Shark Myths Busted

Sharks are vital to maintaining the marine ecosystem. Yet, many people are afraid of them and hold a lot of misconceptions about the animal. For instance, many people believe that sharks deliberately hunt humans - but that's not completely true. Most species of sharks eat fish and invertebrates, such as squids. If a shark kills a human, it's most likely because they mistook the human for another marine animal.

Sharks kill about 6 humans each year. Humans, however, kill about 100 million sharks per year and use many of those sharks to make shark fin soup. Shark fin soup is said to be tasty and have a lot of nutritional value. Yet, that's actually another myth. Shark fins don't have much of a flavor and they have no nutritional value.

Another myth is that all sharks have a lot of sharp pointed teeth. There are over 500 species of sharks, and their teeth vary. For instance, the horn shark has molar-like teeth, which is uses to crush its hard-shelled prey.

Source: world wildlife.org, Peekaboo Kids