September 12, 2023 • 47 mins
In this episode of Wildly Curious (formerly For the Love of Nature), co-hosts Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole play a fun game of "Two Truths and a Lie" featuring fascinating facts about sharks! From the lightning-fast shortfin mako to the terrifying bull shark, they challenge each other to separate fact from fiction. Tune in for some jaw-dropping shark facts and see if you can spot the lie before they reveal the truth.
Perfect for shark enthusiasts, nature lovers, and anyone looking for a fun way to learn more about the world’s most misunderstood predators.
🎉 Support us on Patreon to keep the episodes coming! 🪼🦤🧠 For more laughs, catch us on YouTube!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Laura (00:00):
Hello and welcome to For the Love of Nature, a podcast
where we tell you everything youneed to know about nature and
probably more than you wanted toknow.
I'm Laura.
Katy\ (00:09):
And I'm Katie.
And today we're going to betalking about sharks and their
importance in the ecosystems.
I just made that up.
We didn't talk about what themessage is going to be.
That is a great one.
It is a great message.
Laura (00:21):
But sharks are, I feel like sharks get, all the
attention, but still not as muchlove as they deserve.
Yes.
Katy\ (00:27):
Yes.
I'm getting a shark tattoo.
Did I tell you about that?
No.
The jaws.
So, so I'm going tomorrow to getthat other tattoo.
And before, so it's by, okay, sothe guy that did the flower, I'm
sure everybody's seen the floweron my own, the magnolia that's
for my dad and my pep, the sameguy who's doing that, I have an
(00:49):
appointment with him at 10o'clock to talk about like a
shark jaw and then, and that'sto be about an hour long
appointment, like just, it'sjust like the consult, like
figuring out where and everysize and everything like that.
And then right after that is theother person that he shares the
shop with have an appointmentwith her and that's why I'm
(01:10):
getting the bird.
And so, back to back, so I'llfind out more about the, the jaw
tomorrow.
Originally wanted to do it on myelbow, but like this is here.
So we'd had the, yeah.
So I think we're.
I don't know.
I, I feel like this arm needs,I'm, I either need to go full
(01:30):
sleeve on this arm before Istart this one or else I feel
like this arm's incomplete andthen it bugs me and then I feel
lopsided.
Like, you know
Laura (01:42):
what I mean?
Which is so funny because it'svery much on one side.
Oh, it's
Katy\ (01:46):
very lopsided.
Yeah.
But it has to be like, yeah.
Yeah.
It's just like, Yeah, it's justlike I have to, almost like it's
incomplete and I can't startuntil it's complete.
That's why I'm like doing myblack back.
Cause then I'm like, oh, whatthe bird, cause then I'm like,
yeah, well, that's not really abig deal.
So anyway, so yeah, sharks,awesome, awesome creatures for
(02:10):
more than just tattoos.
I mean, I don't, I don't haveany nature news, let me think,
I'm reading, I'm reading a newbook.
That a friend of mine.
Sent me, shout out to Alex,called Parallel Worlds.
Everybody needs other nerdfriends that send No.
Wait, yes, sorry.
(02:31):
I'm like, no, yes.
Yeah, so, it's, it's talkingabout the journey through
creation, higher dimensions, andthe future of the cosmos.
Like, as far as alternateuniverses and everything like
that from a physics perspective.
That's way
Laura (02:43):
too heavy reading for me.
Katy\ (02:45):
See, I like that stuff though.
Laura (02:46):
Like, I like stuff.
I'd like to think about it for asecond.
I just don't know if I couldcommit to the whole book.
It's
Katy\ (02:51):
a pretty long book too, but I am pumped.
And so I was asking Alex somequestions, just like to get his
take on stuff, because he's abig deep thinker too.
And so I was asking him somethings and he was like, oh here,
let me, There's this book, andthen he, next thing I know, he
just sends me a screenshot ofAmazon.
(03:12):
Everybody needs friends thatjust send them books.
Um.
Yeah.
So yeah, so yeah, so I'm excitedto read this.
So I'm sure I'll have naturenews as I start reading this.
Laura (03:23):
Um.
I'm worrying about paralleluniverses.
Mm hmm.
I cannot think about that thoseexist.
It's too much.
Yeah, cause it's talking.
Like, like I did like, like Ilike watching, like when it's
fictional.
Sure.
Like, I got really into TheFlash for a hot second.
Mm hmm.
Like, the superhero guy.
Yeah.
I was constantly going into,like, parallel worlds because it
(03:44):
goes so fast.
That, fine.
But if I actually thought itexisted, and then all my
mistakes triggered some otherpath, it's too much
responsibility.
It's too much responsibility.
Katy\ (03:55):
Yeah, because it talks about latest innovations in
string theory and its mostrecent iteration, M theory and
just all kinds of stuff.
Yeah.
I, I like, I don't know, I likethinking
Laura (04:07):
about that stuff.
Yeah, I can give you thehighlights.
Like, I'll be excited for that,but, yeah.
Otherwise, I might have a panicattack.
I had to almost leave churchagain the other day because of
the sermon that was talkingabout heaven too much.
All right?
And you were like, I gotta go.
I gotta bounce.
I can't think about theafterlife too much, which is
crazy.
(04:27):
Yeah.
Like, I can't.
It's too heavy.
I was listening to, I was, I waslike,
Katy\ (04:33):
I was listening to this podcast and dang, I have to go
back there and, and find it.
But again, it was this, well,what was a sociology one?
And they were talking about genZ and how millennials so many
millennials have, and it'sagain, I mean, this is nature
news from sociology.
Um, talking about how so manymillennials have left the church
because of like just the extremesize that the church has taken
(04:55):
and that the effects of that,that has on Gen Z and that
that's why so many people arelike, especially Gen Z are
relying so heavily on astrologyand crystals and like, and it's
mostly because behavioral isthat they don't have like, you
figure when most kids went tochurch, you have that, that
community that cohesivegrouping.
(05:17):
And Gen Z didn't get that.
The generation like my son thenis and a lot of them aren't
getting that.
And so people, sociologists arestarting to say that because
this is the first timethroughout history where the
vast majority of people aren'tgoing to church or like an
organized religion.
Like they could still believe inGod, but they're not like taking
their kids to church every week.
(05:39):
Um, and so they're starting tostudy the repercussions of that.
And I say repercussions, notthat like organized religion is
a Good or bad thing, just therepercussions of not having
those like, that can, yeah, thatsocial group, that community,
that core of beliefs that guideyou.
Yeah.
So it was really, reallyinteresting.
Well, right.
Cause it
Laura (05:58):
could be like, it could be really good or really bad.
It just depends.
Because you'll choose your ownstuff, which is a dangerous,
interesting thing.
Katy\ (06:07):
Yeah.
Alrighty.
We want to go into sharks.
Laura (06:13):
Yeah, and this episode is kind of different than how we
normally do things.
We've decided we'd play a littlegame.
Play a little game.
We're going to do two truths anda lie.
Where we're going to read eachother some sharp facts and
sprinkle in some lies and see ifthe other person can guess them
correctly.
Katy\ (06:34):
Just sprinkling a little lies here and there.
Alright, do you want to gofirst?
Uh, sure.
Okay.
I'm gonna, I'm gonna mute myselfand eat some more french fries,
because I'm still hungry.
Yeah, yeah.
Laura (06:49):
Don't subject me to the delicious sounding crunch.
I'm
Katy\ (06:52):
crunching french fries.
Laura (06:55):
Okay.
So I'll just preface it by thespecies that these facts and or
lie is.
So this is the shortfin makoshark.
Um, which I, so I've heard ofall of these sharks before that
I'm doing, but I didn't reallyknow anything about them, which
I'm always excited about to do,because like, whenever we do
episodes, I'm like, Oh, cool.
Now I get to learn something.
(07:16):
So the shortfin mako shark, herewe go.
Which of these is the lie?
The shortfin mako shark is thefastest shark in the world.
The shortfin mako shark.
Are nourished, well their pupsare nourished by a placenta, or
that the short fin mako sharkcan change its body temperature
depending on the environment.
Katy\ (07:38):
Ooh.
I think the second one is true.
The placenta one.
The placenta.
Yeah, even if it's not thatshark, there is a shark that
does that.
Um, and then it's the fastest,or what was the third one?
The
Laura (07:52):
fastest, or changing
Katy\ (07:54):
body temperature.
Let's do the third one.
Is it a lie?
The body temperature?
Yeah.
But I feel like that one's true.
But yeah, let's go with thatone's a lie.
Laura (08:09):
All right.
Great guesses.
But number two, nourished byplacenta is a lie.
But you're right.
There are other sharks that dothat.
Katy\ (08:15):
Another shark does that.
Yeah.
Okay.
Because I was like, I knowthat's true for one of them.
For
Laura (08:19):
a shark.
I just don't remember whichshark.
Dude, sharks are crazy in theirreproductive Techniques, and
we're going to get into it withmy further sharks.
So a little bit about why theseare true and, and, or not true.
So the short fin mako shark isindeed the fastest shark in the
world.
They can swim 45 miles per hour,making them one of the fastest
fishes in the ocean.
(08:40):
So I looked it up, sailfish arethe fastest and then, you know,
swordfish and a couple of otherguys like that.
But then the mako shark, theycan go like 60 to 85 miles an
hour.
Some of those guys.
But the mango sharks being 45miles per hour is still really
freaking fast.
Yeah, for a shark.
That's a big shark, okay?
Because they can get anywherefrom, the average is 10 and a
(09:00):
half to 12 and a half feet.
That's a big animal.
Katy\ (09:04):
Yeah, imagine that.
Yeah, 45 miles an hour throughthe water.
Yeah, that's insane.
Through the water.
Yeah, that's terrifying.
Laura (09:12):
Terrifying.
Terrifying.
Look up a mango shark, they canlook terrifying.
And not only can they swim thatfast through the water, but
they're known for doingincredible aerial leaps out of
the water.
So, like, they can jump reallyhigh out of the water.
Probably because they're goingso fast.
Okay.
I'll do the other truth.
That they can change their bodytemperature, which is really
(09:33):
weird for a fish.
Because fish are cold blooded.
But these Mako sharks, a coupleof other shark species and tuna
fish have this weird adaptationwhere they have special blood
vessels, like, well, they have aspecial system in their body.
Yes.
Counter, countercurrentexchange.
Katy\ (09:53):
Yeah.
I can't remember if I talkedabout it, but I did read about
it on one of the, either couldyou ride that or could you fight
that, that I did on a tuna fish?
Yeah.
Maybe you
Laura (10:00):
did about it.
Cause you wanted to ride thetuna or whatever.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Katy\ (10:03):
Really bad.
Laura (10:04):
Yeah.
Really bad.
Um, well, my guy eats tuna.
So, the countercurrent exchange,I feel like we didn't get into
it, and I had to, like, kind oflook it up how it all works.
So, the heat that is produced bythe shark's metabolism in their
muscles, like, they're swimming,they're swimming, and, of
course, that's creating heat.
That heat is then, uh, Takenfrom the veins, so the, you
(10:27):
know, arteries bring blood tothings, veins take things away.
So, arteries are bringing infreezing cold water that has
come from their gills, becausethat's where they're breathing.
So that's freezing water.
That is entering their body.
They don't want freezing coldwater to hit their organs and
their muscles, because then itwould slow them down.
So instead, the vessels, or theveins that are all warmed up,
(10:52):
They're right beside thearteries, so the heat is
transferred between the two.
So, it's, it's, they're, they'reside by side, it's a side by
side system.
So they're like, you know, kindof keeping it lukewarm in there.
So they're not true, they're nottruly warm blooded.
They're technically what'scalled regional endotherms.
(11:13):
Endotherm meaning an animal thatcan create its own heat.
And it does help them to keeptheir, their body temperature
slightly warmer than thesurrounding water.
So, it depends, like, on howcold the water is by how much
they need to kind of work at it.
You know, of course, everythingyou read is in the metric
system, which is fine.
It's fine.
(11:33):
I just figure I should say so.
They can keep their bodies 5
Katy\ (11:38):
to 14.
It's fine.
It's fine.
It's fine in the metric
Laura (11:41):
system.
I it.
I have to do all the conversionswhen I read it.
They can keep their bodytemperatures 5 to 14 degrees
Celsius above water temperature,which then translates to 11 to
25 degrees Fahrenheit above thewater temperature.
So like, if the water is like,you know, 60 degrees, they could
be like 71 inside.
(12:02):
If the water is 40 degrees, theycould be 65 inside if they
needed to be.
Hmm.
This allows them to be moreefficient hunters and to migrate
much further, which helps themto take advantage of food and
reproduction.
So, like, they can go wayfurther.
Like a tuna.
Like, they're all aboutmigrating.
And then finally, the lye.
(12:22):
They are nourished by placenta.
Not true.
Though they do give live birth,the pups are not nourished by
placenta, but that doesn't meanthat what's going on there isn't
freaking cool.
So, originally, They're what'sconsidered ovoviviparous.
Let's try and say that one fast.
So that's when they have eggsinside that hatch internally.
(12:42):
So first, they have a, they'rejust in a little sack.
And they have a yolk attached tothem.
Then they hatch inside theirmoms.
And typically, like with a lotof animals, that's when the
birth happens.
You know, they don't just hangout in there.
Not for sharks, apparently.
These little sharks are justhanging out inside their moms
for 18 months.
Snacking on either theirunderdeveloped siblings, or,
(13:06):
or...
Which is so harsh.
Yeah, or she just keepsproducing unfertilized eggs.
Like, she's just cooking thembreakfast in there.
Like, they're just snatching andsnatching on eggs.
Way to go, mom.
Yeah! So, they hang out inthere, eating up, eating
everything.
And finally, once they reach twofeet long...
(13:28):
Then they come out and there are12 of them in there, 12, two
foot long sharks inside eating.
That's uncalled
Katy\ (13:35):
for, again, that's uncalled for, like.
That
Laura (13:39):
is intense.
Katy\ (13:42):
Uh,
Laura (13:42):
and then just to end it on a couple of Mako shark facts,
just to lay the groundwork forthese sweet, sweet sharks.
Like I said, 10 and a half, 12and a half feet.
Typically, they're anywhere from130 to 330 pounds.
So they're actually like prettylean.
But they have been known to getup to 1, 200 pounds.
So, there's some chunky ones outthere.
(14:03):
They're metallic blue on theirback, white on the bottom, and
they have coal black eyes, likestraight demon shark.
Um, they are found in thePacific, Atlantic, and Indian
Oceans.
They're pelagic, which meansthey live in open water,
preferably tropical andtemperate offshore water.
Highly migratory, active hunterseat mostly bony fishes,
(14:25):
including large tuna, alsosquid, also dolphins.
Generally solitary.
There's only ever been, there'sonly been three attacks on
humans since 1974, which I thinkis pretty good.
I mean, you're a giant predator.
And finally IUCN, which we'vetalked about here on the podcast
many times before.
That's the people who, you know,list the endangered species
(14:46):
internationally.
They listen as endangered.
And that is for 2 reasons.
1 is by catch, which is going tocome up.
Yep.
Sharks.
That just means when you'refishing, you accidentally catch
things.
You don't want a lot of timesit's sharks.
Can you imagine accidentallycatching something 12 and a half
feet long?
Right, it's horrible thatthere's nets that can do that.
(15:08):
But the other 1 that's kind ofunique about this shark in
particular.
Is that there's they have theproblem of overfishing.
For sport fishing, likeswordfish fishing, that's what
they're doing with these becausethey put up such an epic fight.
They leap out of the water thefastest.
So these are like trophy fish,except they're sharks.
(15:29):
And even when it's catchingrelease, the mortality rate's
pretty high.
Even after you release itbecause of the stress on the
animal or like scrambling into aboat at high speed.
So.
That's a mako shark.
Pretty cool sharks.
Yeah, that is neat.
Katy\ (15:48):
Alrighty.
My two truths and a lie.
Hit me.
Alright, I'm going to talk aboutlemon sharks first.
I just
Laura (15:58):
love anything that's called lemon shark.
It's so cute.
It just sounds so cute.
Katy\ (16:03):
Alright, here's my three statements here.
Lemon sharks can tolerate freshwater and sometimes found in
rivers and estuaries.
So fresh and salt water.
Lemon sharks are one of the fewshark species that can only,
that can blink both their eyes.
Uh, and then.
Oh, wink.
Laura (16:21):
Like they can wink.
Katy\ (16:23):
But also blink.
Like.
Okay.
It's not like an actual, it's anactual blink.
Um, lemon sharks are named aftertheir yellowish brown skin,
which looks like the color of alemon.
Laura (16:35):
Oh, jeez.
I feel like it's the first one'sthe lie.
Katy\ (16:40):
The freshwater saltwater.
That is a true
Laura (16:44):
poop.
Is it?
Is it?
Did you?
Did you do it?
Is it the color?
No, I teamed up for something.
Katy\ (16:49):
Nope.
That's why I threw that one inthere.
Winking winking.
Yeah.
It's the
Laura (16:55):
blinking winky.
I shouldn't have you meanthey're the first ones that can
blink both eyes at the sametime?
Yeah, so.
Sharks normally just do...
Katy\ (17:04):
All sharks are actually the only fish that can, like,
actually blink both their eyes.
Like, they can blink.
Truly blink.
Other fish
Laura (17:14):
can't.
What do other fish do?
They don't.
They don't have eyelids?
When
Katy\ (17:19):
have you ever seen a fish with an eyelid, dude?
I don't know.
I never thought about it.
I
Laura (17:29):
never thought about fish blinking.
Maybe they had like a, like anictitating, like this is
blinking.
This is blinking.
Katy\ (17:35):
Yes.
This is like, well, I think theystill have, I think they still
have, yeah, nictitating memory,but they actually can like, like
their skin closes.
Yes.
Well, sort of.
So mud skippers blink by pullingtheir eyeballs down into their
sockets and puffer fish dosomething similar.
So those are like the twooutliers for fish.
Sharks, on the other hand, theydo have the nictitating
(17:57):
membrane, which they use toblink, but they can still move
enough of the muscle aroundwhere other fish are just like
existing.
They don't have anything.
I'm just
Laura (18:06):
perpetually surprised.
So wait, how is it a lie thatthey're not the only ones that
can do it?
Correct.
Katy\ (18:10):
Yeah.
Okay.
Because all sharks, all sharksdo it.
Yeah.
All sharks do it.
Oh, gotcha.
Laura (18:15):
Gotcha.
Katy\ (18:16):
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Laura (18:20):
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Katy\ (18:30):
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Laura (18:33):
Gotcha.
For sure, because I'd be like,they are way more sentient than
we are.
Right, right.
Like if a shark winks at you, itknows something.
It knows.
Okay.
It knows
Katy\ (18:44):
something's up.
Um, well, this group of sharks,they belong to the family
Carcharhenidae.
I don't, I really don't know whyI always decide that I need to
say it.
It does.
I know.
I know you do.
And nobody cares, but I alwaysfeel like I need to say it.
(19:06):
Uh, yeah, these sharks inhibittropical and subtropical waters
along the coast of the Americasfrom the United States down to
Brazil, lemon sharks are namedfor their pale yellowish brown
color.
And that's why I threw that onein there.
Cause I was like, man, what ifthey were named after something
else?
You never know.
Um, but it does resemble theskin of a lemon.
for the most part.
(19:27):
They have a streamlined bodywith a short blunt snout and
reach an average length of abouteight to ten feet.
So, I mean, it's bigger than ahuman, but not huge, not great
white or anything like that.
Yeah.
Lemon sharks are known for theirremarkable ability to adapt and
thrive in various habitats.
They can be found in bothshallow coastal waters and
(19:49):
deeper offshore areas.
These sharks are highly sociableand often gather in large groups
forming schools that consist ofdozens of individuals, which
would be kind of neat.
Yeah, it would be kind of cool.
Their diet primarily consistsof, like many other sharks, bony
fish, crustaceans, and othersmaller marine mammals.
Lemon sharks have a uniquehunting strategy utilizing,
(20:10):
like, well, I mean, unique asfar as sharks go.
Um, well, how they have theelectro receptor organs called
ampullate.
Ampu Amp, sweet Lord
Laura (20:23):
Pul Day.
Katy\ (20:23):
Yeah.
Of of Lorenzo to detect theelectrical fields produced by
potential prey.
Isn't that the same thing?
It is the same thing that crocsand alligators have.
Yeah.
Okay.
I can't remember if it wascalled the same thing.
Laura (20:35):
And I think, I feel like it was you who were talking
about the platypus that onetime.
Yeah.
Right.
Don't they have them on there?
Katy\ (20:40):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I don't know if it's called,technically, if it's called the
same thing.
Yeah, but it's the same.
Yeah.
Reproduction and lemon sharks.
Lorenzini.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Lorenzini.
So these sharks, Laura talkedabout.
Uh, the reproduction patterns ofher shark.
These ones are viv vivivparous,meaning that the embryo is
(21:01):
developed inside the mother'sbody.
Mating usually occurs duringwarmer months, and after a
gestation period of just 10 12months.
The female gives birth to liveyoung.
Litters 4 17 pups, depending onthe size and age of the female.
The newborn lemon sharks areabout 24 to 28 inches long and
(21:22):
are immediately independent,fending for themselves
immediately.
Straight out of the
Laura (21:27):
womb.
They're just born so freakingbig, man.
No, right?
Like, that's still a two footbaby?
Yeah,
Katy\ (21:32):
it's still a two foot baby! It
Laura (21:35):
is, it's a huge...
I just can't imagine having thatmany...
It's like birthing a toddler.
Katy\ (21:40):
Yeah, it's birthing a toddler, essentially.
Yeah!
Laura (21:44):
Yeah, but
Katy\ (21:45):
12 of them.
12 of them all at once.
Well, this one can range from 4to 17.
Yeah.
So anyway, in a nutshell, that'sa, that's a lemon shark.
And they are, let me look here.
Yeah, they're consideredvulnerable by IUCN.
I mean, most sharks are eithervulnerable or getting close,
(22:06):
close enough if they're notendangered or anything.
So these ones are vulnerable aswell.
So that's lemon sharks.
Laura (22:12):
Oh, little lemming lemonlings, that's what I'd call
their babies.
That's what they should becalled.
Okay, I'm gonna do the frilledshark.
Ooh, that's a good one.
Which is just, like, unique.
Um, and not a lot's known aboutit.
But, well, from what is known,here are my things.
It's
Katy\ (22:29):
kind of a creepy looking shark.
Laura (22:32):
Yeah, and I mean, like there depends on the picture you
look up to, like some of thepictures look weirder than
others.
It's definitely
Katy\ (22:40):
for me, a frail, A frail, yeah.
A frailed shark looks more likean eel than Yes.
Like if you're wanna mentallypicture something, think of a,
an eellike thing rather than ashark.
Shark.
Laura (22:52):
Like a typical shark.
They're definitely described ashaving eel like bodies.
That's what it says in thedescription.
Um, okay.
So, frilled sharks have rows ofthree pointed teeth.
Sharks, frilled sharks have beenaround for 80 million years.
And frilled sharks get theirname from the appearance of
(23:13):
their pectoral fins.
Katy\ (23:16):
Okay, I know they have weird teeth, so that one's gotta
be true.
I'm going to say because it doeslook like an eel, that the
second one is true.
So the last
Laura (23:27):
one?
The 80
Katy\ (23:28):
million years.
No, no, no, that one is true,the 80 million years is true,
the pectoral fins is the falseone?
Correct.
But what, where do they get thefrilled from then?
Laura (23:42):
Their gills.
Katy\ (23:43):
Because the only reason why I think that it, oh, okay,
okay.
I was gonna say, because theonly reason why I would think it
would, the only reason why Isaid I definitely know it's old
is because it looks soprehistoric, like it's ugly
prehistoric.
Laura (23:55):
It's, yeah, it's basically considered like a
primitive shark.
Yeah, it's ugly.
Um, so the truth, they do haverows of three pointed teeth.
The teeth have three long cuspswith a tiny cusplet at the base
of each V.
Formed by the bigger ones.
Basically, like, look up apicture.
They have weird teeth.
(24:16):
Yeah, they have weird teeth.
They have like trident shapedteeth.
There are 300 of them in 25rows.
So they have a lot of teeth.
Which are perfect for holding onto slippery squid.
Which is a lot of what they'reeating.
And allows them to eat thingsmore than half their body
weight.
Katy\ (24:35):
Oh wow.
Laura (24:37):
So they are live there and the other one about them
being 80 million years old, yes,that's true.
They are considered livingfossils.
If you don't know what that is,shout out to our previous
episode about living fossilsabout living fossils, basically,
yeah, basically there's fossilevidence that points to this
species having been around sincethe Cretaceous period, 80
million years ago, with verylittle change since then.
(25:00):
So like, they're just, yeah, youcan tell.
Yeah, they're just primitivelooking the lie.
Like I said, it's not from the,the name comes from the
appearance of their gills, nottheir pectoral fins.
They have 6 skills total, whichmost trucks only have 5, so they
have drawn the 1st skill at thefront actually goes all the way
(25:20):
under their chin, like a, like alittle and there's a whole bunch
of extra skin that gives it afrilled appearance.
But just a couple quick thingsabout them.
They're actually a pretty, Imean, small shark, alright?
They're still six and a halffeet long, but that's pretty
small for a shark.
They're chocolate brown colored,which is a fun color to be.
(25:41):
Uh, they have eel like bodies.
Chocolate brown.
Atlantic, Pacific, and IndianOceans is where you can find
them.
And they're benthic, which meansdeep water.
They're not like an open water.
They're like deep down on thecontinental shelves or the near
shore areas of large islands.
They can be found anywhere from320 feet.
(26:02):
Okay, not that deep.
All the way down to 4, 265 feet.
So they are like a deep, deepwater.
Katy\ (26:12):
Yeah,
Laura (26:12):
I'll say.
There's, it seems like there'sdebate whether they're
viviparous, live birth, orovoviviparous, like the last
shark, the mako shark.
They've never been kept incaptivity, like successfully.
Who would want to?
Um, solitary.
So ugly.
I don't know.
Um, they're one of the slowestsharks.
(26:33):
They're very slow moving, whichmakes sense when you're going to
live in such cold, deep water.
They eat deep water fish, squid,and dead stuff.
And they're not considereddangerous.
They've never been like, they'venever attacked a person that
says they just have shreddedsome hands that tried to pick
them up.
But like, it's not like that.
They're going to attack peopleagain.
Why would you want to try
Katy\ (26:52):
to pick that thing up?
Laura (26:53):
Like.
Yeah.
Well, right.
It looks like an alien.
Like, yeah, don't pick upsomething from the deep ocean.
They look terrifying.
Yeah, they are listed as aspecies of least concern by the
I U C N.
They're occasionally called asbycatch, but like, we honestly
don't know almost anything aboutthe shark.
That's what I was gonna
Katy\ (27:09):
say.
I, I feel like since all othersharks, there's none.
Maybe there's lots like, yeah.
Yeah.
Laura (27:18):
And that's it for frog sharks.
Katy\ (27:21):
Oh goodness.
Alright, are you ready for mysecond one?
I'm talking about bull sharks.
Laura (27:28):
Yes, I remember as a kid being, like, a couple of sharks
I thought were really cool as akid.
This was one of them.
But that's only because Idefinitely know that these ones
are cool.
can be an issue.
Like, you're like, Oh, I'm nevergonna have to worry about sharks
in Pennsylvania, except
Katy\ (27:48):
except you think you're safe.
No, you're not.
All right.
So here's the three.
Uh, Bull sharks are the mostaggressive shark species and are
responsible for the most sharkattacks on humans.
Bull sharks can swim in bothsaltwater and freshwater and
have been found in rivershundreds of miles inland.
(28:09):
Bull sharks are called bullbecause of their powerful bite,
which is said to be as strong asa bull's.
Laura (28:17):
Oh jeez, these are hard.
Because some of them, like, Ifeel like could be not true
based on such a smalltechnicality.
But I am going to go with...
I'm gonna jump.
Uh, I'm gonna go with...
The first one.
Katy\ (28:35):
Lie.
Most aggressive?
No, wait, wait, no, wait.
First, first one was most, yeah.
First one was most aggressive.
Compared to other sharks, thesecond one was they can swim in
both salt and fresh, and thenthe last one was that they're
called bulls because of theirpowerful bite.
Laura (28:53):
Hmm.
Actually, maybe I changed mymind.
Maybe it's a third one.
Do I think that they, okay, Idefinitely think that they can
go, I know that they can go infresh and salt.
Hundreds of miles, I they can goon both, I assume they encounter
a lot of people.
So I could see that they couldbe the most aggressive, but I'm
(29:15):
going to go.
So, okay, I'm going with thirdone.
Third one.
Third one's a lie.
Yep.
Third one.
Katy\ (29:19):
Um, reason through it, reason through it.
They're called bull sharksbecause of their stocky muscular
build.
It doesn't really have anythingto do with like the powerful
bite or anything.
It's just because they're,they're stocky.
Uh, so let's see here.
Bull sharks are definitely oneof the ones that have earned a
reputation.
(29:40):
And I don't want to sayrightfully so, but like Laura
said, because of they can go sofar inland.
And they do cross paths withhumans, uh, yeah, they've,
they've done a little bit ofdamage.
Laura (29:53):
So, regularly.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It'd be like if we lived, youknow, I mean, it's literally
like living with tigers.
Like.
Yes.
I'm sure tigers don't usuallykill people, but if you're,
like, poking them.
Yeah,
Katy\ (30:03):
it's going to, yeah.
Alright, so they inhabit bothsalt and fresh water
environments, making them uniqueamong sharks.
And I, I mean, like, okay, sothe other ones, yeah, they, they
inhabit both fresh and salt, butlike, this one can, this isn't
like brackish water, this islike, fresh, like, straight up
fresh water.
So, they're found on coastalwaters all around the world,
(30:25):
which is another big thing.
I mean, if you're found, like,pretty much everywhere.
It's just, and you can go bothsalt and fresh water, you know,
they just keeps upping theirpotential to come into contact
with humans daily.
So they can venture far
Laura (30:41):
appreciate, like, I do think it's cool.
Sorry.
I do.
Fact that they can like they're,they're generalists.
Yes.
I do love a good generalist, asI've said before,
Katy\ (30:52):
right?
I really need to put that on ahat for you.
Uh, so they can venture far uprivers into estuaries, even
tolerating very low salinitylevels like none.
They are named for their stockybuild.
Like I said, the broad snout andthe tendency to display
aggressive behavior whenprovoked like a bull.
(31:12):
Uh, bull sharks areopportunistic feeders with a
diverse diet.
They are known to consume a widevariety of prey, including fish,
turtles, dolphins, birds, andother sharks.
They are cannibalistic, which iswhy scientists believe they are
more aggressive than othersharks.
While all shark species havedemonstrated cannibalism, bull
(31:33):
sharks seem to kind of do itmore so than others.
Alright so their diet and theirflexibility allows them to
thrive obviously in a variety ofhabitats and Again, which allows
them to go pretty far inland.
So not only can they go in farinland and still breathe, but
they can go far inland and findsomething to eat.
So, uh, because of thatadaptability, sharks, inland
(31:58):
sharks, uh, reproduction andbull sharks follows a viviparous
pattern, similar to lemonsharks.
The females give birth to liveyoung after gestation period of
again, 10 to 12 months.
Interestingly enough, though,bull sharks have a unique
reproductive strategy calledutero vi viperity, which this
means that the embryos initiallydevelop inside the mother's
(32:20):
body, but after a certain stage,they are nourished through
placental connection.
This allows the bull shark pupsto grow more efficiently and
ensures their survival in thecompetitive marine environment
as soon as they, as soon as theypop out.
Again, they have a little bit ofa boost of energy and, um,
nourishment.
Yep.
So they do face a lot ofdifferent threats, though,
(32:42):
because, yes, they, you know,come into contact with humans a
lot, but, so that is a, a, athreat, but also habitat
destruction, overfishing, likeLaura said, accidental
entanglement.
You know, by catch.
And just because they do inhibitand habitate the freshwater
environments, it puts them intoclose proximity of just every
(33:04):
human activity, tourism,everything.
And so a lot of times they justthey'll bite and they'll attack
just because they're something'sprovoking it.
And even though the persondoesn't know they're provoking
it, it sees it as a threat.
And so it's gonna, it's gonnabite.
So, but that's, that's a bullshark.
Again, a cool, a very, very coolspecies, but at the same time,
(33:26):
because it's just overlappingwith humans so much and
unfortunately just gets a badrap.
I
Laura (33:32):
definitely remember reading it on like a Nat Geo.
No, not Nat Geo, Reader'sDigest.
I think it was one of thosemagazines where they have like
wildlife stories every once in awhile.
Like, reading about a bull sharkcoming down the Potomac, I was
like, oh my gosh, like, I could,that'd be terrifying.
Okay, so my last shark is thegreat hammerhead shark.
Um, I feel like, you know, a lotof people buy hammerheads, but
(33:56):
there are many, there areseveral species of them, and
this is the largest, and I waslike, let's go big or go home.
So the great hammerhead.
So here are my statements.
Okay.
Hammerhead sharks are diurnalhunters, meaning they feed
during the daytime.
Great hammerhead sharks arelisted as critically endangered.
(34:19):
Great hammerhead sharks have abelly button.
Katy\ (34:28):
Sorry.
Um.
As much as I want the bellybutton one to be true, I, wait,
wait, hang on, hang on, hang on.
Let me think about this.
Because I did say with bullsharks, that utero viviparity,
he had through personalconnection, which I guess would
(34:51):
technically be belly button.
What was the second one?
They are
Laura (34:56):
listed as critically
Katy\ (34:57):
endangered.
And the first one?
Laura (35:00):
They are diurnal.
hunters.
Katy\ (35:04):
Let's go with their diurnal because it's the water.
I don't think it matters, doesit?
Laura (35:09):
Correct.
That is the lie.
All right, the two truths.
They do have a belly buttonbecause just like the bull
shark, they are biviparous.
So technically, is it the exactsame thing as a belly button?
No, but there is a little scaron their bellies permanently.
Listen, we're going to
Katy\ (35:24):
call it a belly button.
Laura (35:27):
I mean, come on.
It looks like a belly button.
It functions like a bellybutton.
Yes.
It is a belly button.
It is a belly button.
Um, it is not technically aplacenta, but it is basically a
placenta.
So, yes, they are.
Katy\ (35:40):
Which is not a sentence I ever wanted to say.
Connected
Laura (35:43):
by a yolk.
Yeah, connected by a placenta.
That sounds like a good, albumname.
Um, it's a metal band.
Okay, so the first they'renourished, the first they're
nourished by a yolk sac.
And then shortly after that,then they get that placental
connection.
And crazy, these guys have agestation of 11 months.
(36:04):
So a really long time and theycan give birth to 20 to 40.
Oh,
Katy\ (36:09):
geez.
That's a lot.
Laura (36:11):
Yeah.
So they got up to 40 babies inthere that grew about two feet
long and are born like ready togo.
Truth.
They are critically endangered.
Due to mostly overfishingbecause they are one of the
preferred species for shark finsoup.
So they are just killed willynilly for their fins.
They're also used for leather.
(36:34):
Their, like, their skin is usedfor leather, their meat, their
jaws, their cartilage, and theiroil.
So in general, their wholebodies are used.
And of course their bycatch aswell.
The lie was that they're diurnalhunters.
That is not true.
They feed at dusk.
So, like a lot of sharks don'tfeed during the daytime.
They feed as it gets closer todarkness, so.
And then real quick about thegreat hammerhead shark.
(36:55):
What makes them special?
Dude, these sharks are freakingmassive.
Okay, the great hammerhead is 10to 20 feet long.
Jeez.
And it's
Katy\ (37:06):
700,
Laura (37:07):
770 to 1100 pounds.
Jeez.
That is a freakin big shark.
Yeah.
Of course the females arelarger, as is almost always with
sharks.
They have the classic hammerheadshape, which is also known as a
cephalofoil.
Hmm.
Why do they have this shapedhead?
Scientists still aren't totallysure.
But they think that it helps topinpoint prey with stereoscopic
(37:29):
sense of smell, better vision,greater area for sense organs,
more lift and maneuverabilitywhen swimming, and it helps them
to pin down one of theirpreferred foods, rays.
So like, they find a ray in thesand and then, pfft, use their
eyeballs to like, finish theground as they munch on it.
(37:49):
Um, How much you
Katy\ (37:51):
guys could've seen Laura's reenactment?
Pfft.
Cause you squinted your eye, andyou
Laura (37:57):
were like, pfft.
Ha ha ha ha ha.
Ha ha ha.
I get the character.
We all say.
Um, they can be gray, tan,green, or white.
Or brown on their back and whiteon the bottom.
Found in the Pacific, Atlantic,and Indian oceans.
They're both pelagic, meaningopen water, and coastal.
And when they're coastal, theylike to hang out in reefs,
(38:18):
lagoons, bays, inland seas.
And they really like it on thewarmer side.
Like, they like tropical andwarm temperate waters.
And typically they hang outwhere it's relatively Can't
blame them.
Oh, yeah, no.
I mean, they, they know whatthey like and they like our
typically they're solitary.
Their prey of choice are raised,but eat a ton of other stuff
too.
And unfortunately they doregularly come into contact with
(38:41):
humans because of how shallowthe water that they are in and
that it's like, you know,tropical and warm and also
perfect for diving.
And so because they are incontact with humans, then
there's conflict.
So, they actually haven'tattacked that many people, but
they do show, like, aggressivebehavior, um, like, they charge
(39:02):
people, essentially, kind oflike a bull but in almost 500
years of records, so since the1500s, there's only ever been 37
recorded attacks, none of whichhave been
Katy\ (39:13):
fatal.
Okay.
That's good, at least.
So,
Laura (39:16):
I mean, for a 20 foot long shot.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Like...
They're really just all, allbark and no bite.
And that's the great hammerhead.
Katy\ (39:26):
Okay, okay.
What,
Laura (39:28):
what was your first shark?
Katy\ (39:30):
Mako.
Okay, Mako.
I was like, wait a minute.
Okay, so my last one is thethresher shark.
Ooh.
Go, yeah, you might, it, yeah.
See if that helps.
All right, Thresher sharks areone of the only shark species
that cannot swim backwards.
Two, Thresher sharks tails makeup over half their body length.
(39:54):
And three, Thresher sharks usetheir long, whip like tails to
stun and catch their prey.
Laura (40:00):
So, I recently went to the Baltimore Aquarium Thresher
shark for probably the firsttime.
Yeah.
And I remember looking at it andbeing like, holy crap, that's a
tail.
So, I think...
That it is, uh, for over halfthe length, the tail is true.
I think that stunning their preywith it, probably true.
(40:22):
I'm going to say the lie.
I'm going to say the lie is thebackwards.
Katy\ (40:27):
Yes.
So that is correct.
So there, but, but I say that iscorrect, but there's still a lot
of controversy over it because.
There's a lot of controversyover what constitutes a swim and
what constitutes is justthrusting backwards, apparently.
And, and again, this is like oneof those weird things that
scientists debate over.
Yeah, like just like they happento like move enough to go
(40:50):
backwards.
Like what is actually swimmingbackwards and what is like they
just happen to fly backwards.
So a little bit of background ofthe thresher shark.
They're a group of shark speciesbelonging to the Allopidae
family, known for their distinctelongated upper caudal fish
lobes or tails.
(41:11):
And so there are some other onesthat have longer tails, but not
ones like, not as long as thisone.
But these ones can be as long asthe rest of their body.
They are named after theimpressive.
After the impressive tale, threespecies of thresher sharks are
commonly recognized.
The common thresher, the big eyethresher, and the pelagic
(41:31):
thresher.
Thresher sharks are found inboth tropical and temperate
ocean oceanic waters and aroundthe world.
Thresher sharks have a uniquehunting technique that sets them
apart from other shark species.
They use their long, whip liketails to stun or herd schools of
fish, which is, I think, ishilarious that they used to
school fish, making it easier tocapture their prey by striking
(41:55):
their tails in a swift motion.
Right?
Which, I really, if there was aTexas shark out there, Thresher
sharks, here we go.
It can be like, it can
Laura (42:06):
be like with that octopus, you know, what's the,
what's the, what's the spurs ofthe squid?
What's the one that like pullsoff the tentacle?
Katy\ (42:13):
Oh gosh, I forget which one that is.
Yeah, that pulls off thetentacle and uses it.
Yeah, we remember we had Joshdraw a picture.
Yeah, we did.
Yeah, I forget which one it is.
Yeah.
Well, these guys do that, andthey strike their tails in a
swift motion, they create astunning, like a shock wave,
more so, so it's more of the,kind of like a, uh, uh, mantis
shrimp.
(42:33):
How it's more like the pressurewave and everything, rather than
like the actual hit of it.
Whoa.
Yep.
So that shockwave immobilizes orstuns our target, allowing them
to swiftly capture their prey.
This hunting behavior is oftenobserved during the thrush
shark's impressive aerial, likeaerial displays, where they
breach out of the water whilehunting or during courtship
(42:54):
rituals.
Reproduction in thresher sharkis ovoviviparous, meaning that
the embryos develop inside eggswithin the mother's body.
Once the eggs hatch, the femalegives birth to a live young.
The number of pups she can haveis only two to six.
And those ones can also be twoto three feet long, which is aka
(43:15):
way too freaking long.
Thresher sharks, like many othershark species, face various
threats.
Same thing as everything else,overfishing And because of their
slow reproductive rate, theyonly give birth every two to
three years.
This makes thresher sharksparticularly vulnerable to
population declines.
Yeah, yeah.
So that's the thresher shark.
Laura (43:34):
Cool.
Katy\ (43:36):
Yeah, that was a good, I liked, I, again, I like, I know
enough about sharks that I likethem, but I don't know a ton
about sharks.
Laura (43:45):
Yeah, I was just gonna say, I, uh, I always like
learning in the episodes that wedo, and it's not just like.
Like this one was really, Ithink all new stuff for me.
Katy\ (43:57):
Yeah.
Get really getting into thenitty gritty of everything.
Yeah, for sure.
Alrighty guys.
Well, go ahead and reach out tous on Twitter or visit our
website at the nature podcast.
com.
And we have all of our fun merchup there.
We got to add some more stuff upthere, but you can get the booby
mug there.
At least I just want as manypeople as possible to get the
(44:18):
movie
Laura (44:18):
mug.
And we're trying guys.
We're just.
Busy is so hard right now.
Yeah.
Having just moved.
Katy\ (44:26):
But yeah, go to the nature podcast and you can get
the merch, check that out.
And then visit us on a Patreonat for the love of nature and
support us there so we can keepbringing you great content every
Laura (44:36):
week.
This is the last episode of thisseason, and we hope that you
guys will bear with us as wetake a very much needed break,
but we promise we will be backin a month with our brand new
season and lots of great newcontent.
In the meantime, check out ourlittle spinoff series Beastly
Ballers.
Which is going to be airing onthe weekends, and it's going to
(44:58):
be like a fun little analyticsof football, who's going to win
college and NFL games, based notonly on the stats, but based on
their mascots going head tohead.
We'll talk to you all again nextmonth.
Bye!
Katy\ (45:13):
Bye.
Hello and welcome to For the Love of Nature, a podcast
where we tell you everything youneed to know about nature and
probably more than you wanted toknow.
I'm Laura.
Katy\ (00:09):
And I'm Katie.
And today we're going to betalking about sharks and their
importance in the ecosystems.
I just made that up.
We didn't talk about what themessage is going to be.
That is a great one.
It is a great message.
Laura (00:21):
But sharks are, I feel like sharks get, all the
attention, but still not as muchlove as they deserve.
Yes.
Katy\ (00:27):
Yes.
I'm getting a shark tattoo.
Did I tell you about that?
No.
The jaws.
So, so I'm going tomorrow to getthat other tattoo.
And before, so it's by, okay, sothe guy that did the flower, I'm
sure everybody's seen the floweron my own, the magnolia that's
for my dad and my pep, the sameguy who's doing that, I have an
(00:49):
appointment with him at 10o'clock to talk about like a
shark jaw and then, and that'sto be about an hour long
appointment, like just, it'sjust like the consult, like
figuring out where and everysize and everything like that.
And then right after that is theother person that he shares the
shop with have an appointmentwith her and that's why I'm
(01:10):
getting the bird.
And so, back to back, so I'llfind out more about the, the jaw
tomorrow.
Originally wanted to do it on myelbow, but like this is here.
So we'd had the, yeah.
So I think we're.
I don't know.
I, I feel like this arm needs,I'm, I either need to go full
(01:30):
sleeve on this arm before Istart this one or else I feel
like this arm's incomplete andthen it bugs me and then I feel
lopsided.
Like, you know
Laura (01:42):
what I mean?
Which is so funny because it'svery much on one side.
Oh, it's
Katy\ (01:46):
very lopsided.
Yeah.
But it has to be like, yeah.
Yeah.
It's just like, Yeah, it's justlike I have to, almost like it's
incomplete and I can't startuntil it's complete.
That's why I'm like doing myblack back.
Cause then I'm like, oh, whatthe bird, cause then I'm like,
yeah, well, that's not really abig deal.
So anyway, so yeah, sharks,awesome, awesome creatures for
(02:10):
more than just tattoos.
I mean, I don't, I don't haveany nature news, let me think,
I'm reading, I'm reading a newbook.
That a friend of mine.
Sent me, shout out to Alex,called Parallel Worlds.
Everybody needs other nerdfriends that send No.
Wait, yes, sorry.
(02:31):
I'm like, no, yes.
Yeah, so, it's, it's talkingabout the journey through
creation, higher dimensions, andthe future of the cosmos.
Like, as far as alternateuniverses and everything like
that from a physics perspective.
That's way
Laura (02:43):
too heavy reading for me.
Katy\ (02:45):
See, I like that stuff though.
Laura (02:46):
Like, I like stuff.
I'd like to think about it for asecond.
I just don't know if I couldcommit to the whole book.
It's
Katy\ (02:51):
a pretty long book too, but I am pumped.
And so I was asking Alex somequestions, just like to get his
take on stuff, because he's abig deep thinker too.
And so I was asking him somethings and he was like, oh here,
let me, There's this book, andthen he, next thing I know, he
just sends me a screenshot ofAmazon.
(03:12):
Everybody needs friends thatjust send them books.
Um.
Yeah.
So yeah, so yeah, so I'm excitedto read this.
So I'm sure I'll have naturenews as I start reading this.
Laura (03:23):
Um.
I'm worrying about paralleluniverses.
Mm hmm.
I cannot think about that thoseexist.
It's too much.
Yeah, cause it's talking.
Like, like I did like, like Ilike watching, like when it's
fictional.
Sure.
Like, I got really into TheFlash for a hot second.
Mm hmm.
Like, the superhero guy.
Yeah.
I was constantly going into,like, parallel worlds because it
(03:44):
goes so fast.
That, fine.
But if I actually thought itexisted, and then all my
mistakes triggered some otherpath, it's too much
responsibility.
It's too much responsibility.
Katy\ (03:55):
Yeah, because it talks about latest innovations in
string theory and its mostrecent iteration, M theory and
just all kinds of stuff.
Yeah.
I, I like, I don't know, I likethinking
Laura (04:07):
about that stuff.
Yeah, I can give you thehighlights.
Like, I'll be excited for that,but, yeah.
Otherwise, I might have a panicattack.
I had to almost leave churchagain the other day because of
the sermon that was talkingabout heaven too much.
All right?
And you were like, I gotta go.
I gotta bounce.
I can't think about theafterlife too much, which is
crazy.
(04:27):
Yeah.
Like, I can't.
It's too heavy.
I was listening to, I was, I waslike,
Katy\ (04:33):
I was listening to this podcast and dang, I have to go
back there and, and find it.
But again, it was this, well,what was a sociology one?
And they were talking about genZ and how millennials so many
millennials have, and it'sagain, I mean, this is nature
news from sociology.
Um, talking about how so manymillennials have left the church
because of like just the extremesize that the church has taken
(04:55):
and that the effects of that,that has on Gen Z and that
that's why so many people arelike, especially Gen Z are
relying so heavily on astrologyand crystals and like, and it's
mostly because behavioral isthat they don't have like, you
figure when most kids went tochurch, you have that, that
community that cohesivegrouping.
(05:17):
And Gen Z didn't get that.
The generation like my son thenis and a lot of them aren't
getting that.
And so people, sociologists arestarting to say that because
this is the first timethroughout history where the
vast majority of people aren'tgoing to church or like an
organized religion.
Like they could still believe inGod, but they're not like taking
their kids to church every week.
(05:39):
Um, and so they're starting tostudy the repercussions of that.
And I say repercussions, notthat like organized religion is
a Good or bad thing, just therepercussions of not having
those like, that can, yeah, thatsocial group, that community,
that core of beliefs that guideyou.
Yeah.
So it was really, reallyinteresting.
Well, right.
Cause it
Laura (05:58):
could be like, it could be really good or really bad.
It just depends.
Because you'll choose your ownstuff, which is a dangerous,
interesting thing.
Katy\ (06:07):
Yeah.
Alrighty.
We want to go into sharks.
Laura (06:13):
Yeah, and this episode is kind of different than how we
normally do things.
We've decided we'd play a littlegame.
Play a little game.
We're going to do two truths anda lie.
Where we're going to read eachother some sharp facts and
sprinkle in some lies and see ifthe other person can guess them
correctly.
Katy\ (06:34):
Just sprinkling a little lies here and there.
Alright, do you want to gofirst?
Uh, sure.
Okay.
I'm gonna, I'm gonna mute myselfand eat some more french fries,
because I'm still hungry.
Yeah, yeah.
Laura (06:49):
Don't subject me to the delicious sounding crunch.
I'm
Katy\ (06:52):
crunching french fries.
Laura (06:55):
Okay.
So I'll just preface it by thespecies that these facts and or
lie is.
So this is the shortfin makoshark.
Um, which I, so I've heard ofall of these sharks before that
I'm doing, but I didn't reallyknow anything about them, which
I'm always excited about to do,because like, whenever we do
episodes, I'm like, Oh, cool.
Now I get to learn something.
(07:16):
So the shortfin mako shark, herewe go.
Which of these is the lie?
The shortfin mako shark is thefastest shark in the world.
The shortfin mako shark.
Are nourished, well their pupsare nourished by a placenta, or
that the short fin mako sharkcan change its body temperature
depending on the environment.
Katy\ (07:38):
Ooh.
I think the second one is true.
The placenta one.
The placenta.
Yeah, even if it's not thatshark, there is a shark that
does that.
Um, and then it's the fastest,or what was the third one?
The
Laura (07:52):
fastest, or changing
Katy\ (07:54):
body temperature.
Let's do the third one.
Is it a lie?
The body temperature?
Yeah.
But I feel like that one's true.
But yeah, let's go with thatone's a lie.
Laura (08:09):
All right.
Great guesses.
But number two, nourished byplacenta is a lie.
But you're right.
There are other sharks that dothat.
Katy\ (08:15):
Another shark does that.
Yeah.
Okay.
Because I was like, I knowthat's true for one of them.
For
Laura (08:19):
a shark.
I just don't remember whichshark.
Dude, sharks are crazy in theirreproductive Techniques, and
we're going to get into it withmy further sharks.
So a little bit about why theseare true and, and, or not true.
So the short fin mako shark isindeed the fastest shark in the
world.
They can swim 45 miles per hour,making them one of the fastest
fishes in the ocean.
(08:40):
So I looked it up, sailfish arethe fastest and then, you know,
swordfish and a couple of otherguys like that.
But then the mako shark, theycan go like 60 to 85 miles an
hour.
Some of those guys.
But the mango sharks being 45miles per hour is still really
freaking fast.
Yeah, for a shark.
That's a big shark, okay?
Because they can get anywherefrom, the average is 10 and a
(09:00):
half to 12 and a half feet.
That's a big animal.
Katy\ (09:04):
Yeah, imagine that.
Yeah, 45 miles an hour throughthe water.
Yeah, that's insane.
Through the water.
Yeah, that's terrifying.
Laura (09:12):
Terrifying.
Terrifying.
Look up a mango shark, they canlook terrifying.
And not only can they swim thatfast through the water, but
they're known for doingincredible aerial leaps out of
the water.
So, like, they can jump reallyhigh out of the water.
Probably because they're goingso fast.
Okay.
I'll do the other truth.
That they can change their bodytemperature, which is really
(09:33):
weird for a fish.
Because fish are cold blooded.
But these Mako sharks, a coupleof other shark species and tuna
fish have this weird adaptationwhere they have special blood
vessels, like, well, they have aspecial system in their body.
Yes.
Counter, countercurrentexchange.
Katy\ (09:53):
Yeah.
I can't remember if I talkedabout it, but I did read about
it on one of the, either couldyou ride that or could you fight
that, that I did on a tuna fish?
Yeah.
Maybe you
Laura (10:00):
did about it.
Cause you wanted to ride thetuna or whatever.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Katy\ (10:03):
Really bad.
Laura (10:04):
Yeah.
Really bad.
Um, well, my guy eats tuna.
So, the countercurrent exchange,I feel like we didn't get into
it, and I had to, like, kind oflook it up how it all works.
So, the heat that is produced bythe shark's metabolism in their
muscles, like, they're swimming,they're swimming, and, of
course, that's creating heat.
That heat is then, uh, Takenfrom the veins, so the, you
(10:27):
know, arteries bring blood tothings, veins take things away.
So, arteries are bringing infreezing cold water that has
come from their gills, becausethat's where they're breathing.
So that's freezing water.
That is entering their body.
They don't want freezing coldwater to hit their organs and
their muscles, because then itwould slow them down.
So instead, the vessels, or theveins that are all warmed up,
(10:52):
They're right beside thearteries, so the heat is
transferred between the two.
So, it's, it's, they're, they'reside by side, it's a side by
side system.
So they're like, you know, kindof keeping it lukewarm in there.
So they're not true, they're nottruly warm blooded.
They're technically what'scalled regional endotherms.
(11:13):
Endotherm meaning an animal thatcan create its own heat.
And it does help them to keeptheir, their body temperature
slightly warmer than thesurrounding water.
So, it depends, like, on howcold the water is by how much
they need to kind of work at it.
You know, of course, everythingyou read is in the metric
system, which is fine.
It's fine.
(11:33):
I just figure I should say so.
They can keep their bodies 5
Katy\ (11:38):
to 14.
It's fine.
It's fine.
It's fine in the metric
Laura (11:41):
system.
I it.
I have to do all the conversionswhen I read it.
They can keep their bodytemperatures 5 to 14 degrees
Celsius above water temperature,which then translates to 11 to
25 degrees Fahrenheit above thewater temperature.
So like, if the water is like,you know, 60 degrees, they could
be like 71 inside.
(12:02):
If the water is 40 degrees, theycould be 65 inside if they
needed to be.
Hmm.
This allows them to be moreefficient hunters and to migrate
much further, which helps themto take advantage of food and
reproduction.
So, like, they can go wayfurther.
Like a tuna.
Like, they're all aboutmigrating.
And then finally, the lye.
(12:22):
They are nourished by placenta.
Not true.
Though they do give live birth,the pups are not nourished by
placenta, but that doesn't meanthat what's going on there isn't
freaking cool.
So, originally, They're what'sconsidered ovoviviparous.
Let's try and say that one fast.
So that's when they have eggsinside that hatch internally.
(12:42):
So first, they have a, they'rejust in a little sack.
And they have a yolk attached tothem.
Then they hatch inside theirmoms.
And typically, like with a lotof animals, that's when the
birth happens.
You know, they don't just hangout in there.
Not for sharks, apparently.
These little sharks are justhanging out inside their moms
for 18 months.
Snacking on either theirunderdeveloped siblings, or,
(13:06):
or...
Which is so harsh.
Yeah, or she just keepsproducing unfertilized eggs.
Like, she's just cooking thembreakfast in there.
Like, they're just snatching andsnatching on eggs.
Way to go, mom.
Yeah! So, they hang out inthere, eating up, eating
everything.
And finally, once they reach twofeet long...
(13:28):
Then they come out and there are12 of them in there, 12, two
foot long sharks inside eating.
That's uncalled
Katy\ (13:35):
for, again, that's uncalled for, like.
That
Laura (13:39):
is intense.
Katy\ (13:42):
Uh,
Laura (13:42):
and then just to end it on a couple of Mako shark facts,
just to lay the groundwork forthese sweet, sweet sharks.
Like I said, 10 and a half, 12and a half feet.
Typically, they're anywhere from130 to 330 pounds.
So they're actually like prettylean.
But they have been known to getup to 1, 200 pounds.
So, there's some chunky ones outthere.
(14:03):
They're metallic blue on theirback, white on the bottom, and
they have coal black eyes, likestraight demon shark.
Um, they are found in thePacific, Atlantic, and Indian
Oceans.
They're pelagic, which meansthey live in open water,
preferably tropical andtemperate offshore water.
Highly migratory, active hunterseat mostly bony fishes,
(14:25):
including large tuna, alsosquid, also dolphins.
Generally solitary.
There's only ever been, there'sonly been three attacks on
humans since 1974, which I thinkis pretty good.
I mean, you're a giant predator.
And finally IUCN, which we'vetalked about here on the podcast
many times before.
That's the people who, you know,list the endangered species
(14:46):
internationally.
They listen as endangered.
And that is for 2 reasons.
1 is by catch, which is going tocome up.
Yep.
Sharks.
That just means when you'refishing, you accidentally catch
things.
You don't want a lot of timesit's sharks.
Can you imagine accidentallycatching something 12 and a half
feet long?
Right, it's horrible thatthere's nets that can do that.
(15:08):
But the other 1 that's kind ofunique about this shark in
particular.
Is that there's they have theproblem of overfishing.
For sport fishing, likeswordfish fishing, that's what
they're doing with these becausethey put up such an epic fight.
They leap out of the water thefastest.
So these are like trophy fish,except they're sharks.
(15:29):
And even when it's catchingrelease, the mortality rate's
pretty high.
Even after you release itbecause of the stress on the
animal or like scrambling into aboat at high speed.
So.
That's a mako shark.
Pretty cool sharks.
Yeah, that is neat.
Katy\ (15:48):
Alrighty.
My two truths and a lie.
Hit me.
Alright, I'm going to talk aboutlemon sharks first.
I just
Laura (15:58):
love anything that's called lemon shark.
It's so cute.
It just sounds so cute.
Katy\ (16:03):
Alright, here's my three statements here.
Lemon sharks can tolerate freshwater and sometimes found in
rivers and estuaries.
So fresh and salt water.
Lemon sharks are one of the fewshark species that can only,
that can blink both their eyes.
Uh, and then.
Oh, wink.
Laura (16:21):
Like they can wink.
Katy\ (16:23):
But also blink.
Like.
Okay.
It's not like an actual, it's anactual blink.
Um, lemon sharks are named aftertheir yellowish brown skin,
which looks like the color of alemon.
Laura (16:35):
Oh, jeez.
I feel like it's the first one'sthe lie.
Katy\ (16:40):
The freshwater saltwater.
That is a true
Laura (16:44):
poop.
Is it?
Is it?
Did you?
Did you do it?
Is it the color?
No, I teamed up for something.
Katy\ (16:49):
Nope.
That's why I threw that one inthere.
Winking winking.
Yeah.
It's the
Laura (16:55):
blinking winky.
I shouldn't have you meanthey're the first ones that can
blink both eyes at the sametime?
Yeah, so.
Sharks normally just do...
Katy\ (17:04):
All sharks are actually the only fish that can, like,
actually blink both their eyes.
Like, they can blink.
Truly blink.
Other fish
Laura (17:14):
can't.
What do other fish do?
They don't.
They don't have eyelids?
When
Katy\ (17:19):
have you ever seen a fish with an eyelid, dude?
I don't know.
I never thought about it.
I
Laura (17:29):
never thought about fish blinking.
Maybe they had like a, like anictitating, like this is
blinking.
This is blinking.
Katy\ (17:35):
Yes.
This is like, well, I think theystill have, I think they still
have, yeah, nictitating memory,but they actually can like, like
their skin closes.
Yes.
Well, sort of.
So mud skippers blink by pullingtheir eyeballs down into their
sockets and puffer fish dosomething similar.
So those are like the twooutliers for fish.
Sharks, on the other hand, theydo have the nictitating
(17:57):
membrane, which they use toblink, but they can still move
enough of the muscle aroundwhere other fish are just like
existing.
They don't have anything.
I'm just
Laura (18:06):
perpetually surprised.
So wait, how is it a lie thatthey're not the only ones that
can do it?
Correct.
Katy\ (18:10):
Yeah.
Okay.
Because all sharks, all sharksdo it.
Yeah.
All sharks do it.
Oh, gotcha.
Laura (18:15):
Gotcha.
Katy\ (18:16):
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Laura (18:20):
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Katy\ (18:30):
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
Laura (18:33):
Gotcha.
For sure, because I'd be like,they are way more sentient than
we are.
Right, right.
Like if a shark winks at you, itknows something.
It knows.
Okay.
It knows
Katy\ (18:44):
something's up.
Um, well, this group of sharks,they belong to the family
Carcharhenidae.
I don't, I really don't know whyI always decide that I need to
say it.
It does.
I know.
I know you do.
And nobody cares, but I alwaysfeel like I need to say it.
(19:06):
Uh, yeah, these sharks inhibittropical and subtropical waters
along the coast of the Americasfrom the United States down to
Brazil, lemon sharks are namedfor their pale yellowish brown
color.
And that's why I threw that onein there.
Cause I was like, man, what ifthey were named after something
else?
You never know.
Um, but it does resemble theskin of a lemon.
for the most part.
(19:27):
They have a streamlined bodywith a short blunt snout and
reach an average length of abouteight to ten feet.
So, I mean, it's bigger than ahuman, but not huge, not great
white or anything like that.
Yeah.
Lemon sharks are known for theirremarkable ability to adapt and
thrive in various habitats.
They can be found in bothshallow coastal waters and
(19:49):
deeper offshore areas.
These sharks are highly sociableand often gather in large groups
forming schools that consist ofdozens of individuals, which
would be kind of neat.
Yeah, it would be kind of cool.
Their diet primarily consistsof, like many other sharks, bony
fish, crustaceans, and othersmaller marine mammals.
Lemon sharks have a uniquehunting strategy utilizing,
(20:10):
like, well, I mean, unique asfar as sharks go.
Um, well, how they have theelectro receptor organs called
ampullate.
Ampu Amp, sweet Lord
Laura (20:23):
Pul Day.
Katy\ (20:23):
Yeah.
Of of Lorenzo to detect theelectrical fields produced by
potential prey.
Isn't that the same thing?
It is the same thing that crocsand alligators have.
Yeah.
Okay.
I can't remember if it wascalled the same thing.
Laura (20:35):
And I think, I feel like it was you who were talking
about the platypus that onetime.
Yeah.
Right.
Don't they have them on there?
Katy\ (20:40):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I don't know if it's called,technically, if it's called the
same thing.
Yeah, but it's the same.
Yeah.
Reproduction and lemon sharks.
Lorenzini.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Lorenzini.
So these sharks, Laura talkedabout.
Uh, the reproduction patterns ofher shark.
These ones are viv vivivparous,meaning that the embryo is
(21:01):
developed inside the mother'sbody.
Mating usually occurs duringwarmer months, and after a
gestation period of just 10 12months.
The female gives birth to liveyoung.
Litters 4 17 pups, depending onthe size and age of the female.
The newborn lemon sharks areabout 24 to 28 inches long and
(21:22):
are immediately independent,fending for themselves
immediately.
Straight out of the
Laura (21:27):
womb.
They're just born so freakingbig, man.
No, right?
Like, that's still a two footbaby?
Yeah,
Katy\ (21:32):
it's still a two foot baby! It
Laura (21:35):
is, it's a huge...
I just can't imagine having thatmany...
It's like birthing a toddler.
Katy\ (21:40):
Yeah, it's birthing a toddler, essentially.
Yeah!
Laura (21:44):
Yeah, but
Katy\ (21:45):
12 of them.
12 of them all at once.
Well, this one can range from 4to 17.
Yeah.
So anyway, in a nutshell, that'sa, that's a lemon shark.
And they are, let me look here.
Yeah, they're consideredvulnerable by IUCN.
I mean, most sharks are eithervulnerable or getting close,
(22:06):
close enough if they're notendangered or anything.
So these ones are vulnerable aswell.
So that's lemon sharks.
Laura (22:12):
Oh, little lemming lemonlings, that's what I'd call
their babies.
That's what they should becalled.
Okay, I'm gonna do the frilledshark.
Ooh, that's a good one.
Which is just, like, unique.
Um, and not a lot's known aboutit.
But, well, from what is known,here are my things.
It's
Katy\ (22:29):
kind of a creepy looking shark.
Laura (22:32):
Yeah, and I mean, like there depends on the picture you
look up to, like some of thepictures look weirder than
others.
It's definitely
Katy\ (22:40):
for me, a frail, A frail, yeah.
A frailed shark looks more likean eel than Yes.
Like if you're wanna mentallypicture something, think of a,
an eellike thing rather than ashark.
Shark.
Laura (22:52):
Like a typical shark.
They're definitely described ashaving eel like bodies.
That's what it says in thedescription.
Um, okay.
So, frilled sharks have rows ofthree pointed teeth.
Sharks, frilled sharks have beenaround for 80 million years.
And frilled sharks get theirname from the appearance of
(23:13):
their pectoral fins.
Katy\ (23:16):
Okay, I know they have weird teeth, so that one's gotta
be true.
I'm going to say because it doeslook like an eel, that the
second one is true.
So the last
Laura (23:27):
one?
The 80
Katy\ (23:28):
million years.
No, no, no, that one is true,the 80 million years is true,
the pectoral fins is the falseone?
Correct.
But what, where do they get thefrilled from then?
Laura (23:42):
Their gills.
Katy\ (23:43):
Because the only reason why I think that it, oh, okay,
okay.
I was gonna say, because theonly reason why I would think it
would, the only reason why Isaid I definitely know it's old
is because it looks soprehistoric, like it's ugly
prehistoric.
Laura (23:55):
It's, yeah, it's basically considered like a
primitive shark.
Yeah, it's ugly.
Um, so the truth, they do haverows of three pointed teeth.
The teeth have three long cuspswith a tiny cusplet at the base
of each V.
Formed by the bigger ones.
Basically, like, look up apicture.
They have weird teeth.
(24:16):
Yeah, they have weird teeth.
They have like trident shapedteeth.
There are 300 of them in 25rows.
So they have a lot of teeth.
Which are perfect for holding onto slippery squid.
Which is a lot of what they'reeating.
And allows them to eat thingsmore than half their body
weight.
Katy\ (24:35):
Oh wow.
Laura (24:37):
So they are live there and the other one about them
being 80 million years old, yes,that's true.
They are considered livingfossils.
If you don't know what that is,shout out to our previous
episode about living fossilsabout living fossils, basically,
yeah, basically there's fossilevidence that points to this
species having been around sincethe Cretaceous period, 80
million years ago, with verylittle change since then.
(25:00):
So like, they're just, yeah, youcan tell.
Yeah, they're just primitivelooking the lie.
Like I said, it's not from the,the name comes from the
appearance of their gills, nottheir pectoral fins.
They have 6 skills total, whichmost trucks only have 5, so they
have drawn the 1st skill at thefront actually goes all the way
(25:20):
under their chin, like a, like alittle and there's a whole bunch
of extra skin that gives it afrilled appearance.
But just a couple quick thingsabout them.
They're actually a pretty, Imean, small shark, alright?
They're still six and a halffeet long, but that's pretty
small for a shark.
They're chocolate brown colored,which is a fun color to be.
(25:41):
Uh, they have eel like bodies.
Chocolate brown.
Atlantic, Pacific, and IndianOceans is where you can find
them.
And they're benthic, which meansdeep water.
They're not like an open water.
They're like deep down on thecontinental shelves or the near
shore areas of large islands.
They can be found anywhere from320 feet.
(26:02):
Okay, not that deep.
All the way down to 4, 265 feet.
So they are like a deep, deepwater.
Katy\ (26:12):
Yeah,
Laura (26:12):
I'll say.
There's, it seems like there'sdebate whether they're
viviparous, live birth, orovoviviparous, like the last
shark, the mako shark.
They've never been kept incaptivity, like successfully.
Who would want to?
Um, solitary.
So ugly.
I don't know.
Um, they're one of the slowestsharks.
(26:33):
They're very slow moving, whichmakes sense when you're going to
live in such cold, deep water.
They eat deep water fish, squid,and dead stuff.
And they're not considereddangerous.
They've never been like, they'venever attacked a person that
says they just have shreddedsome hands that tried to pick
them up.
But like, it's not like that.
They're going to attack peopleagain.
Why would you want to try
Katy\ (26:52):
to pick that thing up?
Laura (26:53):
Like.
Yeah.
Well, right.
It looks like an alien.
Like, yeah, don't pick upsomething from the deep ocean.
They look terrifying.
Yeah, they are listed as aspecies of least concern by the
I U C N.
They're occasionally called asbycatch, but like, we honestly
don't know almost anything aboutthe shark.
That's what I was gonna
Katy\ (27:09):
say.
I, I feel like since all othersharks, there's none.
Maybe there's lots like, yeah.
Yeah.
Laura (27:18):
And that's it for frog sharks.
Katy\ (27:21):
Oh goodness.
Alright, are you ready for mysecond one?
I'm talking about bull sharks.
Laura (27:28):
Yes, I remember as a kid being, like, a couple of sharks
I thought were really cool as akid.
This was one of them.
But that's only because Idefinitely know that these ones
are cool.
can be an issue.
Like, you're like, Oh, I'm nevergonna have to worry about sharks
in Pennsylvania, except
Katy\ (27:48):
except you think you're safe.
No, you're not.
All right.
So here's the three.
Uh, Bull sharks are the mostaggressive shark species and are
responsible for the most sharkattacks on humans.
Bull sharks can swim in bothsaltwater and freshwater and
have been found in rivershundreds of miles inland.
(28:09):
Bull sharks are called bullbecause of their powerful bite,
which is said to be as strong asa bull's.
Laura (28:17):
Oh jeez, these are hard.
Because some of them, like, Ifeel like could be not true
based on such a smalltechnicality.
But I am going to go with...
I'm gonna jump.
Uh, I'm gonna go with...
The first one.
Katy\ (28:35):
Lie.
Most aggressive?
No, wait, wait, no, wait.
First, first one was most, yeah.
First one was most aggressive.
Compared to other sharks, thesecond one was they can swim in
both salt and fresh, and thenthe last one was that they're
called bulls because of theirpowerful bite.
Laura (28:53):
Hmm.
Actually, maybe I changed mymind.
Maybe it's a third one.
Do I think that they, okay, Idefinitely think that they can
go, I know that they can go infresh and salt.
Hundreds of miles, I they can goon both, I assume they encounter
a lot of people.
So I could see that they couldbe the most aggressive, but I'm
(29:15):
going to go.
So, okay, I'm going with thirdone.
Third one.
Third one's a lie.
Yep.
Third one.
Katy\ (29:19):
Um, reason through it, reason through it.
They're called bull sharksbecause of their stocky muscular
build.
It doesn't really have anythingto do with like the powerful
bite or anything.
It's just because they're,they're stocky.
Uh, so let's see here.
Bull sharks are definitely oneof the ones that have earned a
reputation.
(29:40):
And I don't want to sayrightfully so, but like Laura
said, because of they can go sofar inland.
And they do cross paths withhumans, uh, yeah, they've,
they've done a little bit ofdamage.
Laura (29:53):
So, regularly.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It'd be like if we lived, youknow, I mean, it's literally
like living with tigers.
Like.
Yes.
I'm sure tigers don't usuallykill people, but if you're,
like, poking them.
Yeah,
Katy\ (30:03):
it's going to, yeah.
Alright, so they inhabit bothsalt and fresh water
environments, making them uniqueamong sharks.
And I, I mean, like, okay, sothe other ones, yeah, they, they
inhabit both fresh and salt, butlike, this one can, this isn't
like brackish water, this islike, fresh, like, straight up
fresh water.
So, they're found on coastalwaters all around the world,
(30:25):
which is another big thing.
I mean, if you're found, like,pretty much everywhere.
It's just, and you can go bothsalt and fresh water, you know,
they just keeps upping theirpotential to come into contact
with humans daily.
So they can venture far
Laura (30:41):
appreciate, like, I do think it's cool.
Sorry.
I do.
Fact that they can like they're,they're generalists.
Yes.
I do love a good generalist, asI've said before,
Katy\ (30:52):
right?
I really need to put that on ahat for you.
Uh, so they can venture far uprivers into estuaries, even
tolerating very low salinitylevels like none.
They are named for their stockybuild.
Like I said, the broad snout andthe tendency to display
aggressive behavior whenprovoked like a bull.
(31:12):
Uh, bull sharks areopportunistic feeders with a
diverse diet.
They are known to consume a widevariety of prey, including fish,
turtles, dolphins, birds, andother sharks.
They are cannibalistic, which iswhy scientists believe they are
more aggressive than othersharks.
While all shark species havedemonstrated cannibalism, bull
(31:33):
sharks seem to kind of do itmore so than others.
Alright so their diet and theirflexibility allows them to
thrive obviously in a variety ofhabitats and Again, which allows
them to go pretty far inland.
So not only can they go in farinland and still breathe, but
they can go far inland and findsomething to eat.
So, uh, because of thatadaptability, sharks, inland
(31:58):
sharks, uh, reproduction andbull sharks follows a viviparous
pattern, similar to lemonsharks.
The females give birth to liveyoung after gestation period of
again, 10 to 12 months.
Interestingly enough, though,bull sharks have a unique
reproductive strategy calledutero vi viperity, which this
means that the embryos initiallydevelop inside the mother's
(32:20):
body, but after a certain stage,they are nourished through
placental connection.
This allows the bull shark pupsto grow more efficiently and
ensures their survival in thecompetitive marine environment
as soon as they, as soon as theypop out.
Again, they have a little bit ofa boost of energy and, um,
nourishment.
Yep.
So they do face a lot ofdifferent threats, though,
(32:42):
because, yes, they, you know,come into contact with humans a
lot, but, so that is a, a, athreat, but also habitat
destruction, overfishing, likeLaura said, accidental
entanglement.
You know, by catch.
And just because they do inhibitand habitate the freshwater
environments, it puts them intoclose proximity of just every
(33:04):
human activity, tourism,everything.
And so a lot of times they justthey'll bite and they'll attack
just because they're something'sprovoking it.
And even though the persondoesn't know they're provoking
it, it sees it as a threat.
And so it's gonna, it's gonnabite.
So, but that's, that's a bullshark.
Again, a cool, a very, very coolspecies, but at the same time,
(33:26):
because it's just overlappingwith humans so much and
unfortunately just gets a badrap.
I
Laura (33:32):
definitely remember reading it on like a Nat Geo.
No, not Nat Geo, Reader'sDigest.
I think it was one of thosemagazines where they have like
wildlife stories every once in awhile.
Like, reading about a bull sharkcoming down the Potomac, I was
like, oh my gosh, like, I could,that'd be terrifying.
Okay, so my last shark is thegreat hammerhead shark.
Um, I feel like, you know, a lotof people buy hammerheads, but
(33:56):
there are many, there areseveral species of them, and
this is the largest, and I waslike, let's go big or go home.
So the great hammerhead.
So here are my statements.
Okay.
Hammerhead sharks are diurnalhunters, meaning they feed
during the daytime.
Great hammerhead sharks arelisted as critically endangered.
(34:19):
Great hammerhead sharks have abelly button.
Katy\ (34:28):
Sorry.
Um.
As much as I want the bellybutton one to be true, I, wait,
wait, hang on, hang on, hang on.
Let me think about this.
Because I did say with bullsharks, that utero viviparity,
he had through personalconnection, which I guess would
(34:51):
technically be belly button.
What was the second one?
They are
Laura (34:56):
listed as critically
Katy\ (34:57):
endangered.
And the first one?
Laura (35:00):
They are diurnal.
hunters.
Katy\ (35:04):
Let's go with their diurnal because it's the water.
I don't think it matters, doesit?
Laura (35:09):
Correct.
That is the lie.
All right, the two truths.
They do have a belly buttonbecause just like the bull
shark, they are biviparous.
So technically, is it the exactsame thing as a belly button?
No, but there is a little scaron their bellies permanently.
Listen, we're going to
Katy\ (35:24):
call it a belly button.
Laura (35:27):
I mean, come on.
It looks like a belly button.
It functions like a bellybutton.
Yes.
It is a belly button.
It is a belly button.
Um, it is not technically aplacenta, but it is basically a
placenta.
So, yes, they are.
Katy\ (35:40):
Which is not a sentence I ever wanted to say.
Connected
Laura (35:43):
by a yolk.
Yeah, connected by a placenta.
That sounds like a good, albumname.
Um, it's a metal band.
Okay, so the first they'renourished, the first they're
nourished by a yolk sac.
And then shortly after that,then they get that placental
connection.
And crazy, these guys have agestation of 11 months.
(36:04):
So a really long time and theycan give birth to 20 to 40.
Oh,
Katy\ (36:09):
geez.
That's a lot.
Laura (36:11):
Yeah.
So they got up to 40 babies inthere that grew about two feet
long and are born like ready togo.
Truth.
They are critically endangered.
Due to mostly overfishingbecause they are one of the
preferred species for shark finsoup.
So they are just killed willynilly for their fins.
They're also used for leather.
(36:34):
Their, like, their skin is usedfor leather, their meat, their
jaws, their cartilage, and theiroil.
So in general, their wholebodies are used.
And of course their bycatch aswell.
The lie was that they're diurnalhunters.
That is not true.
They feed at dusk.
So, like a lot of sharks don'tfeed during the daytime.
They feed as it gets closer todarkness, so.
And then real quick about thegreat hammerhead shark.
(36:55):
What makes them special?
Dude, these sharks are freakingmassive.
Okay, the great hammerhead is 10to 20 feet long.
Jeez.
And it's
Katy\ (37:06):
700,
Laura (37:07):
770 to 1100 pounds.
Jeez.
That is a freakin big shark.
Yeah.
Of course the females arelarger, as is almost always with
sharks.
They have the classic hammerheadshape, which is also known as a
cephalofoil.
Hmm.
Why do they have this shapedhead?
Scientists still aren't totallysure.
But they think that it helps topinpoint prey with stereoscopic
(37:29):
sense of smell, better vision,greater area for sense organs,
more lift and maneuverabilitywhen swimming, and it helps them
to pin down one of theirpreferred foods, rays.
So like, they find a ray in thesand and then, pfft, use their
eyeballs to like, finish theground as they munch on it.
(37:49):
Um, How much you
Katy\ (37:51):
guys could've seen Laura's reenactment?
Pfft.
Cause you squinted your eye, andyou
Laura (37:57):
were like, pfft.
Ha ha ha ha ha.
Ha ha ha.
I get the character.
We all say.
Um, they can be gray, tan,green, or white.
Or brown on their back and whiteon the bottom.
Found in the Pacific, Atlantic,and Indian oceans.
They're both pelagic, meaningopen water, and coastal.
And when they're coastal, theylike to hang out in reefs,
(38:18):
lagoons, bays, inland seas.
And they really like it on thewarmer side.
Like, they like tropical andwarm temperate waters.
And typically they hang outwhere it's relatively Can't
blame them.
Oh, yeah, no.
I mean, they, they know whatthey like and they like our
typically they're solitary.
Their prey of choice are raised,but eat a ton of other stuff
too.
And unfortunately they doregularly come into contact with
(38:41):
humans because of how shallowthe water that they are in and
that it's like, you know,tropical and warm and also
perfect for diving.
And so because they are incontact with humans, then
there's conflict.
So, they actually haven'tattacked that many people, but
they do show, like, aggressivebehavior, um, like, they charge
(39:02):
people, essentially, kind oflike a bull but in almost 500
years of records, so since the1500s, there's only ever been 37
recorded attacks, none of whichhave been
Katy\ (39:13):
fatal.
Okay.
That's good, at least.
So,
Laura (39:16):
I mean, for a 20 foot long shot.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Like...
They're really just all, allbark and no bite.
And that's the great hammerhead.
Katy\ (39:26):
Okay, okay.
What,
Laura (39:28):
what was your first shark?
Katy\ (39:30):
Mako.
Okay, Mako.
I was like, wait a minute.
Okay, so my last one is thethresher shark.
Ooh.
Go, yeah, you might, it, yeah.
See if that helps.
All right, Thresher sharks areone of the only shark species
that cannot swim backwards.
Two, Thresher sharks tails makeup over half their body length.
(39:54):
And three, Thresher sharks usetheir long, whip like tails to
stun and catch their prey.
Laura (40:00):
So, I recently went to the Baltimore Aquarium Thresher
shark for probably the firsttime.
Yeah.
And I remember looking at it andbeing like, holy crap, that's a
tail.
So, I think...
That it is, uh, for over halfthe length, the tail is true.
I think that stunning their preywith it, probably true.
(40:22):
I'm going to say the lie.
I'm going to say the lie is thebackwards.
Katy\ (40:27):
Yes.
So that is correct.
So there, but, but I say that iscorrect, but there's still a lot
of controversy over it because.
There's a lot of controversyover what constitutes a swim and
what constitutes is justthrusting backwards, apparently.
And, and again, this is like oneof those weird things that
scientists debate over.
Yeah, like just like they happento like move enough to go
(40:50):
backwards.
Like what is actually swimmingbackwards and what is like they
just happen to fly backwards.
So a little bit of background ofthe thresher shark.
They're a group of shark speciesbelonging to the Allopidae
family, known for their distinctelongated upper caudal fish
lobes or tails.
(41:11):
And so there are some other onesthat have longer tails, but not
ones like, not as long as thisone.
But these ones can be as long asthe rest of their body.
They are named after theimpressive.
After the impressive tale, threespecies of thresher sharks are
commonly recognized.
The common thresher, the big eyethresher, and the pelagic
(41:31):
thresher.
Thresher sharks are found inboth tropical and temperate
ocean oceanic waters and aroundthe world.
Thresher sharks have a uniquehunting technique that sets them
apart from other shark species.
They use their long, whip liketails to stun or herd schools of
fish, which is, I think, ishilarious that they used to
school fish, making it easier tocapture their prey by striking
(41:55):
their tails in a swift motion.
Right?
Which, I really, if there was aTexas shark out there, Thresher
sharks, here we go.
It can be like, it can
Laura (42:06):
be like with that octopus, you know, what's the,
what's the, what's the spurs ofthe squid?
What's the one that like pullsoff the tentacle?
Katy\ (42:13):
Oh gosh, I forget which one that is.
Yeah, that pulls off thetentacle and uses it.
Yeah, we remember we had Joshdraw a picture.
Yeah, we did.
Yeah, I forget which one it is.
Yeah.
Well, these guys do that, andthey strike their tails in a
swift motion, they create astunning, like a shock wave,
more so, so it's more of the,kind of like a, uh, uh, mantis
shrimp.
(42:33):
How it's more like the pressurewave and everything, rather than
like the actual hit of it.
Whoa.
Yep.
So that shockwave immobilizes orstuns our target, allowing them
to swiftly capture their prey.
This hunting behavior is oftenobserved during the thrush
shark's impressive aerial, likeaerial displays, where they
breach out of the water whilehunting or during courtship
(42:54):
rituals.
Reproduction in thresher sharkis ovoviviparous, meaning that
the embryos develop inside eggswithin the mother's body.
Once the eggs hatch, the femalegives birth to a live young.
The number of pups she can haveis only two to six.
And those ones can also be twoto three feet long, which is aka
(43:15):
way too freaking long.
Thresher sharks, like many othershark species, face various
threats.
Same thing as everything else,overfishing And because of their
slow reproductive rate, theyonly give birth every two to
three years.
This makes thresher sharksparticularly vulnerable to
population declines.
Yeah, yeah.
So that's the thresher shark.
Laura (43:34):
Cool.
Katy\ (43:36):
Yeah, that was a good, I liked, I, again, I like, I know
enough about sharks that I likethem, but I don't know a ton
about sharks.
Laura (43:45):
Yeah, I was just gonna say, I, uh, I always like
learning in the episodes that wedo, and it's not just like.
Like this one was really, Ithink all new stuff for me.
Katy\ (43:57):
Yeah.
Get really getting into thenitty gritty of everything.
Yeah, for sure.
Alrighty guys.
Well, go ahead and reach out tous on Twitter or visit our
website at the nature podcast.
com.
And we have all of our fun merchup there.
We got to add some more stuff upthere, but you can get the booby
mug there.
At least I just want as manypeople as possible to get the
(44:18):
movie
Laura (44:18):
mug.
And we're trying guys.
We're just.
Busy is so hard right now.
Yeah.
Having just moved.
Katy\ (44:26):
But yeah, go to the nature podcast and you can get
the merch, check that out.
And then visit us on a Patreonat for the love of nature and
support us there so we can keepbringing you great content every
Laura (44:36):
week.
This is the last episode of thisseason, and we hope that you
guys will bear with us as wetake a very much needed break,
but we promise we will be backin a month with our brand new
season and lots of great newcontent.
In the meantime, check out ourlittle spinoff series Beastly
Ballers.
Which is going to be airing onthe weekends, and it's going to
(44:58):
be like a fun little analyticsof football, who's going to win
college and NFL games, based notonly on the stats, but based on
their mascots going head tohead.
We'll talk to you all again nextmonth.
Bye!
Katy\ (45:13):
Bye.
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