger sharks grow to 10 feet in length and that they frequent the Long Island Sound. Are sharks well studied in the Long Island Sound and if so do you know of any good resources on the subject?
One! I accidentally stepped on a young nurse shark while snorkeling, we scared each other pretty good! One of my most prized possessions is a great white tooth I found on the beach.
Okay, who was more surprised, you or the shark? :D
All of my interactions have been in touch pools at aquariums, so smaller species who had strong opinions about humans.
I hate when people complain about sharks, they are there _all the time_, they always have been. If you happen to notice them and you feel nervous or they’re a bit large, just get out of the water.
"Are there differences in shark morphology if they live in different depths?" --
this is from my niece, a first year at Northeastern studying marine biology
Whale sharks are some of my favorite animals. Can you tell me something cool about them that I wouldn't know from David Attenborough specials and Wikipedia articles?
