Common Thresher Shark - Alopias vulpinus
The Common Thresher Shark, Alopias vulpinus (Lamniformes - Alopiidae), is a species of shark virtually circumglobal, with a noted tolerance for cold waters. Common thresher sharks weigh 348 kg on average and can reach up to 500 kg. They range from 1.6 to 6 m in length, averaging 2.74 m. Up to 50 % of a thresher’s length is due to the characteristic enlarged upper lobe of its caudal fin. Alopias vulpinus is the largest of the thresher species.
This species is listed as Vulnerable globally because of their declining populations, as these sharks are especially vulnerable to fisheries exploitation (target and by-catch) because its epipelagic habitat occurs within the range of many largely unregulated and under-reported gillnet and longline fisheries, in which it is readily caught.
Photo credit: ©Norbert Probst | Locality: Brother Islands. Egypt, Red Sea (2013)