Zebra Shark Portrait

Zebra shark stunning underwater video

Zebra shark stunning underwater video

Pattern

Stegostoma tigrinum the Zebra shark is a species of carpet shark. Many people call it Leopard shark due it’s adult pattern, however the name retrieves from the juvenile.

Juvenile

Young zebra sharks under 50–90 cm long have a completely different pattern, consisting of light vertical stripes on a dark brown background, and lack the ridges.

Watch the Zebra Shark Video

Conservation status:

Vulnerable (Population decreasing)

Stegostoma tigrinum is considered a “lazy shark” since it lays on the seafloor and only swims when hunting mostly nocturnal (night time)

Adult zebra sharks are distinctive in appearance, with five longitudinal ridges on a cylindrical body, a low caudal fin comprising nearly half the total length, and usually a pattern of dark spots on a pale background. This species attains a length of 2.5 m.

Image Gallery Zebra Shark (Stegostoma tigrinum)

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View more Pictures by Daniel Sasse

6 Facts of Stegostoma tigrinum

01. Oviparous

The zebra shark is oviparous: females produce several dozen large egg capsules, which they anchor to underwater structures via adhesive tendrils

06. Diet

The zebra shark feeds primarily on shelled molluscs, though it also takes crustaceans, small bony fishes, and possibly sea snakes.

05. Pattern

The color pattern in young sharks is dark brown above and light yellow below, with vertical yellow stripes and spots. As the shark grows to 50–90 cm (20–35 in) long, the dark areas begin to break up, changing the general pattern from light-on-dark stripes to dark-on-light spots.

02. Endangered

The World Conservation Union has assessed this species as Endangered worldwide

03. Teeth

There are 28–33 tooth rows in the upper jaw and 22–32 tooth rows in the lower jaw

04. Size

The zebra shark attains a length of 2.5 m (8.2 ft), with an unsubstantiated record of 3.5 m (11 ft)

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