Sharks and Rays

Sharks and Rays | Sharks | Pressures | Conservation | Rays

About sharks

Leopard sharks

Like the lions of the African savannah, sharks occupy a pivotal role as the top predators in the Reef ecosystem. They remove the sick, injured and old, and control animals whose populations are booming.

There are more than 375 species of shark in the world, of which 90 are found in Australian waters. The 30 families of sharks can be divided into two main groups: bottom dwellers and mid-water sharks.

The main characteristics of sharks include:

• A skeleton made of cartilage
• 5 to 7 gill slits
• no swim bladder
• renewable teeth
• rough skin covered in small 'teeth' called denticles
• ability to sense electrical charges

About rays

Manta - the world's largest ray

There are more than 490 species of ray worldwide.

Most rays differ from their close relatives the sharks in that their gills slits are located on the underside of their bodies, and their pectoral fins are greatly expanded and attached to their heads creating wing-like appendages.

A few species, like the manta ray, swim in mid-water, feeding on small fish and plankton.

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