This article is 10 Amazing Fun Facts About the Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias).
Family: Lamnidae
FACT #1 They Live In All The World Oceans
Some people assume that Great White Sharks live in warm water. It turns out they live in a range of ocean environments, including cold waters. Great Whites can thrive in water temperatures between 12 and 24°C.
FACT #2 THE Great White Shark IS The Largest Predatory Fish
Great White Sharks are the largest predatory fish in the ocean. An average Great White grows to a length of 4.6m. However, the largest Great White ever recorded was called Deep Blue and measured an impressive 6.1 m.
FACT #3 The Great White Shark Is Pretty Fast
Great White Sharks are not only big they are also one of the most powerful animals in the ocean; able to reach speeds of 60 km per hour.
FACT #4 The Great White Shark Is Warm Blooded
Most fish are cold-blooded, relying on their environment to dictate their body temperature. However, the Great White Shark stands out as a powerful warm-blooded creature, capable of regulating its internal temperature. This remarkable adaptation is what enables them to swim with incredible speed and inhabit both cold and warmer ocean waters. Great Whites are not just survivors; they are apex predators dominating the oceans!
FACT #5 The Great White Is Named After Its Belly!
Their underparts are white which is where their name is derived from. Their upperparts are grey. We can suppose that the person who named them thought the name Great White Shark sounded better than the Great Grey Shark! The reason for this coloring is camouflage, and allows them to blend in when seen from either above or below.
FACT #6 They Have An Amazing Set Of Teeth
The Great White shark boasts an impressive set of 300 razor-sharp teeth arranged in up to seven separate rows that allow it to efficiently rip and tear through its prey.
FACT #7 They Have A Reputation As Man-Eaters
In 1975 Steven Speilberg released a film called Jaws and immortalized the Great White Shark as a man-eating predator. It’s certainly true that there are attacks on humans every year, but the reality is they aren’t out there hunting humans for their next meal. To put things in perspective, the probability of being killed by a shark is over 1 in 4.3 million versus the probability of being struck by lightning which is just under 1 in 80 thousand.1
FACT #8 Great White Sharks Have Varied Diets
Great Whites have varied diets including small fish, rays, seals, sea lions. and even prey that’s much larger than them like whales.
FACT #9 Even Great White Sharks Have Predators
Great Whites might be large, fast apex predators with super-sharp teeth, that hunt large whales. But there is one predator out there that sometimes targets this formidable predator. The Orca is a type of dolphin, often mistakenly called a Killer Whale. This remarkable creature has impressive hunting skills, particularly its ability to target sharks when easier prey is not available.
FACT #10 Great Whites Have Sensors In Their Noses
Great White Sharks have specialized sensors on their noses and jaws called ‘ampullae of Lorenzini’. These electroreceptors and allow the sharks to locate prey even in darkness, by sensing the weak electrical currents produced by their prey’s muscle contractions and heartbeats.
Citations
- Florida Museum Risk Of Death [Accessed 17/04/2025] ↩︎
References
- Helfman, Gene, and George H. Burgess. Sharks : The Animal Answer Guide, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014. ProQuest Ebook Central. [Accessed 17/04/2025]
