Carcharhinus longimanus (Poey, 1861)
Oceanic whitetip, 400cm

These large open-ocean sharks rarely come in to the reef, but are often seen offshore from fishing boats. Oceanic whitetips occasionally reported by divers are probably always or nearly always silvertips. Both species have white-tipped dorsal and pectoral fins, but those of the oceanic whitetip are much more rounded rather than pointed like those of the silvertip. The photo below was taken by Jay Lord of a large individual at a distance, following a pod of Pilot Whales several kilometers off the seaward side of Kwajalein.

Created 19 June 2019

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