Claim to Fame Winner Record

Largest Shark (length) Whale Shark

(Rhincodon typus) 50+ ft (15 + m)

Largest Predatory Shark (length) White Shark

(Carcharodon carcharias) 23+ ft (7+ m)

Largest Batoid (length) Green Sawfish

(Pristis zijsron) 24 ft (7.3 m)

Largest Batoid (width) Manta Ray

(Manta birostris) 22 ft (6.7 m)

Smallest Shark (length) Dwarf Lanternshark

(Etmopterus perryi) 7.5 in (19 cm)

Smallest Batoid (width) Narcinid Electric Ray?

(family Narcinidae) 6 in (15 cm)

Most Abundant Shark (sheer numbers) Spiny Dogfish?

(Squalus acanthias) caught in ridiculous quantities

Most Rare Shark Tie: 14 + species known from a single specimen

Most Widely Distributed Elasmobranch Blue Shark

(Prionace glauca) worldwide, pelagic, boreal to tropical seas

Least Widely Distributed Elasmobranch Port Davey Skate

(Raja sp.) - recently discovered restricted to two estuarine bays in southwestern Tasmania

Strangest Shark (subjective) Tassled Wobbegong

(Eucrossorhinus dasypogon) too weird for words

Most Weirdly Colored Shark (subjective) Goblin Shark

(Mitsukurina owstoni) bubblegum pink

Most Brightly Luminescent Shark Cookiecutter Shark

(Isistius brasiliensis) can read by its greenish bioluminescence

Biggest Hammer (relative to size) Winghead Shark

(Eusphyra blochii) boomerang-shaped, width about 50% body length

Flattest Shark (least height in proportion to length) Tie: Wobbegongs

(family Orectolobidae)

& Angel Sharks

(family Squatinidae) both are very flat

Longest Tail (relative to body) Common Thresher Shark

(Alopias vulpinus) up to 52% of total length

Largest Teeth (absolute size) White Shark

(Carcharodon carcharias) up to 2 in (5.2 cm) tall

Largest Teeth (relative to size) Largetooth Cookiecutter

(Isistius plutodus) lower teeth proportionally twice as large as in White Shark

Largest Eyes (relative to size) Bigeye Thresher Shark

(Alopias superciliosus) diameter up to 4% body length - proportionally the largest eyes of any non-avian vertebrate

Most Widely Traveled Shark Blue Shark

(Prionace glauca) 3,470 mi (5,980 km) (tagging returns)

Deepest-Dwelling Shark (capture depth) Portuguese Shark

(Centroscymnus coelolepis) 12,060 ft (3,675 m)

Shallowest-Dwelling Shark Epaulette Shark

(Hemiscyllium ocellatum) hunts in intertidal pools, several yards (metres) above sea level

Deepest-Dwelling Batoid (capture depth) Rajid Skate?

(Rajidae) 9,840 ft (3,000 m)

Fastest Shark (greatest recorded) Shortfin Mako Shark

(Isurus oxyrinchus) 35+ mph (56+ kph) swimming speed

Highest Leaping Shark (height above water surface) Shortfin Mako Shark

(Isurus oxyrinchus) reputedly to 20 ft (6 m)

Highest Leaping Batoid (height above water surface) Manta Ray

(Manta birostris) reputedly to 20 ft (6 m)

Most Elevated Body Temperature Salmon Shark

(Lamna ditropis) up to 20˚F (11˚C) above ambient

Showiest Leaping Shark Spinner Shark

(Carcharhinus brevipinna) spins on its axis, 2 to 4 times in mid-air

Sharpest Hearing Shark (determined via experiment) Silky Shark

(Carcharhinus falciformis) has homed in on low-frequency sounds from at least 1/4 mi (400 m) away

Sharpest Sighted Shark (in theory, at least) White Shark

(Carcharodon carcharias) cone-to-rod ratio of 1:4 (about the same as in humans)

Sharpest Electrosensitivity (experiment) Smooth Dogfish

(Mustelus canis) 0.008 nV/in2 (0.05 nV/cm2)

Most Powerfully Electrogenic Batoid Atlantic Torpedo Ray

(Torpedo nobiliana) 220 V

Most Specialized Diet (stomach contents) Crested Bullhead Shark

(Heterodontus galeatus) feeds mostly on red sea urchins

Least Specialized Diet (stomach contents) Tiger Shark

(Galeocerdo cuvier) feeds on almost anything it can swallow

Most Dangerous Shark (# of documented attacks) White Shark

(Carcharodon carcharias) over 212 attacks unprovoked (50 fatalities)

Most Dangerous Shark (suspected of many more than documented) Bull Shark

(Carcharhinus leucas) 57 documented unprovoked attacks

Most Poisonous Flesh (causing illness) Greenland Shark

(Somniosus microcephalus) must be boiled in several changes of water before eating

Tastiest Flesh (subjective) juvenile White Shark

(Carcharodon carcharias) delicious!

Largest Litter (oviparous) Whale Shark

(Rhincodon typus) about 300 eggs in one individual

Largest Litter (viviparous) Blue Shark

(Prionace glauca) 135 pups in one individual

Smallest Litter Sandtiger Shark

(Carcharias taurus) two pups/litter, one per uterus (fetuses are cannibals)

Longest Gestation Period Frilled Shark

(Chlamydoselache anguineus) 3.5 years

Shortest Gestation Period Grey Bambooshark

(Chiloscyllium griseum) 70 to 80 days @ 77˚F (25˚C)

Longest Lifespan (experiment) Spiny Dogfish

(Squalus acanthias) 70+ years