Fish
Whitetip reef shark
Triaenodon obesusConservation statusNear Threatened
DietReef fish, octopuses and crabs
LifespanAbout 25 years
Size and weight1.5-2 m
A thin shark with clear white tips on the fin on its back and on its tail. It is the shark you are most likely to meet while snorkeling.
White fin tip
What makes it specialIt can push water over its gills even when resting. So by day it sleeps in piles inside caves.
Surprising factIt hunts mainly at night and pulls prey out of cracks in the rock.
PopulationStable in the Galápagos Marine Reserve, while it is falling in other places.
Lava channels and underwater caves