Outline of sharks

A great white shark at Isla Guadalupe, Mexico

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to sharks:

Sharks (superorder Selachimorpha) are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 440 million years ago, before the time of the dinosaurs.^[1]

Fields that study sharks

Ichthyology – branch of zoology devoted to fish (including sharks)
Meristics – branch of ichthyology that relates to counting features of fish, such as the number of fins or scales

A shark, also called a "selachimorph", can be described as all of the following:

Animal – multicellular, eukaryotic organism of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. An animal's body plan eventually becomes fixed as it develops, although some types of animal undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most kinds of animal are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and independently.
- Chordate – Chordates (phylum Chordata) are animals which are either vertebrates or one of several closely related invertebrates.
  - Fish – gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate (or craniate) animal that lacks limbs with digits.
    - Chondrichthye (cartilaginous fish) – jawed fish with paired fins, paired nares, scales, two-chambered hearts, and skeletons made of cartilage rather than bone.
      - Elasmobranch – member of the subclass Elasmobranchii, which includes sharks, rays, and skates.
Predator – organism that attacks and feeds on prey (the organism that is attacked).^[2]
- Apex predator – some shark species are apex predators, that is, predators with no predators of their own, residing at the top of their food chain.^[3]

List of sharks Subdivisions of the biological classification Selachimorpha include:

The Philadelphia Inquirer report of Jersey Shore shark attack.

International Shark Attack File
List of fatal, unprovoked shark attacks in the United States
Jersey Shore shark attacks of 1916 – series of shark attacks along the coast of New Jersey between July 1 and July 12, 1916^[4]
Summer of the Shark – the name given to the summer of 2001 by American media outlets capitalizing on a bull shark attack and subsequent shark attacks ^[5]

Bodies of water in which sharks can be found include:
- Seas: all
- Freshwater – some species of shark can live both in seawater and freshwater, and include:
Depths: from the surface down to depths of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft).

A whale shark in the Georgia Aquarium

White Shark Cafe – remote mid-Pacific Ocean area noted as a winter and spring habitat of otherwise coastal great white sharks

Shark tank
Shark tunnel – underwater tunnel that passes through an aquarium that keeps sharks

Simplified diagram of shark net

Drum lines
Shark net – submerged net placed around beaches to reduce shark attacks on swimmers
Shark proof cage – cage from which a SCUBA diver can examine sharks more safely
Shark repellent – method of driving sharks from an area, object, person, or animal
- Magnetic shark repellent – use of permanent magnets to repel sharks
- Protective oceanic device – first successful electronic shark repellent
Shark suit

Shark fishing boat off the Galapagos, Ecuador

Drivers of the shark trade
Land-based shark fishing – fishing for sharks from land such as a beach, shoreline, jetty, pier, or bridge
Shark finning–the removal of shark fins for commercial purposes

One of the first species of shark to be protected was the Grey nurse shark

1992 Cageless shark-diving expedition – first publicized cageless dive with great white sharks which contributed to changing public opinions about the supposed "killing machine"
Shark Alliance – coalition of nongovernmental organizations dedicated to restoring and conserving shark populations by improving European fishing policy
Shark Conservation Act – proposed US law to protect sharks
Shark sanctuary – Palau's first-ever attempt to prohibit taking sharks within its territorial waters
Shark tourism – form of ecotourism showcasing sharks
Shark Trust – A UK organisation for conservation of sharks

Stronsay Beast – large, dead creature washed ashore on Stronsay, in the Orkney Islands, after a storm in 1808, later presumed to be a basking shark

Hans Hass, diving pioneer

Peter Benchley – author of the novel Jaws, later worked for shark conservation
Eugenie Clark – American ichthyologist researching poisonous fish and the behavior of sharks; popularly known as The Shark Lady
Leonard Compagno – international authority on shark taxonomy, best known for 1984 catalog of shark species (FAO)
Jacques-Yves Cousteau – French naval officer, explorer, ecologist, filmmaker, innovator, scientist, photographer, author and researcher who studied the sea and all forms of life in water including sharks
Ben Cropp – Australian former shark hunter, who stopped in 1962 to produce some 150 wildlife documentaries
Richard Ellis – American marine biologist, author, and illustrator.
Rodney Fox – Australian film maker, conservationist, survivor of great white shark attack and one of the world's foremost authorities on them
Andre Hartman – South African diving guide best known for free-diving unprotected with great white sharks
Hans Hass – diving pioneer, known for shark documentaries
Mike Rutzen – great white shark expert and outspoken champion of shark conservation; known for free diving unprotected with great white sharks
Ron & Valerie Taylor – ex-spearfishing champions who switched from killing to filming underwater documentaries
Rob Stewart (filmmaker) – Canadian photographer, filmmaker and conservationist. He was best known for making and directing the documentary film Sharkwater

^ Martin, R. Aidan. "Geologic Time". ReefQuest. Retrieved 2006-09-09.
^ Begon, M., Townsend, C., Harper, J. (1996). Ecology: Individuals, populations and communities (Third edition). Blackwell Science, London. ISBN 0-86542-845-X, ISBN 0-632-03801-2, ISBN 0-632-04393-8.
^ "apex predator". PBS. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
^ Fernicola, Twelve Days of Terror
^ "Summer of the Shark". Time. July 30, 2001. Retrieved May 20, 2010.