Taxonomy. NEW!

A thresher shark was seen on the live video feed from one of the ROVs monitoring BP's Macondo oil well blowout in the Gulf of Mexico. For most sharks, the front end is the dangerous bit. They've been known to swim up into freshwater rivers. Vulpinus is …

Thresher sharks grow up to a maximum of about 25 feet (760 cm) in length. It can use the fin to herd and trap schooling fish by swimming in increasingly smaller circles before striking the fish with its tail.

; Managed under the Fishery Management Plan for U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory Species: . Thresher sharks are ovoviviparous. This means that the eggs are retained within the body of the female in a place called the brood chamber. This strike usually assails from above instead of sideways, a rare technique on the shark’s part that allows them to stun multiple fish at a time. This behavior has only been observed a few times and filmed even fewer. This fin is responsible for propelling the shark through the water as it swims. The Pelagic thresher shark’s long tail, which can reach lengths of several meters, is used for hunting. The genus and family name derive from the Greek word alopex, meaning fox.As a result, the long-tailed or common thresher shark, Alopias vulpinus, is also known as the fox shark. ; Managed under the Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan: .

... Sixgills and other species such as the Bigeye thresher shark have very large eyes and not surprisingly have no cones for sensing color. The three extant thresher shark species are all in the genus Alopias. A thresher shark’s long tail fin helps not only its swimming ability, but also its ability to hunt.

This method of reproduction is very common amongst sharks throughout the world.

Thresher sharks are the exception. NOAA Fisheries and the Pacific Fishery Management Council manage the Pacific common thresher shark fishery on the West Coast. Permits are needed to fish for highly migratory species, including thresher sharks, and fishermen must maintain logbooks documenting their catch. It's thought this amazing tail is an adaptation to aid in capturing prey. The Pelagic thresher shark’s long tail, which can reach lengths of several meters, is used for hunting. This is especially pronounced in the thresher shark that has an upper tail lobe longer than the shark’s body. Our list of thresher shark facts continues with reproduction. Thresher sharks are found in tropical and temperate seas throughout the world. Commercial quotas and limits on how many sharks can be landed per fishing trip.

Reproduction They are K-selected reproducers i.e. NOAA Fisheries and the Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Division manage the Atlantic common thresher shark fishery in the United States. Bull sharks are the most dangerous sharks in the world, according to many experts. They feed on squid and schooling fishes, attacking after circling and herding their prey into small groups. Thresher sharks are pelagic, which means they roam the open ocean.

Permits are required, and only a limited number of permits are available.
Threshers are caught primarily in the California-based drift gillnet (DGN) fishery that was first established West Coast-wide to target thresher sharks in the late 1970s. The nurse shark (Ginglymostoma cirratum) is a type of carpet shark.This slow-moving bottom dweller is known for its docile nature and adaptation to captivity. Alopias vulpinus.
they produce small number of well-developed young aversed to large number of poorly develop young. The thresher shark was first described by Bonnaterre in 1788, as Squalus vulpinis and was later changed to the current name of Alopias vulpinus (Bonaterre, 1788). SHARK SENSES: Sharks and rays possess highly acute senses to interpret their surroundings.

Much like a swordfish’s or blue marlin’s bill, the tail is whipped side to side to stun or kill prey, making it particularly easy to capture. Once there, the embryo develops by receiving nourishment from a yolk sac. Thresher shark, (genus Alopias), any of three species of sharks of the family Alopiidae noted for their long, scythelike tails that may constitute almost one-half their total length. The upper half and the lower half of the shark’ tail are not equal in size with the upper portion usually the larger. This is significantly deeper than the 500m previously thought to be their limit. NEW: SWFSC Image Gallery View images of thresher sharks and more... Distribution: The thresher is distributed circumglobally in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans and in the Mediterranean. For most sharks, the front end is the dangerous bit. Thresher Sharks are also known as Fox Sharks, Swing Tails, Swivel Tails or Long Tailed Sharks.