Leopard (Zebra) Shark

Môi trường sống: Sandy patches beside coral reefs; rests on the bottom by day facing into current, hunts the reef at night

Phạm vi phân bố: Tropical Indo-Pacific from East Africa and the Red Sea through Southeast Asia to northern Australia and the western Pacific

Hành vi: A gentle, torpid daytime resident, propped on its pectorals on sand with its ridged, spotted body in plain view. Adults wear leopard spots but hatch as striped 'zebras' — the source of the naming muddle between Indo-Pacific 'leopard' usage and Australia's 'zebra shark'. Swims with an eel-like wriggle when disturbed.

Chế độ ăn: Mollusks, crustaceans, small fish, and sea snakes, extracted from crevices with a flexible, wriggling body

Kích thước: thường vào khoảng 2.0 m; ghi nhận đến độ sâu 2.5 m (total length, nearly half of it a long, low tail).

Approach a resting shark low and from the front-side, stop outside touching distance, and leave before it bolts — repeated flushing burns the animal's energy and empties the site for everyone after you.

Endangered — inshore gillnetting has emptied much of Southeast Asia's habitat. A coalition of aquariums and scientists is now rewilding captive-bred pups in Raja Ampat, one of the first shark reintroduction programs anywhere.