It’s SHARK DAY! Today’s shark photos come from Owen Jones, Professor of Law AND Professor of Biological Sciences at Vanderbilt University. Owen’s captions and IDs are indented, and you can enlarge his photos by clicking on them.
In February 2025, a friend and I joined a week-long live-aboard trip to a patch of Atlantic Ocean about 20 miles north of the Bahamas. The purpose was to scuba dive among Tiger Sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier), so named because of they typically have dark stripes down the body. Because the dive guides were bringing the sharks in close with chum, our main task was to neither act like nor look like dead fish. (Which is why our bare skin, except around the lips, was all covered in dark neoprene – and also why we would actively turn to confront incoming sharks, as a display of vitality and all around non-dead-edness.)
Tiger Sharks, which can grow to approximately 17 feet, and weigh up to 2,000 pounds, have the widest diet of all sharks. And their especially saw-capable teeth enable them to cut through sea turtles in a way that other sharks can’t.
On one hand, Tiger Sharks are #2, after only Great White Sharks, in recorded fatal attacks on humans. On the other hand, the absolute number of attacks is quite small. And Tiger Sharks only rarely attack divers.
At a different location, we had the hoped-for pleasure of seeing Great Hammerheads (Sphyrna mokarran). They grow to approximately 14 feet and 1200 pounds. They are the largest of the hammerhead species, and are considered critically endangered. They are generally shy, and are not considered a major threat to humans.
Your correspondent is on the right in these last two shots.
Sharks like these are absolutely magnificent creatures. Powerful, nimble, and well-adapted (at least to a world before industrial-scale shark-finning).
Amazing!
[ inner monologue : ]
[ Sharks. Now there’s sharks. ]
[ And what do you offer? ]
[ you sent in a stinkbug. ]
[ maybe twice. ]
😁
Totally out of date. As we all know now, sharks are really just very angry dolphins: https://theonion.com/new-study-confirms-sharks-just-really-angry-dolphins-1825924575/
When I was 7 and living in Martinique I went snorkeling with my dad and we swam over a hammerhead stuck between two rocks. After telling my son this story he did a project on them in around 4th grade. Such weird and wonderful critters!
Did your dad free the shark?
Nope
That took nerves of steel. What magnificent creatures! Head-on views of such big sharks are not very common, unsurprisingly. It is a little-known tragedy that so many of them are killed daily for their fins. My country, Ecuador, is one of the worst villains in that story.
You have my admiration; this is probably the bravest RWP effort ever.
WOW! A treat at WEIT! Fantastic. Such magnificent creatures. The shot of the diver face to face with the hammerhead is spectacular. Thanks!
+1
Hemant’s mad at cha, again!
Remember last time he had a rage article about you, Jerry?
His comment boards was littered with people making death threats, while he deleted any polite rebuttal to his BS…
This is the place for comments on the photos, not to let me know that someone is going after me. Do you enjoy telling me about such stuff? Note to readers: you need not tell me that person X is trashing me over at site Y. Thank you.
Damn sharks are the coolest things.
When I came to America I’d fool my fellow students telling them all manner of relatives of mine in Oz were eaten by sharks. Dozens even. hehehe
D.A.
NYC
WOW! The photos are fantastic but the experience of taking them must have been even more so.
Just spectacular! I’ve never seen such great shark pictures up close and personal—particularly the Hammerheads.
Wow! Glad you are still among the un-dead!
Wow, these are amazing photos! Thanks for sharing your adventure. I learned something today.
Amazing photos, and amazing creatures.
I can only imagine how many times Professor Jones has heard the many jokes about lawyers and sharks. But it’s good that he’s not discouraged.
Just great! And some very courageous divers. Those hammerheads are remarkable. Wikipedia suggests that because their heads give them improved stereo vision and other detection advantages, this enhances their survival and conveys a favourable evolutionary pressure. But how on earth the process got started in the first place is beyond my powers of imagination.
These are incredible! After seeing the movie Jaws, I don’t think I could do this kind of diving to be with sharks. The photos are really great with the head on shots.
Thank you for this!
Wow!! I’ve watched some video clips of divers interacting with tiger sharks. The general rule is that as long as you look at them, they turn away. If they get too close, you can nudge them aside and they move on.
But you really need to watch your back. That also is a rule.
Wow! Thanks!
Absolutely stunning!
Awesome! I’ve taken many shark pics but none as impressive as these.
Having been stalked by sharks twice while snorkelling, I learned that they try to come at you from behind, so if you turn to face them and swim straight at them face to face, they call off the charge. (One however kept coming back and trying again and again, which was tiring so I swam into a narrow crevice in a cliff to escape.) That counterintuitive strategy has become my rule for dealing with pesky sharks.
Impressive! Thank you.
I’ll be impressed when they’re Great Whites. KIDDING!
Terrific. The Hammerhead was esp. beautiful.
Shark fin harvesting sickens me. Anthony Bourdain had a good documentary on the wanton waste.