♬∞ Punch♏︎Tsubasa ☉☯

Got facts about pyjama sharks? They are very cute :)

Pyjama shark or striped catshark (Poroderma africanum).

You're 100% right, they're absolutely adorable. These little guys only grow to be approximately 1.1 m (3.6 ft) long. These sharks are primarily nocturnal and hunt small fish, crustaceans, and shark egg cases. They capture prey the same way that crocodiles do! They'll bite onto their prey and roll to disorient and kill it.

These sharks are endemic to the waters of the South Africa coast (aka, that's the only place they're found in the wild). The biggest threat to their population is being caught as bycatch. The good news is that their populations are believed to be increasing and their conservation status is that of least concern!

Got any cool info on cow sharks?

YES

There are five species of cowshark: Broadnose sevengill, Bluntnose sixgill, Sharpnose sevengill, Bigeyed sixgill, and the Atlantic sixgill.

My favorite fact about these adorable little sharks is that they have more fins than most sharks do (which is why its mentioned in their name). Most sharks have five gill slits! They also don't have the notably large dorsal fin synonymous with sharks.

These sharks have even been observed to hunt in packs for larger prey like seals and other sharks! They're commonly found in shallow, warm waters.

Any fun facts about basking sharks? (Really big sea puppies)

Cetorhinus maximus or Basking Shark

These are the second largest shark and fish in the world (after the whale shark), they can grow to be 12 m (40 ft) long!

Also like whale sharks, they're ram filter feeders. This means that to catch prey, they simply open their mouths, swim forward, and catch whatever happens to get in their way! This is why they (and other ram filter feeders) tend to have such large mouths. The basking sharks mouth can be up to 1 m (3ft wide).

While sharks are mostly thought to be solitary creatures, a lot of species do school and the basking shark is one of them! They're usually divided by sex (except during periods of mating), and schools of over 100 females have been spotted!

And probably the coolest fact about them- THEY CAN JUMP OUT OF THE WATER. Despite weighing around 5,000 kg (approx. 11,000 lbs) they can breach 1.2 m (4 ft) into the air! It's believed they do this as a method to remove parasites.

I heard that sharks and rays are super closely related. Are skates an approximate bridging “group” between them? Or are they outside of both groups

They are all really closely related- there in all the same class known as Chondrichthyes, or cartilaginous fish. Sharks evolved first, approximately 350 million years ago during the Carboniferous period. Skates and ray came around at approximately the same time as each other 150 million years ago during the Jurassic period.

So skates aren't really a "bridging group", they're actually most closely related to rays!

Do you know any cookie cutter shark facts or lantern shark facts

Etmopterus perryi or Dwarf Lantern Sharks

Dwarf Lantern Sharks are so cute! They grow to be a maximum of 20 cm (7.9 in) and live in the Bathypelagic zone at depths of 1,000 - 3,000 m (3,300 – 9,800 ft). This zone is also known as the midnight zone because there is no light. This is why this shark has really large eyes comparative to its body size! This shark, like some other deep-sea sharks, can glow! They have organs known as photophores on its underside, used as camouflage and to attract prey.

These sharks are rarely seen, so there's still a lot we don't know about them!

Thanks for the ask; a post about cookie cutter sharks will be up soon, and I'll link it here!