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The great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large mackerel shark

which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans.

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Fascinating website about the birth of sharks!

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Unless you have done well-detailed research about sharks on your own, you are also possibly wondering if sharks give live birth. Well, do sharks give live birth? Let's find out.
The right answer to your question is yes! Sharks give live birth, but not all. Out of over 500 species of sharks living around the world, the majority of them give birth to their young ones live. Meanwhile, others are oviparous, meaning they lay eggs.
Although most sharks give live birth, it might interest you to know that there are various ways in which reproduction occurs in them. The following would tell you more about the multiple ways sharks reproduce.

The Modes of Reproduction in Various Sharks Species

1. Viviparity: In this case, eggs hatch in the female shark's body. The pups receive nourishment through an umbilical cord that connects them to the mother.

This umbilical cord, which is between the pectoral fins, transfers oxygen and food from the mother's body to the pups. Also, at the same time transferring waste products from the pups to the mother for excretion.

Sharks that reproduce in this way give live birth. The number of pups can differ, but it is usually between 2 and 20. Examples of sharks that use this method are blue shark, lemon shark, salmon shark, silvertip sharks, etc.

2. Aplacental Viviparity (Ovoviviparity): In this case, the eggs hatch inside the mother and the pups develop inside the female shark's body. But, this time, they don't need the help of the placenta to feed them.

This results in oophagy, which means the pups eat any unfertilized eggs inside the mother to survive. Only the strong pups survive in this kind of environment. As a result, very few pups are born to when due.

Oviparity: Sharks that reproduce through this method lay eggs in their environment and leave them there to hatch provided predators do not eat them. The mother does not protect the eggs. The embryos get their nutrient from the yolk until it develops fully. Once hatch, they go on and fend for themselves without the help of their parents. Examples of sharks that use this method are Catsharks, Hornsharks, Zebra sharks, etc.

What is a Shark Offspring Called?

Now that we are sure of how sharks reproduce; you may be wondering what they call sharks offspring. From the stage of emerging from the egg to adulthood, baby sharks go by the name "fry."

Once the baby can fend for themselves without the help of their mother, you can call them "pups."

What Kind of Sharks Give Live Birth?

Firstly, Sharks that give live birth are viviparous. Examples are bull sharks, blue sharks, hammerhead sharks, lemon sharks, requiem sharks, etc.

Do Whale Sharks Lay Eggs?

This question can be quite tricky because whale sharks do lay eggs but not outside of their body. They reproduce through a method called ovoviviparity, meaning they produce eggs that hatch while still in the female shark's body and give birth to their offspring live.

Are Sharks that Give Live Birth Mammals?

Even while most sharks give live birth and have characteristics that are like mammals, they are not considered mammals. Mammals are animals that have mammary glands (a gland that produces milk) and give birth to young ones.

The term "mammal" comes from the mammary gland. They are called mammals because they feed their babies on milk, which sharks don't.

Other reasons also nullify sharks from being a mammal

1. Sharks are poikilothermic animals, which means they are cold-blooded while mammals are warm-blooded.

2. Mammals have body hair and fur on their skin surface, but sharks have scales

3. Mammals also breathe through their lungs while sharks breathe with the aid of their gills.

All these reasons confirm that sharks cannot be mammals. They are species of fish. Sharks are fish because they don't have the principal characteristics of mammals.

They are part of a class of fish called Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous Fish), which also include rays, chimeras, and skates.

How Do Sharks Reproduce?

There are only a few records documented of sharks mating. However, when mating, the female shark is resistive while the male bites the female shark to hold it down. The male inserts his clasper and releases sperm into the female cloaca.

The sperm may not store in the female before fertilization of the ovum, depending on the species. When ovulating, the female shark releases oocytes from the ovary to be fertilized by sperm. Once the ova become fertilized, an egg case forms around it in a unique organ called the shell gland.

The gestation then continues depending on the mode of reproduction. In the case of oviparous sharks, they lay the eggs, while in other forms, gestation takes place in the uterus of the mother.

How Big are Baby Sharks?

Baby sharks' sizes vary by species. For example, a newly born great white shark is usually 4 feet (1.2 m) long while whale sharks pup range between 16 to 25 inches (40 to 63.5 cm) in length.

Do Great White Sharks Give Birth to Live Young?

Yes, great white sharks give birth to live young through a process called ovoviviparity. They produce eggs inside their body. But, instead of laying them in the environment, it remains inside their body until hatching occurs.

The gestation time for the great white shark is about 12 months. During this process, the stronger pups feed on the others to survive and keep growing. This method is known as sibling cannibalism.

Why Do Sharks Give Live Birth?

Firstly, some sharks give live birth because that is how they evolve to reproduce.

Another reason why some sharks give live birth is that their pups need a head start in maturing. Birthing live youngs gives them some edge in avoiding predators.

It gives their pups a survival advantage over being eaten as an egg or as soon as hatching occurs.

Where Do Sharks Give Birth?

Where sharks give birth depends on each species. However, most sharks are saltwater sharks, while few can tolerate brackish water to some extent.

Bull sharks are the only exception. They can handle both freshwater and brackish water because of their advanced ability to osmoregulate their body temperature.

It's only logical to assume that shark would give birth to offspring in an environment it can tolerate.

How long Does a Shark Stay Pregnant?

Pregnancy length in sharks varies per species. Sharks pregnancy, which is the gestation period, usually lasts for an extended period.

This is due to the energy female sharks require during this time. Both the gestation and reproduction cycle in sharks takes about one to three years.

For example, spiny dogfish shark can stay pregnant for two years, while basking sharks' pregnancy can last as long as three years before giving birth. So, it all depends on the species.

How Often Do Sharks Have Babies?

Most sharks usually reproduce after one or two years.

How Do Sharks give birth?

Sharks give birth through three different methods:

Viviparity: meaning some sharks give live birth.

Ovoviviparity: This means some sharks lay eggs in their body and give live birth.

Oviparity: This means some sharks lay eggs in the environment and leave it to hatch.

How Many Babies Do Sharks Give Birth to in a Litter?

Impressively, sharks can give birth to about 1 to 100 pups.

This varies depending on the means of reproduction. Sharks that lay eggs can have as many as 100, while the ones that grow inside the mother only give birth to few.
Interesting fact:
Sharks do not show parental care.

Which Sharks Lay Eggs?

About 1/3 of shark species lay eggs. Examples of sharks that lay eggs are Carpet sharks, Wobbegong sharks, Horn sharks, Swell sharks, etc.

Do Hammerhead Sharks Lay Eggs?

No, hammerhead sharks do not lay eggs. They give birth to live young. Female hammerhead sharks can give birth to about 6 to 50 pups at once.

What Do Shark Eggs Look Like?

Sharks' eggs are encapsulated in a case. The egg case contains one embryo except for big skates, which contains up to about seven embryos.

The egg case is made of protein strands and has a rough leathery feeling when touched.

Apart from bullhead sharks' egg, the other egg cases are usually rectangular. Depending on each species, the egg case has one or more tendrils.

Do Nurse Sharks Give Live Birth?

Nurse sharks are ovoviviparous sharks, i.e., they lay eggs inside their body, hatch them, and then give birth to them as live young. So, if your question is if they give live birth, yes, they do.

Nurse sharks give birth to about 21 to 28 pups in a litter. Their females give birth in late spring and summer in the water off Florida.

Conclusion

If you read to this point, I now believe you clearly understand that sharks can give live birth, however, not all of them do so. Some lay eggs while some give live birth.

Examples of sharks that fall into this category have also been given. There are different methods in which sharks reproduce, which has been thoroughly explained in this article.

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Do Sharks Give Live Birth? - Shark Keeper

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Unless you have done well-detailed research about sharks on your own, you are also possibly wondering if sharks give live birth. Well, do sharks give live birth? Let's find out. The right answer to your question is yes! Sharks give live birth, but not all.

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The tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier ) is a species of requiem shark and the only extant member of the genus Galeocerdo.  It is a large macropredator, capable of attaining a length over 5 m (16 ft 5 in). Populations are found in many tropical and temperate waters, especially around central Pacific islands. Its name derives from the dark stripes down its body, which resemble a tiger

's pattern,

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The shortfin mako shark /ˈmɑːkoʊ/ (Isurus oxyrinchus), also known as the blue pointer or bonito shark, is a large mackerel shark.

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They do the same as other fish; sharks extract oxygen when water passes through their gills. Shark gills are behind their heads, and they are not covered like most fish.

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Sharks come to the surface for air! However, for the water to pass through, some shark species have to be always swimming.

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Deep Blue Sea: A 1999 film about "Searching for a cure to Alzheimer's disease, a group of scientists on an isolated research facility become the prey, as a trio of intelligent sharks fight back."

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A very educational read filled with images and facts about Sharks

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Check your local library today for books about sharks!

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Sharks - A short non-fiction book about Sharks, perfect for introducing young children to non-fiction books, or school projects and self-study for early grades. Another great non-fiction Creative Commons book from Mustard Seed, approximately 300 words.

See this book also in Spanish here: https://freekidsbooks.org/los-tiburones-sharks-spanish-version/

Text and Images from Sharks

Sharks are a kind of fish that live in
every ocean around the world.

Scientists think that sharks lived 200
million years before the dinosaurs.
That is a long time ago!

There are many different types of sharks. See if you can tell which shark is a hammerhead shark, which is a tiger shark and which is a great white shark.

Founded in 1995 to provide community development work building low income houses, Mustard Seed provides a variety of community resources helping low income families. Director Rick Chan Frey, has a PhD in education at U.C. Berkeley and has been writing and presenting on the books project at a number of educational conferences.

Check more Books about Animals by Mustard Seed

A very cute non-fiction book for early grades (aimed at Grade 1) about baby animals. Another great creative commons book from Mustard Seed Books.

A non-fiction book all about tigers. This book is levelled to guided reading Level H, for grades 1 to 2 with 245 words. Another great creative commons book from Mustard Seed Books.

A very cute account of a baby lion's day, aimed at young children or those learning to read. Another great Creative Commons book from Mustard Seed.

See more books about Sea Creatures below

See more books by Mustard Seed below

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All our posts are checked by Grammarly, the FREE online grammar checker (We still receive a donation even if you only sign up for the free account :-):

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Sharks - A short non-fiction book about Sharks, perfect for introducing young children to non-fiction books, or school projects and self-study for early grades. Another great non-fiction Creative Commons book from Mustard Seed, approximately 300 words. See this book also in Spanish here: https://freekidsbooks.org/los-tiburones-sharks-spanish-version/ Sharks are a kind of fish that live in every ocean around the world.

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Interesting website about Shark facts!

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Sharks are beautiful creatures that live in the oceans

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Most Sharks are found at the bottom of the ocean. This photo is a Hammerhead Shark at the bottom of the ocean.

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This video captured a Hammerhead Shark attack in the ocean

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Bloody Hammerhead Shark Attack on Video during Shark Week 2019

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When a killer shark unleashes chaos on a beach community, it's up to a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer to hunt the beast down.

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Shark Week is a great time of year! SHARK WEEK, television’s longest-running, and most anticipated summer event returns with bigger sharks and bigger bites on Sunday, July 28 and continues through Sunday, August 4.

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Shark Attacks Bird Out of Nowhere! | Shark Week

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Sharks do attack when provoked! This video provides education on normal shark feeding. Sharks mostly eat fish, but people do end up as shark bait. It is an entertaining video and very educational.

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12 Shocking Shark Attacks Caught On Camera!

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"Fish are friends not food!" After his son is captured in the Great Barrier Reef and taken to Sydney, a timid clownfish sets out on a journey to bring him home. IMD

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Sharks are picky eaters

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Sharks swim in groups

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An interesting read on catching sharks

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Big fish, big teeth and big gear all conspire to make shark fishing an intimidating pursuit. But you don't have to be Captain Quint, strapped into a fighting chair with a coffee-can-sized reel and a pool-cue rod, in order catch sharks.

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An entertaining and educational video on how to catch a shark

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An educational video about how to catch shark in the ocean.

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It is always good to consult the encyclopedia for a basic definition of sharks and an overview of their history.

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shark, any of numerous species of cartilaginous fishes of predatory habit that constitute the order Selachii (class Chondrichthyes).

Sharks, together with rays and skates, make up the subclass Elasmobranchii of the Chondrichthyes. Sharks differ from other elasmobranchs, however, and resemble ordinary fishes, in the fusiform shape of their body and in the location of their gill clefts on each side of the head. Though there are exceptions, sharks typically have a tough skin that is dull gray in colour and is roughened by toothlike scales. They also usually have a muscular, asymmetrical, upturned tail; pointed fins; and a pointed snout extending forward and over a crescentic mouth set with sharp triangular teeth. Sharks have no swim bladder and must swim perpetually to keep from sinking to the bottom.

There are more than 400 living species of sharks, taxonomically grouped into 14-30 families, according to different authorities. Several larger species can be dangerous to humans. The largest predatory sharks, such as the white shark and tiger shark, are often considered to be the apex predators (meaning without a natural predator or enemy) of their marine environments. Numerous sharks are fished commercially. However, overfishing in the late 20th and early 21st centuries substantially reduced the populations of some shark species.

Description and habits

Shark species are nondescript in colour, varying from gray to cream, brown, yellow, slate, or blue and often patterned with spots, bands, marblings, or protuberances. The oddest-looking sharks are the hammerheads ( Sphyrna), whose heads resemble double-headed hammers and have an eye on each stalk, and the wobbegongs (family Orectolobidae), whose skin flaps and protective coloration closely resemble the seafloor. The vernacular of shark names indicate colours in living species, such as the blue ( Prionace glauca), the white ( Carcharodon carcharias; also known as the great white shark), and the lemon ( Negaprion brevirostris) shark.

The whale shark ( Rhincodon typus) and the basking shark ( Cetorhinus maximus), both of which may weigh several tons, are harmless giants that subsist on plankton strained from the sea through modified gill rakers. Whale sharks may grow up to 18 metres (59 feet) in length, whereas basking sharks may reach 14 metres (46 feet) fully grown. All other sharks prey on smaller sharks, fish, squid, octopuses, shellfish, other invertebrates, and, in some species, trash. The largest among the more predatory species is the voracious 6-metre (20-foot) white shark, which attacks seals, dolphins, sea turtles, large fish, and occasionally people. The more sluggish Greenland shark ( Somniosus microcephalus) of cold deep waters feeds on seals, large fish, and even swimming reindeer; they may also scavenge whale carcasses.

Normally, sharks feed on fish, often attacking in schools. Open-ocean species such as the mackerel ( Lamna), mako ( Isurus), and thresher ( Alopias) sharks frequently feed near the surface and are much sought after with rod and reel for sport. Beautifully streamlined and powerful swimmers, those open-ocean sharks are adept at feeding on fast tuna, marlin, and the like. Bottom-feeding species of sharks are stout, blunt-headed forms that tend to have more-sluggish habits. The shellfish eaters among them have coarse, pavementlike, crushing teeth.

Fertilization in sharks is internal. The male introduces sperm into the female by using special copulatory organs (claspers) derived from the pelvic fins. The young in many species hatch from eggs within the female and are born alive. Other species may lay eggs or nurture their young in the uterus with a placental attachment to the mother, like humans. Some species may even consume their siblings before they are born.

The origin of sharks is obscure, but their geologic record goes back at least to the Devonian Period (419.2 million to 358.9 million years ago). Fossil sharklike fish appeared in the Middle Devonian Epoch and became the dominant vertebrates of the Carboniferous Period (358.9 million to 298.9 million years ago). Modern sharks appeared in the Early Jurassic Epoch (201.3 million to 174.1 million years ago) and by the Cretaceous Period (145 million to 66 million years ago) had expanded into the present-day families. Overall, evolution has modified shark morphology very little except to improve their feeding and swimming mechanisms. Shark teeth are highly diagnostic of species, both fossil and modern.

Sharks' geographic ranges are not well known. Their extensive movements are related to reproductive or feeding activities or to seasonal environmental changes. Tagging returns from large sharks on the east coast of the United States indicate regular movements between New Jersey and Florida, and blue sharks have been recovered after crossing the southern Atlantic Ocean. A tagged spiny dogfish ( Squalus acanthias) was recovered after traveling about 1,600 km (1,000 miles) in 129 days. Advances in tracking technologies include the use of satellite tags that continuously beam a signal to orbiting satellites whenever the shark surfaces and in that manner reveal north-south movements, transoceanic movements, and roaming and migratory patterns that are beginning to be understood for many species.

Some members of the Carcharhinus genus-most notably the bull shark ( C. leucas)-enter fresh waters. Riverine sharks are small to medium-sized and are exceptionally voracious and bold.

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Shark, any of numerous species of cartilaginous fishes that make up the order Selachii (class Chondrichthyes). Most species have a tough skin that is dull gray in color and roughened by toothlike scales. The mouth contains sharp triangular teeth. Sharks lack a swim bladder and must swim to keep from sinking.

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Early on in the semester I explored a number of curation sites, chose three that I liked, populated them with some resources, and then provided a critical report of my work. That was in the context of building my own professional learning network (PLN).