Facts about Lemon Sharks
The lemon shark, Negaprion brevirostris, is a shark belonging to the family Carcharhinidae. It can grow 10 feet long (3 meters). Lemon sharks however have very poor eyesight. The cannot see well to find their food, and they are bottom dwellers, so they make up for it by having an extremely good magnetic sensors in the nose. The longest lemon shark recorded was 12 ft long, but they are usually 8 to 10 ft. The lemon shark is found mainly along the subtropical and tropical parts of the Atlantic coast of North and South America. They like tropical water, and like to stay at moderate depths. Lemon sharks are a popular choice for study by scientists as they survive well in captivity, unlike many other species such as the great white shark, which dies in captivity because of food refusal. Lemon sharks are viviparous, females giving birth to between 4 and 17 young every other year in warm and shallow lagoons. They can be extremely aggressive and protective if young sharks are around. At maturity at a size of 1.5 to 2 m and an age of 12 to 15 years, they leave shallow water and move into deeper waters offshore. As of 2007, there have been 22 lemon shark attacks since 1580 with no deaths. |
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