Identification:
Upper body cobalt blue with a white under belly. Long pectoral fins to allow this Shark to glide along in ocean currents.
Breeding:
Plancentally viviparous (live bearing) Litters from 4 to 135,although usually 20 to 30. Female Blue sharks do not mature until they are 5 years old (length approximately 220cm) - and probably do not breed for the first time until they are 7 years old.Young born at 40cm, though gravid females are rarely encountered in UK waters.
Habitat:
Coastal/Offshore species from the surface down to 150+m. To be found in relatively cool waters of -140C to waters as warm as 210C
Food:
Squid, Mackerel, Herring, Pilchards, Sprats and some bottom living species.
Range:
The most wide ranging of all the Sharks.To be found in ,most temperate and tropical waters around the world.
During very warm summers found in small numbers around Scotland and into the North Sea.
Additional Notes:
The stock populations to be found off the coasts of the UK are mainly juvenile females, under 5 years old.
The stocks off the eastern sea-board of America appear to be mature fish.
References:
A Field Guide to The Sharks of British Coastal Waters - Vas 1991
FAO Species Catalogue 4 - Sharks of The World - Compagno
Fishes of the North-Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean - Whitehead, Bauchot, Hureau, Nielsen, Tortonese |
