Shark facts - Wobbegongs!

There was previously thought to be just over 350 species of sharks, but genetic analysis has now put that number at over 400! Of course, when many people think of a shark, they perhaps imagine big, pelagic sharks such as the great white (Carcharodon carcharias). However sharks come in a wide range of shapes and sizes from the eel-like frilled shark (Chlamydoselachus anguineus) to the gentle, filter feeding basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus). One of the aims of this blog is to pass on a bit of information about some of these weird and wonderful sharks. 

Perhaps one of the hardest group of sharks to spot in the wild are the wobbegongs. Wobbegongs - or carpet sharks - belong to the family Orectolobidae. 

Wobbegongs can be very tricky to spot as they are very well camouflaged against the sea floor!

Wobbegongs are bottom dwelling sharks and spend a lot of time motionless on the sea floor. They are found in the Western Pacific - mostly in the waters around SE Asia and Australia and occupy tropical to temperate waters. They are primarily ambush predators and feed on bottom dwelling invertebrates such as cephalopods, crabs, lobsters and even bony fish.

Whilst they don't feed on humans and are generally quite placid animals, wobbegongs have been known to bite when provoked. Owing to the fact that they can occupy quite shallow water they can get stepped on quite easily and have been known to inflict minor injuries as a response. Divers are usually able to get very close to wobbegongs owing to the relaxed nature of the shark.

Of the 12 recognised species, 3 of them have been classified as Near Threatened in the IUCN Red List - the spotted wobbegong, ornate wobbegong and banded wobbegong. The remaining species are classified as Data Deficient. 

A close up of a wobbegong near Stradbroke Island, Brisbane

Wobbegongs can be found in many places around the Australian Coast. The little fella above was snapped on a trip I took with Manta Lodge and Scuba Centre from Stradbroke Island, Queensland.