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Tiger Shark
Galeocerdo cuvier (Péron & Lesueur, 1822)

Above and below: A Tiger Shark at a depth of 9 m (water depth 22 m), Alliwal Shoals, Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa, December 2007. Photo © R. Harcourt. View larger image.

Photo © R. Harcourt. View larger image.

A 70 cm long juvenile Tiger Shark caught off Nelson Bay, New South Wales, February 1998 (AMS I. 41081-001). View larger image.

Teeth of a 4 m long (395 kg) Tiger Shark caught by B. Bohm in February-March, 1981. Note the cockscomb shape of the teeth. Photo: Simon De Marchi. View larger image.

Scales from a 2.9 m long Tiger Shark caught off Broken Bay, New South Wales, March 1998 (AMS I. 40534-002). View larger image.

The Tiger Shark can be recognised by its blunt head, serrated cocks-comb-shaped teeth and its colouration. Small juveniles are grey with dark reticulations, which change to vertical bars in fish up to 3 m in length. The bars may be faint or lacking in individuals longer than 3 m.

The Tiger Shark grows to at least 6 m in length.

It is a scavenger that will eat a wide range of prey and even indigestible objects.

Its large size, scavenging nature and shallow-water feeding result in it being dangerous to people.

The Tiger Shark occurs worldwide in tropical and some subtropical waters. Although sometimes seen well offshore, it is not an oceanic species.

In Australia the Tiger Shark is recorded from south-western Western Australia around the tropical north and south to the southern coast of New South Wales coast (see top images).

View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.

Related links

• View images of a tiger shark at Lord Howe Island.
• View the family Carcharhinidae list
• View the Sharks list

Further reading

1. Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 292.
2. Allen, G.R. & R. Swainston. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 201.
3. Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
4. Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
5. Last, P.R. & J.D. Stevens. 1994 Sharks and Rays of Australia. CSIRO. Pp. 513.
6. Paxton, J.R. 2003. Shark nets in the spotlight. Nature Australia. Spring. 27 (10): 84. (view pdf, 86k. Reproduced with permission from Nature Australia magazine. To see the latest Nature Australia go to www.natureaustralia.net)
7. Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. Pp. 557.
8. Springer, V.G. & J.P. Gold. 1989. Sharks in Question: The Smithsonian Answer Book. Smithsonian Institution. Pp. 187.
9. View images of Tiger Sharks underwater at Klaus Jost - wildlife and nature underwater.