Recreational Holidays

A Short Look At Sharks Senses

Sharks senses make them one of the most efficient and effective predators on the planet. When a person looks at a shark and begins to realize how their entire body works in unison to reach a goal, it is an amazing feat. The shark has no natural predators, so does not have the kinds of defense mechanisms that other animals and sea creatures have.

A sharks senses work in unison to make it an efficient predator that can sense injured animals and fish from several miles away. Experiments have been done on some shark’s to get an idea of how the senses of a shark work together with interesting results. When a shark’s nose is stopped up it has significant difficulty hunting, even though the sense of smell is not the primary sense. The entire body of a shark plays an important role in the effectiveness of the senses and it’s ability to hunt and survive.

Sharks have eyesight that is up to ten times more sensitive to light than humans. This is because of a tissue that reflect light located behind the retina of their eyeball. Some sharks, such as Great Whites roll their eyes back when they attack prey to keep their eyes protected. They can see objects from 70-100 feet away. There is some discussion on whether or not all sharks can discern colors because studies done on Lemon sharks shows that they could detect color and preferred bright shiny objects and colors.

The senses of hearing and smell also are very efficient. When one drop of blood was put in a 2,000 gallon tank of water, a shark sensed it and came to the location where the blood was dropped. Studies show that sharks will travel hundreds of miles in reaction to the smell of blood. A lot of sharks are drawn to the smell of chemicals in the gut and can be found in areas where there are sewage outfalls. Sharks also smell directionally and will smell an odor through the nostril where the scent is coming from first. Openings in the shark head lead directly to the inner ear and they can hear very low frequencies up to . 6 miles away.

Sharks have two senses that humans do not share. These senses give the shark an advantage as a predator and provide it with the ability to detect injured animals from a great distance. First, the head of the shark contains Ampullae of Lorenzine. These are small ampules that are electroreceptors. All animals, including humans emit an electromagnetic field. When injured, the electromagnetic field changes slightly. The receptors detect this change from several miles away and attracts the shark to the prey.

The other sense is called a Lateral Line. There are two tubes that run on both sides of the body. The tubes have tiny hairs in them and look and act like long ear canals. These tiny hairs move when there is any vibration in the water up to ten feet away. The hairs sense frequencies of 25-50Hz.

All of these senses combined create a perfect predatory machine that can detect and respond to the slightest disruption in the water. When all of the sharks senses indicate an injured animal or possible prey, the shark is able to move quickly and react appropriately.

While studying sharks one aspect that has always fascinated Pam Golding is sharks senses.