Tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Elasmobranchii · Order: Carcharhiniformes · Family: Galeocerdonidae · Genus: Galeocerdo.

Accepted name: Galeocerdo cuvier · Authority: (Péron & Lesueur, 1822) · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 105799.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Carcharias fasciatus Bleeker, 1852; Carcharias hemprichii Klunzinger, 1871; Galeocerda cuvier (Péron & Lesueur, 1822); Galeocerdo arcticus (Faber, 1829); Galeocerdo cuvieri (Péron & Lesueur, 1822); Galeocerdo fasciatus van Kampen, 1907; Galeocerdo obtusus Klunzinger, 1871; Galeocerdo rayneri Macdonald & Barron, 1868; Galeocerdo tigrinis Müller & Henle, 1839; Galeocerdo tigrinus Müller & Henle, 1839; Galeus cepedianus Agassiz, 1838; Galeus maculatus Ranzani, 1839; Squalus arcticus Faber, 1829; Squalus cuvier Péron & Lesueur, 1822.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=105799 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

Measured values published by FishBase for Galeocerdo cuvier. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Maximum length: 750 cm · Common length: 500 cm · Depth range: 0–800 m · Habitat zone: benthopelagic · Body shape: fusiform / normal · Vulnerability index: 63.8 of 100 · Fishery importance: commercial · Aquarium trade: never/rarely.

FishBase notes: Usually found near surface to depths of 140 m (Ref. 26938); in Tahiti from 0-350 m (Ref. 89972). Occurs on or adjacent to continental and insular shelves, frequenting river estuaries, off wharves and jetties in harbors, and in coral atolls and lagoons (Ref. 244). Bottom-associated, sometimes pelagic (Ref. 58302). Also off oceanic islands far from other islands and continental land masses (Ref. 244).

Feeding

Makes excursions in the open ocean, but is not a truly oceanic species (Ref. 244). Nocturnal feeder on other sharks, rays, bony fishes, marine mammals, tortoises, seabirds, sea snakes, squids, gastropods, crustaceans, detritus (Ref. 9997), also including toxic or armored fish species such as Lactoria cornuta or Diodon hystrix , porpoises, whales, sea turtles, cephalopods, domestic animals and humans (Ref. 37816). It also feeds on carrion and garbage, including cans, pieces of metal and burlap bags (Ref. 26938).

Second only to Carcharodon carcharias in recorded attacks on humans with at least 27 documented attacks sourced to it . One specimen, reportedly taken off Indo-China, weighed 3,110 kg and measured 740 cm (Ref. 9987). May be kept in an aquaria, but does not last for more than a few months (Ref. 244). Ovoviviparous (Ref. 50449).

Up to 80 young of 51 to 104 cm are born per litter (Ref. 1602). Valued for its meat, fins, hide and liver oil (Ref. 9997) and also for its jaws and cartilage (Ref. 58048).

Often used for fishmeal (Ref. 9997). Utilized fresh, dried-salted, smoked and frozen (Ref. 9987). Species from the Persian Gulf and Oman Sea has a max size of 750 cm TL (Ref. 47613).

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 886) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Galeocerdo-cuvier.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

43,160 georeferenced occurrence records for Galeocerdo cuvier are published through GBIF from 101 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 148 distinct locations from a sample of 3,000 records, omitting 43 inland records that carry an institution's coordinates rather than a collection site; it shows where the species has been observed and reported, not a modelled range.

Most records by country or area: Australia (36,316); United States of America (2,743); South Africa (945); Mozambique (687); Puerto Rico (449).

The full country table, WoRMS marine regions and the sampling notes are on this species' Distribution page.

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 2418234) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=2418234&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=105799 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Galeocerdo cuvier (Péron & Lesueur, 1822) as Near Threatened (code NT). No trend, population estimate or threat analysis is given here, because none is available from this source without the Red List API; follow the source link for the full assessment, including its date.

Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (taxon 39378) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/39378/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 2418234) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/2418234/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-25.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

The tiger shark is a solitary, mostly nocturnal hunter. It is notable for having the widest food spectrum of all sharks, with a range of prey that includes crustaceans, fish, seals, birds, squid, octopuses, sea turtles, sea snakes, dolphins, and even smaller sharks.

It also has a reputation as a "garbage eater", consuming a variety of inedible, man-made objects that linger in its stomach. Tiger sharks have only one recorded natural predator, the orca. It is considered a near-threatened species because of finning and fishing by humans.

Relationship with humans

The tiger shark is second only to the great white in recorded fatal attacks on humans, but these events are still exceedingly rare.

Taxonomy

The shark was first described by Peron and Lesueur in 1822, and was given the name Squalus cuvier. Müller and Henle in 1837 renamed it Galeocerdo tigrinus.

The genus, Galeocerdo, is derived from the Greek galeos, which means shark, and kerdo, the word for fox. The species name honors naturalist Georges Cuvier. It is often colloquially called the man-eater shark.

The tiger shark is a member of the order Carcharhiniformes, the most species-rich order of sharks, with more than 270 species also including the small catsharks and hammerhead sharks. Members of this order are characterized by the presence of a nictitating membrane over the eyes, two dorsal fins, an anal fin, and five gill slits.

It is the largest member of the order, commonly referred to as ground sharks. It is the only extant member of Galeocerdo, the only member of the family Galeocerdonidae. The oldest remains of Galeocerdo extend back to the Eocene epoch, while the oldest fossils of the modern tiger shark Galeocerdo cuvier date to the Middle Miocene, around 13.8 million years ago.

Description

The tiger shark commonly attains an adult length of 3.5 and weighs between 300 and 900 kg. The International Game Fish Association's all-tackle record is 810 kg. It is sexually dimorphic, with females being the larger sex. Mature females are often over 3.7 m while mature males rarely get that large.

Exceptionally large females reportedly can measure over 5 m, and the largest males 4 m. Weights of particularly large female tiger sharks can exceed 1300 kg.

One pregnant female caught off Australia reportedly measured 5.5 m long and weighed 1524 kg. Even larger unconfirmed catches have been claimed. Some papers have accepted a record of an exceptional 7.4 m, 3110 kg tiger shark, but since this is far larger than any scientifically observed specimen, verification would be needed.

A 2019 study suggested that Pliocene tiger sharks could have reached 8 m in maximum length. There is variation in the speed of growth rates of juvenile tiger sharks depending on the region they inhabit, with some growing close to twice as fast as others.

Among the largest extant sharks, the tiger shark ranks in average size only behind the whale shark (Rhincodon typus), the basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus), and the great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias). This makes it the second-largest predatory shark, after the great white. Some other species such as megamouth sharks (Megachasma pelagios), Pacific sleeper sharks (Somniosus pacificus), Greenland sharks (Somniosus microcephalus), and bluntnose sixgill sharks (Hexanchus griseus) broadly overlap in size with the tiger shark, but as these species are comparatively poorly studied, whether their typical mature size matches that of the tiger shark is unclear.

The great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran), a member of the same taxonomic order as the tiger shark, has a similar or even greater average body length, but is lighter and less bulky, with a maximum known weight coming from a heavily pregnant 4.4 m long individual at 580 kg.

Tiger shark teeth are unique with very sharp, pronounced serrations and an unmistakable sideways-pointing tip. Such dentition has developed to slice through flesh, bone, and other tough substances, such as turtle shells. Like most sharks, its teeth are continually replaced by rows of new teeth throughout the shark's life. Relative to the shark's size, tiger shark teeth are considerably shorter than those of a great white shark, but they are nearly as broad at the root as the great white's teeth and are arguably better suited to slicing through hard-surfaced prey.

A tiger shark generally has long fins to provide lift as the shark maneuvers through water, while the long upper tail provides bursts of speed. The tiger shark normally swims using small body movements.

Skin

The skin of a tiger shark can typically range from blue to light green with a white or light-yellow underbelly. The advantage of this is that when it is hunting for its prey, when prey looks at the shark from above, the shark will be camouflaged, since the water below is darker. When prey is below the shark and looks up the light underbelly will also camouflage the shark with the sunlight. This is known as countershading.

Dark spots and stripes are most visible in young sharks and fade as the shark matures. Its head is somewhat wedge-shaped, which makes it easy to turn quickly to one side. They have small pits on the snout which hold electroreceptors called the ampullae of Lorenzini, which enable them to detect electric fields, including the weak electrical impulses generated by prey, which helps them to hunt. Tiger sharks also have a sensory organ called a lateral line which extends on their flanks down most of the length of their sides.

The primary role of this structure is to detect minute vibrations in the water. These adaptations allow the tiger shark to hunt in darkness and detect hidden prey.

Sharks do not have moveable upper or lower eyelids, but the tiger shark—among other sharks—has a nictitating membrane, which is a clear eyelid that can cover the eye. A reflective layer behind the tiger shark's retina, called the tapetum lucidum, allows light-sensing cells a second chance to capture photons of visible light. This enhances vision in low-light conditions.

The tiger shark is often found close to the coast, mainly in tropical and subtropical waters throughout the world. Its behavior is primarily nomadic, but is guided by warmer currents, and it stays closer to the equator throughout the colder months.

It tends to stay in deep waters that line reefs, but it does move into channels to pursue prey in shallower waters. In the western Pacific Ocean, the shark has been found as far north as Japan and as far south as New Zealand. It has also been recorded in the Mediterranean Sea, but rarely, off Malaga (Spain), Sicily (Italy) and Libya.

Fuvahmulah, an island in the Maldives, has been identified as home to the world's largest known aggregation of tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier).

The finding is based on a long-term scientific study using non-invasive methods such as photo identification and laser photogrammetry, which recorded at least 239 individual tiger sharks in the waters around the island. The aggregation is considered unique due to its size and the high level of site fidelity shown by the sharks, particularly adult females.

Source: Wikipedia: Tiger shark — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_shark (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.