What is a grey nurse shark?
The grey nurse shark is a large, docile shark often seen around rocky reefs and gutters along Australia's east coast. Despite its fierce, toothy appearance, it is not considered a threat to divers.
Grey nurse sharks grow to about three metres long. They have a bulky body and rows of long, ragged teeth that stick out of the mouth even when it is closed. They feed on fish, squid and crustaceans, mostly at night.
They often hover almost motionless near caves and gutters during the day. Divers can see them at sites such as Fish Rock and South Solitary Island in New South Wales, and Wolf Rock in Queensland.
Critically endangered
The east coast population is critically endangered. Numbers fell sharply in the twentieth century because the sharks were wrongly blamed for attacks and killed.
They breed very slowly. Inside the mother, the largest embryos eat their siblings, so only two pups are born.
Grey nurse sharks were the first sharks protected in the world, in 1984.
Did You Know?
Grey nurse sharks gulp air at the surface to help them hover in the water.