We have researched some of the most fascinating common thresher shark facts so that you may get to know all about common thresher shark. The Common Thresher (Alopias vulpinus) is the largest of all three species of thresher sharks. The other two species are pelagic thresher and bigeye thresher.
Common Thresher Shark Facts
Common thresher is a cold-water fish and likes swimming in temperate waters. It inhabits coastal and oceanic waters. It has a thresher-like long tail which is used to whip its prey. Its trunk is shaped like a torpedo.
The size of thresher shark can range from 13 to 18.7 feet. It weighs around 510 pounds. At birth, the size of pups is around 114 to 160 centimeters in length.
Common Thresher Shark Lifespan: It has a lifespan of about 24 to 50 years.
Female threshers mature at 9 years of age while males reach maturity up to 7 years. There is no particular mating season for these sharks.
A litter size can range from 2 to 4 pups at a time.
Where Do Common Thresher Sharks Live? Off western Atlantic, it is found all the way from Canada, United States, Mexico and up to Argentina. Of its eastern side; it is found from UK, Norway, to the west shores of Africa and up to South Africa. Off Indian Ocean; it inhabits off South Africa, Madagascar, Gulf of Aden and up to India and Australia. Off western Pacific; it is present in China, Japan, New Zealand, Australia up to Society and Fanning Islands (IUCN Red List).
What Do Common Thresher Sharks Eat? Common thresher likes to feed on bony fishes like Long Tom, mackerel, lanternfish, herring and bluefish. It also eats pelagic invertebrates and squid.
Normally, it is caught as a bycatch. But it’s also heavily fished for its big fins, hide, liver oil and flesh, thus reaping a lot of economic benefits. It poses no danger to humans because of its timid behavior.
Other names: Atlantic Thresher, Fox Shark, Whip-Tailed Shark, Green Thresher, Swingletail, Sea Fox, Zorro Thresher, Slasher, Swiveltail and Grayfish.