Nurse shark

(Ginglymostoma cirratum)

Monochromatic yellowish or gray-brown shark (juveniles have small dark spots on the body). The head is blunt, the mouth is located below, in front of the eyes. There is a pair of well-marked whiskers between the nostrils.

The largest recorded parameters: length - 430 cm, weight - 109.6 kg, although it usually does not exceed 2.5-3 m with a weight of 50-70 kg. The recorded life expectancy is 25 years.

Found on the continental and insular shelves. Usually kept close to the shore, often at a depth of up to 3 meters. Often it is found in channels among mangrove swamps. It forms flocks of up to 40 pieces, which lie motionless in shallow water, near the beaches. Slow, inactive sharks, harmless to humans if left untouched. Provoked by excessive harassment, they can cause serious injuries - they cling to an arm or leg with a bulldog grip and do not let go for a long time, even when they are pulled to land. The nanny feeds, as a rule, at night, eating octopuses, crabs, shrimps, sea urchins and small fish. In the Seychelles, it reaches an impressive size and is often caught when catching other types of sharks.

Great barracuda

(Sphyrnea barracuda)

The largest representative of the family. Outwardly similar to a pike, for which it is called a sea pike. It has a characteristic "palisade" of dark stripes on the sides and dark spots scattered along the lower part of the body. The upper part of the head between the eyes is flat or with a depression. The largest recorded parameters: length - 200 cm, weight - 50 kg. The longest recorded life expectancy is 4 years. Like other species, it lives on the shelf, usually occurring on or near the surface. Only juveniles are found in the immediate vicinity of the coast. Diurnal solitary predator in adulthood. Barracuda feeds on fish, sometimes quite large, often, like sharks, eats tuna caught on a longline. Maybe eat cephalopods. There are known cases of attacks by barracudas on swimming people. Barracudas are often the true culprits in accidents attributed to sharks. The Seychelles has all the prerequisites for setting new records.

Reef whitetip shark

(Triaenodon obesus)

One of the calmest sharks of the Carcharhinidae family and the only species of the Triaenodon genus. The body of the shark is gray or brownish, the head is wide and flat. As the species name implies, the ends of the first dorsal and upper caudal fins are white. Usually there are individuals 140-160 cm long. The largest recorded length is 224 cm. This is one of the most typical inhabitants of the shallow water of the shelves, but can be found at depths up to 300 m. During the day, it is often seen at a depth of several meters lying on the bottom, sometimes in the composition small group of tribesmen. At night, she hunts among the crevices of reefs for crustaceans, octopuses and fish. A non-aggressive shark, but when actively pursued, it can bite.