River shark facts for kids
Quick facts for kids River shark |
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| Speartooth shark (Glyphis glyphis) at the Melbourne Aquarium | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Order: | Carcharhiniformes |
| Family: | Carcharhinidae |
| Genus: | Glyphis Agassiz, 1843 |
| Type species | |
| Carcharias (Prionodon) glyphis Müller & Henle, 1839
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Glyphis is a group of sharks known as river sharks. They belong to the family called Carcharhinidae. Scientists first thought there were five types of river sharks. But newer studies show there are only four types of river sharks still alive today.
It's hard to know exactly where these sharks live. They are very shy and like to stay hidden. We know they live in parts of South Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and Australia. One type, the Ganges shark, lives only in fresh water. Other types, like the northern river shark and the speartooth shark, can live in both fresh water and ocean water near the coast. Don't confuse these river sharks with the bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas), which is sometimes also called a river shark.
About River Sharks
River sharks are not well known to scientists. This makes it hard to protect them. They are in danger of disappearing forever. This is because we don't know much about how many there are or how they live.
One big problem for river sharks is that their homes are being damaged. This happens because of human buildings, pollution, and fishing. River sharks are some of the rarest sharks in the world. They have been found in nine different areas where the ocean meets rivers. These places often have muddy water and are not very salty. It seems that river sharks are usually born around October.
Types of River Sharks
Here are the different types of river sharks that scientists know about:
- Glyphis gangeticus (Ganges shark)
- Glyphis garricki (northern river shark)
- Glyphis glyphis (speartooth shark)
- Glyphis siamensis (Siamese River shark)
- †Glyphis hastalis (This shark is now extinct, meaning it no longer lives on Earth.)
- †Glyphis pagoda (This shark is also extinct.)
Images for kids
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Ganges shark (G. gangeticus)
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Northern river shark (G. garricki)
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Speartooth shark (G. glyphis)
See also
In Spanish: Tiburones de agua dulce para niños
