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  • when you think of a shark

  • what do you picture in your mind do you

  • think of a big thing sticking out of the

  • water or maybe a huge set of sharp teeth

  • sharks are some of the most famous

  • animals in the ocean but do you know

  • what makes a shark shark

  • well for one thing all sharks are fish

  • that might not surprise you since they

  • live and swim in the water but sharks

  • are a special kind of fish one of the

  • things that makes them different from

  • other fish like goldfish is that sharks

  • have a special skeleton our skeletons

  • are made of bone and so are the

  • skeletons of most kinds of fish but a

  • shark skeleton isn't made of bone it's

  • made of cartilage and you have cartilage

  • in your body to you can feel it right

  • now touch the tip of your nose wiggling

  • around how's it feel

  • what about your ear can you bend it

  • you're sure cam because the tip of your

  • nose and your ear aren't filled with

  • bone they're filled with cartilage

  • cartilage is a lot lighter than bone and

  • it bends easily so having a skeleton

  • made of this stuff help sharks would

  • further and faster than if their

  • skeletons were made of bone now let's

  • look at another body part that sharks

  • are famous for their teeth have you ever

  • lost a baby tooth and then an adult

  • tooth grew in well sharks loser teeth

  • all the time throughout their entire

  • lives and they just keep growing new

  • ones how can they do that you and I just

  • have one row of teeth in her mouth but

  • sharks have a lot of rows of teeth on

  • the top and the bottom so when a shark

  • loses a tooth another tooth that's right

  • behind it can just move on up to take

  • its place because they always have new

  • teeth to replace the old ones some

  • sharks can lose thousands of teeth

  • during their lives alright the next cool

  • thing about sharks their skin if you

  • could rub the skin of a shark you'd find

  • that it would feel smooth here and your

  • hand in one direction but if you rub

  • your hand the other way it would feel

  • rough like a cat's talk that's because a

  • shark skin is covered in top body skills

  • that actually look a little like tiny

  • teeth these little scales are stacked on

  • top of each other like tiles on a route

  • this helps sharks swim through the water

  • quickly and quietly so those are some of

  • the things that all sharks have but

  • there are over 400

  • 50 types of sharks in the world and that

  • means a lot of differences to take a

  • look at this one it's called a whale

  • shark and it's the biggest shark there

  • is in fact is the largest fish in the

  • whole world

  • whale sharks can grow to be as long as a

  • school was but even though they're so

  • big they eat tiny plants and super small

  • animals called plankton that flow in the

  • water but not all sharks are as big as

  • the whale shark some can also be tiny

  • meet the dwarf lanternshark it's so

  • small it could fit in my hand this sharp

  • lives in the deep ocean where there's

  • very little light so it has big eyes to

  • help see in the dark plus it has a

  • really neat feature

  • yes special organs on its belly fins and

  • tail that actually glow scientists think

  • this might help the lanternshark Lauren

  • pray for it to eat

  • plus when it's in shallow water where

  • there's more light these blowing lights

  • can help it blend in to avoid predators

  • finally I'd like you to meet a very

  • special shark say hello to the Greenland

  • shark this big shark spends most of its

  • time swimming in very cold water hanging

  • out near the sea floor looking for an

  • easy snack but scientists have recently

  • discovered something amazing about these

  • animals Greenland sharks can live to be

  • up to 400 years old

  • of all the animals in the world with

  • backbones known as vertebrates Greenland

  • sharks live the longest at least that we

  • know what scientists are still

  • discovering new kinds of sharks all the

  • time so who knows what kind of super

  • sharks are still out there waiting to be

  • found

  • what's your favorite animal do you want

  • to learn more about it just ask a

  • grown-up to help you and leave a comment

  • below or send us an email to kids at the

  • size of dot-com we're excited to hear

  • from you

  • oh and we're also really excited because

  • we're making some changes to the fort so

  • stay tuned and we'll share a few

  • surprises with you in the upcoming weeks

  • thanks mostly excited here before

when you think of a shark

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